KPJR Presents
DYSLEXIA AWARENESS MONTH VIRTUAL TOWN HALL
DYSLEXIA AWARENESS MONTH
“MAINTAINING PURPOSE AND MONITORING OUR PROGRESS”
Join us for a LIVE Virtual Town Hall exploring the continued efforts towards “Maintaining Purposes and Monitoring Our Progress” surrounding dyslexia. The sessions are for educators, administrators, parents, and guardians, legislators, students, community leaders and anyone interested in achieving actionable strategies, including culturally responsive teaching, curriculum representation, and the power of advocacy.
EVENT DETAILS
October 21, 2024
7pm-8:30pm GMT
2pm-3:30pm ET
1pm-2:30pm CT
11am-12:30pm PT
LOCATION: ZOOM Virtual via KPJR FILMS
TARGET AUDIENCE: Educators, administrators, parents and guardians, legislators, students, and community leaders.
REGION: US-UK
REGISTRATION IS FREE AND OPEN TO THE PUBLIC
The Big Picture Town Hall
Moderator: Dr. Keith Magee
Dyslexia Awareness Month: “Maintaining Purpose and Monitoring Our Progress”
Join us for a Virtual Town Hall exploring the continued vitality of “Maintaining Purpose and Monitoring Our Progress” surrounding dyslexia. The sessions are for educators, administrators, parents and guardians, legislators, students, community leaders, and anyone interested in achieving actionable strategies, including culturally responsive teaching, curriculum representation, and the power of advocacy.
Confirmed Participants Julie Washington, Julie Washington Julie Washington, Ph.D. (Irving, California)Dr. Washington is a Professor in the School of Education at the University of California – Irvine (UCI). She is a speech-language pathologist and a fellow of the American Speech Language Hearing Association. Dr. Washington directs the Learning Disabilities Research Innovation Hub funded by the National Institutes of Health, Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute on Child Health, and Human Development. She is also director of the Dialect, Poverty and Academic Success Lab at UCI. Currently, Dr. Washington’s research is focused on the intersection of literacy, language variation, and poverty. Her work focuses on understanding the role of cultural dialect in assessment, identification of reading disabilities in school-aged African American children and on disentangling the relationship between language production and comprehension on development of reading and early language skills for children growing up in poverty.
Kyle Redford Kyle Redford, MA (Northern California) https://ascd.org/people/kyle-redford
Kyle Redford, MA, has been an educator for over 30 years. She teaches fifth grade in Northern California and consults with schools nationally. In addition to her work as a writer and as education editor for the Yale Center for Dyslexia and Creativity, Redford has written extensively about teaching and learning for various publications, including Education Week. Redford’s passion for learning and thinking differences grew from challenges she encountered while shepherding her dyslexic son through school. As a teacher and as a parent, Redford’s goal is to share what she has learned—and continues to learn—about the most effective practices to support all learners.
Tracy Weeden Tracy White Weeden, Ed.D., Neuhaus Education Center (Houston, Texas)
Neuhaus Education Center was founded in 1980 by parents and teachers interested in bringing effective Orton-Gillingham-based reading instruction to Houston. They had just organized the Houston Branch of the Orton Society (currently the International Dyslexia Association) to gather information about appropriate instruction for their dyslexic students. Since the beginning, parents whose children were struggling to learn to read have called Neuhaus for information and direction on how to help their children. In response, the Family Support Office has grown to meet their needs. Family Support Coordinators respond to calls and emails for information. Monthly information presentations and annual seminars are scheduled to give parents more in-depth information.
Ameer Baraka Ameer Baraka (New Orleans, Louisiana)
Ameer Baraka is an award-winning and Daytime Emmy Nominated Actor, author, dyslexia advocate, youth mentor, and prison coach. Born to humble beginnings in New Orleans, Louisiana, Ameer had an early life that was as gloomy and as ill-fated as a young life could have been. In and out of the prison system as a kid for transgressions ranging from youthful indiscretions to major crimes, he was seemingly on a one-way trip to oblivion. Almost illiterate when he went to prison, he was diagnosed with dyslexia and learned to read in his mid-twenties while behind bars. Seeing how education and the ability to read have changed his life, Ameer is dedicated to inspiring young people with his message that they, too, can overcome meager beginnings and obstacles on their way to eventually triumph through hard work, dedication, the pursuit of education, and strong faith. Proud of every aspect of his life, including his brief stint in the Louisiana State Penitentiary, he now travels the world, speaking at colleges, universities, corporations, and youth organizations. He uses all his life experiences to increase dyslexia awareness.
Edward Keelan Edward Keelan, MBA (London, England)
Edward Keelan, known as “The Dyslexic Investor”, describes his journey as struggling 9-year-old dyslexic to becoming a successful businessman. He is a Partner at Octopus Ventures, one of Europe’s most active Venture Capital firms, based in London, UK. With the mission to invest in the people and ideas that will change the world. He started his career at Rolls-Royce before becoming part of the founding team at KorteQ, a start-up focused on knowledge management. In 2008, he joined Octopus and has since led investments into various sectors, from renewables to venture capital. He has a diversified background and has worked internationally, spending time in San Francisco. Edward holds an EMBA with distinction from Saïd Business School and several sector-specific professional qualifications. He has a passion for ensuring equality of opportunity and is a seasoned mentor within education. in 2020, he was named the mentor of the year for the South at the Career Ready awards.
Raychelle Johnson Rachelle Johnson, M.S., Ph.D. Candidate May 2027 (Tallahassee, Florida)
Rachelle Johnson is a developmental psychology Ph.D. candidate at Florida State University, funded as an IES Predoctoral Fellow at the Florida Center for Reading Research. She researches the contexts of children’s reading development, particularly among students with learning disabilities, and conducts this research using advanced quantitative methods. Her research focuses on understanding the environments and emotions children experience while reading. She is also a learning-disabled activist engaging in education policy efforts. She has a B.A. in Psychology from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln and an M.S. in Developmental Psychology from Florida State University. Her thesis was on “The role of home literacy environment in the reading achievement of children with and without learning disabilities.”
