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Dr. Nathan Clemens (Keynote Speaker)- Nathan Clemens, Ph.D., is an associate professor in the Department of Special Education at the University of Texas at Austin. Dr. Clemens' research and teaching focuses on improving instruction and intervention for students with reading difficulties (including dyslexia) in preschool through adolescence. More specifically, his work is aimed at improving teachers' use of assessment data to better understand their students' progress, and to help them align and individualize evidence-based interventions with their students' unique learning needs. Dr. Clemens is also interested in research that seeks to better understand interventions and key practices that are effective for students with the most intensive reading difficulties. He is the recipient of the 2010 Outstanding Dissertation Award and the 2015 Lightner Witmer Award from Division 16 of the American Psychological Association, and a Distinguished Achievement Award for Teaching from Texas A&M University. He is currently leading or co-leading federally-funded research projects aimed at improving our understanding of assessment and intervention for students that struggle in reading. Prior to arriving at The University of Texas, he was an assistant professor in the Department of Educational Psychology at Texas A&M University. He received his Ph.D. in school psychology from Lehigh University in 2009.
Dr. Jennifer Petrich (Featured Speaker) – Dyslexic students often face challenges with executive function that interfere with even the best designed reading interventions. Dr. Petrich uses her background in neuroscience and dyslexia therapy to help students become skilled readers. In her presentation, she will describe the features of executive function impairment in dyslexic students and how to best support these students in the classroom. She will also provide an overview of structured word inquiry as a tool for improving vocabulary and comprehension.
Ameer Baraka (Special Guest Speaker)- Born into abject poverty in New Orleans' most dangerous and most impoverished public housing project, the Calliope Houses, the prospects for Baraka's future could not have been more bleak. Before going off to prison to serve a 30 year sentence, his father introduced Baraka to drug use and drug sales as a means of survival. Baraka's mother, unaware of his dyslexia, called Baraka dumb and stupid when he could not read as well as his siblings and classmates. He failed at school and dropped out in the seventh grade. His own life spiraled out of control such that he faced a 60 year prison sentence for crimes he committed as a juvenile, but for which he was tried as an adult. He was an undiagnosed dyslexic until, at age 23, in prison, and functionally illiterate, he was diagnosed with dyslexia and was told by a fellow inmate that, unlike any other inmate he had met before, Baraka could be somebody if he applied himself. He earned his GED behind bars and was released after four years with the help and intervention of a sympathetic, compassionate jurist who saw Baraka's potential for greatness.
Having vowed to not just be a good citizen if given a second chance at life, but rather, to be a true leader on a national and even a global scale, Baraka has achieved that and then some. Not only has he gone from illiteracy to becoming an excellent reader, he is a writer and is the author of the critically acclaimed memoir, "The Life I Chose - The Streets Lied To Me," he is a renowned television and film actor who has acted alongside three different Academy Award winners in the more than thirty feature films and television shows in which he has appeared, he has been profiled by Oprah Winfrey, his book has been made mandatory reading for entire police departments and schools, he has testified before the U.S. Congress on the issue of dyslexia, he has launched a special police involved camp program for at-risk youth (www.CopCamps.com), he works with juvenile justice programs throughout the United States, he works with city, state, and national legislators to influence learning disability legislation and policy, and he brings dyslexia screening and treatment directly to school systems and to jails and prisons around the country. Affectionately known as "The Prison Coach," (http://bit.ly/AmeerBaraka-ThePrisonCoach), the Education and Testing Division of the New Orleans Police Department has partnered with Baraka's 501(c)(3) Dyslexia Awareness Foundation to help police cadets who struggle with dyslexia to improve their reading and writing skills so as to be able to pass the NOPD's Police Entrance Exam.
Concepcion "Como" Molina, EdD, Senior Technical Assistance Consultant at the American Institutes for Research (Guest Speaker)- Concepcion Molina is a senior technical assistance consultant at AIR. His primary expertise and responsibilities focus on mathematics education. He has acquired expertise in a wide spectrum of additional areas through his work with both the Texas and Southeast Comprehensive Centers. Examples include the delivery of the initial training and follow-up webinars on the Working Systemically approach in Texas, professional development of a Georgia SEA initiative to assist low-performing schools raise student performance by building student thinking skills using Thinking Maps®, design and delivery of professional development sessions focused on dropout prevention and increasing graduation rates in Alabama, and the delivery of professional development sessions and dissemination webinars for an Early Warning Data System in Texas that identifies at-risk students and connects them to appropriate intervention strategies.
Dr. Molina came to AIR and SEDL, which merged with AIR in 2015, directly from the classroom after 14 years of high school mathematics instruction. In his seven years as a program specialist in SEDL’s Southwest Consortium for the Improvement of Mathematics and Science Teaching, Dr. Molina worked primarily with elementary and middle school teachers. His high school expertise enabled him to make vertical K–12 connections of multiple mathematics concepts. That, coupled with scientifically based research, resulted in the design, piloting, and delivery of multiple professional development trainings focused on improving the mathematics content knowledge of teachers while simultaneously modeling effective instructional practices.
Because of his experience as a student with limited English, Dr. Molina has a unique perspective that led to the development of multiple professional development trainings focused on the impact of language in the learning and instruction of mathematics. This approach also led to his writing of The Problem With Math Is English: A Language-Focused Approach to Helping All Students Develop a Deeper Understanding of Mathematics via a collaboration between SEDL and a national publisher. Dr. Molina has a keen interest in the development of standards that can also serve as a useful teaching guide. The focus on the improvement of teachers’ mathematics content knowledge guides his work and also resulted in A Qualitative Case Study of the Subject Matter Knowledge of Central Texas Middle School Mathematics Teachers, his doctoral dissertation completed in 2004.
Dr. Rachel Robillard (Guest speaker)- Dr. Robillard was born in Texas, raised in Venezuela, made it to Austin for college, and never left. She taught in several AISD schools before completing her Master’s in Curriculum & Instruction with a focus on Educational Administration, Early Childhood Education and Bilingual Education. She was the first principal of St. Theresa’s School (Austin) before leaving to work in the private sector as a trainer/administrative supervisor for a large business-products company. Dr. Robillard returned to school to earn a Master’s degree in Program Evaluation, and a PhD in Educational Psychology (School Psychology/Neuropsychology). She completed a Post-Doctoral Fellowship in Neuropsychology at Texas NeuroRehab Center (TNC) and continues to be on staff since that time.
Dr. Robillard has served as a School Psychologist in the Austin-ISD and Eanes-ISD school districts, and has taught and supervised in the Teacher Preparation Program at the University of Texas, as well as in the Educational Psychology Departments (Neuropsychology and Bilingual School Psychology) at both the University of Texas and Texas State University. Dr. Robillard led the 504 Services Department in Austin-ISD for several years, revamping the district’s approach to dyslexia evaluation and 504 Service supports, including improving compliance for providing accommodations and intervention for students with disabilities, as well as collaborating with all departments to better serve students with disabilities with social/emotional supports in addition to academic intervention.
Dr. Robillard retired from public school service in 2017, and is devoting time and effort to help to start IMPACT Dyslexia, a non-profit organization that focuses on continuing the work of early identification of dyslexic individuals, along with implementation of services and supports throughout the lifespan. She continues to run a private practice in Austin that includes neuropsychological evaluation, evidence-based therapy, and parent consultation/coaching.
Cherry Lee, M.Ed., LDT, CALT, Educational Diagnostician (Guest Speaker)- Cherry C. Lee is a fourth generation native Austinite, graduating from Anderson High School in Austin ISD (Go Trojans!). She graduated from Austin College in Sherman, Texas in 1995 with a B.A. in Sociology and Midwestern State University in 2016 with a Masters in Special Education with a focus in dyslexia and educational diagnostics. She completed Academic Language Therapy Training in 2016 and is a Certified Academic Language Therapist (CALT), an Educational Diagnostician, and a Licensed Dyslexia Therapist. She has worked as a special education teacher, general education teacher, reading interventionist, and diagnostician. Currently, she is pursuing her doctorate in education and serves as a Dyslexia Specialist for the Texas Education Agency (TEA). She is a mom to three daughters - the youngest with dyslexia and dysgraphia.
Laura Barrera, M.A., Special Education Teacher (Guest Speaker)- Laura Barrera is currently entering her 18th year as a special education teacher at Mills Elementary. She earned her Bachelor’s degree in Psychology from St. Edward’s University and her Master’s degree in Clinical Psychology from St. Mary’s University. Prior to entering the field of education, she worked as an associate clinical psychologist for the Texas Department of Mental Health and Mental Retardation. Laura earned her principal certification in August 2016 through the Region 13 Principal Certification Network. In her work as a special education teacher, Laura developed a strong passion for empowering students with special needs. As a result, three years ago, Laura developed and continues to implement a weekly self-advocacy group for her special education students. In this group, Laura works with her students on such topics as understanding self-awareness and self-advocacy, right and responsibilities, understanding disabilities, understanding IEP’s, and communication skills. In her spare time, Laura enjoys spending time with her son, her dog, and her friends, engaging in health and fitness activities, and traveling, especially to her favorite beach in Turks and Caicos.
Suzann P. Vera, M.S. Ed., CALT, IDA/CDT, LDT (Guest Speaker)- Suzann Vera has been a Literacy Specialist and Teacher Trainer in public schools for over 23 years. As a nationally certified Dyslexia Therapist and Certified Academic Language Therapist she was named Cowan Teacher of the Year and Austin ISD Semi Finalist by her colleagues in 2016, received the national Winslow Coyne Reitnouer Excellence in Teaching Award in 2017, and is a 2018 State of Texas Semifinalist of the HEB Excellence in Education award. She is Mom to a brilliant creative dyslexic middle school scholar, an executive board member of IDA Austin, and co-founder of Raising Readers Cowan.
Kay Tepera, M.Ed . (Guest speaker)- Formerly a high school technology teacher, Kay has since served at the Arkansas Department of Education in the Research and Technology Division and at the district level as technology coordinator. For the past 5 years, Kay has been providing software solutions to school districts across Texas and 5 other states. Kay’s passion is bringing technology solutions into the hands of teachers and students that support student learning. Currently she works for TextHelp, a progressively forward technology company providing solutions to individuals of all ages.
Kelly O'Mullan, M.Ed., LDT, CALT-QI (Guest Speaker)-
Dyslexia Center of Austin
Kelly earned a B.A. in English Literature, a lifetime TX teaching certification, and an M.Ed. in Secondary Language Arts Education from UT Austin. She trained at the Scottish Rite Dyslexia Center of Austin and became a Certified Academic Language Therapist and Licensed Dyslexia Therapist in 2011. Upon completion of her training, Kelly started KO Dyslexia Therapy, PLLC to provide dyslexia therapy to students in both public and private schools throughout Austin. In 2014, Kelly co-founded Dyslexia Center of Austin (DCA), an IMSLEC accredited 501(c)3 nonprofit organization. DCA's mission is to support the educational, emotional, and social well-being of students with dyslexia and related disorders. DCA offers multisensory, structured language training for teachers and therapists, provides free dyslexia therapy to students in an after-school community setting, consults with school districts on best practices, promotes dyslexia awareness, and connects parents, teachers and the Central Texas community with resources, referrals, and outreach opportunities. Currently, Kelly is Co-Executive Director/Qualified Instructor at DCA and a private dyslexia therapist at Trinity Episcopal School. She is also the proud mom of two children with dyslexia, both Take Flight graduates.
Matthew Hattoon, M.Ed. (Guest Speaker)-Matt has been an Outreach Coordinator for Bookshare/Accessible Books for Texas since 2015, helping educators, students, and parents throughout Central Texas remove barriers to reading. Prior to joining Bookshare, Matt had many years’ experience as a Classroom Teacher, Campus Dyslexia Specialist, District Instructional Technology Facilitator, Curriculum and Technology Integration Specialist, and as a Campus Dyslexia/ 504 Coordinator and Instructional Coach, responsible for the intake, assessment, and instruction of Dyslexic students.
Matt has extensive Instructional Technology experience, in both special and regular education settings. In particular, he has expertise in the use of mobile devices in the classroom. Well versed in program administration and training, Matt is passionate about using technology as a tool to facilitate and enhance learning, particularly literacy.
Matt has presented at many different conferences and professional development workshops, including LDA, TCEA, Tots and Technology, and TXDLA. Matt earned a Bachelor of Science in Reading/ Elementary Education from TX. State University, and a M.Ed. in Curriculum and Instruction / Instructional Technology from Houston Baptist University. Matt is an Apple and Google certified teacher and lives in New Braunfels with an exceptional third-grade teacher and a spoiled rotten dog.
Jenny Falke, Learning Ally Manager (Guest Speaker)- Jenny Falke is a manager at Learning Ally. During her 10+ years in the nonprofit organization, Jenny has dedicated her career to empowering struggling readers to excel academically and to supporting the educators who believe in them. She oversees communication initiatives to help schools implement Learning Ally's human-read audiobooks with fidelity by ensuring that a suite of educator resources are available at their fingertips. In this role, Jenny has worked with various authors to hold events to encourage reading and helped to design motivational reading reward programs to encourage students to build strong reading habits. She also serves on Learning Ally's Excellence in Teaching Award committee helping to recognize and honor educators for supporting readers who learn differently. Jenny was a local Austinite for 5 years graduating from the College of Communication at The University of Texas, Austin.
Kristy Mathieu, CALT (Guest Speaker)- Kristy earned her B.A from Texas A&M University in 1991. She has a lifetime TX teaching certification in both general education and special education. She also trained at the Scottish Rite Dyslexia Center of Austin and became a Certified Academic Language Therapist and Licensed Dyslexia Therapist. Kristy is currently a special education teacher at Fair Oaks Ranch Elementary in Boerne ISD. She is passionate about helping children with dyslexia and other learning difference. Prior to this year, she was a third grade inclusion teacher at Kiker Elementary in Austin ISD. She is passionate about ensuring that students with the characteristics of dyslexia have access to the tools that they need to be successful in the general education classroom. She has worked as a special education teacher, general education teacher and reading interventionist.
Regina Staffa, B.B.A, CALT (Guest Speaker)- is the mother of three dyslexic children and a licensed dyslexia therapist. She received her certified academic language therapist training from the Scottish Rite Learning Center of Austin in 2009. She is a member of ALTA – Academic Language Therapy Association and IDA – International Dyslexia Association. She is a board member of the local Austin IDA branch since 2007.
She founded of an early reading intervention program at Mills Elementary in AISD, Roaring Readers , co-founder of a parent support group at Mills Elementary, PDL - Parents of Different Learners, founder of the Summer Reading Rocks program at Mills Elementary, recipient of Austin Branch of IDA Scholarship 2007 & 2008, winner of the Aylett Royal Cox scholarship from ALTA 2008, voted finalist for Tutor of the Year in Austin Independent School District 2007 and Finalist for Volunteer of the Year Austin Independent School District 2008. She serves on the Executive Committee of the Special Education Advisory Council for Austin Independent School District as an active advocate for children with special needs and heads a sub-committee for parents of children identified as learning disabled in all areas of academics.
She has been a speaker at the Texas Education Agency 2009 Dyslexia conference and a presenter at the International Dyslexia Association annual convention in 2010 sharing how parents can initiate and provide early reading support to their child’s school.
Her training includes the Take Flight Comprehensive Dyslexia Intervention Program, Rite Flight: A Fluency and Comprehension Program for Effective Reading Instruction and Pre-Flight: A Introduction for Young Students to Take Flight: A Comprehensive Intervention for Students with Dyslexia emphasizing phonemic Awareness and Comprehension program all developed by the staff of the Luke Waites Center for Dyslexia and Learning Disorders at the Scottish Rite Hospital for Children (TSRHC) in Dallas, Texas. She uses systematic, direct, explicit and multi-sensory instruction in all of her therapy sessions based on the Orton-Gillingham instructional methodology.
She has received training in Handwriting Without Tears and TAKS for Writing Success by Neuhaus Education Center in Houston which as used as part of an her interventions with children diagnosed with dysgraphia or difficulty with written expression. She provides multi-sensory typing instruction as well as information on how to use compensatory strategies for written expression and study skills which is beneficial for children with dyslexia, dysgraphia, learning disorders and attention deficit disorders.
Ms. Staffa received her Bachelor of Business Administration in Accounting from Texas State University, San Marcos, Texas. Her prior work experience included ten years in the newspaper industry in various management positions including Senior Manager of Circulation Sales and Marketing at the Houston Chronicle, Houston, Texas.
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