K-12 Panel 3: "Left Behind" Why Are We Ignoring the Needs of Dyslexic Students in This Country and How Can We Support Them?
Event Details:
Location
"Left Behind" Why Are We Ignoring the Needs of Dyslexic Students in This Country and How Can We Support Them?
Moderator: Yael Valek
Objectives:
- Learn which teaching methods work best for the widest range of students so that all students experience academic success.
- Understand how to train and support educators to deliver these methods in a public school setting.
Learn how to educate and uplift all dyslexic learners by engaging families, communities, educators, and policy makers to create equitable opportunities for all dyslexic learners.
Anna Toomey, Director, Left Behind, Filmmaker, Sandy Dog Productions
Anna Toomey is an independent filmmaker who started her career as an Emmy Award-winning producer for ABC News, Good Morning America, ABC News long-form unit, and Peter Jennings Reporting. She worked on projects including The Gun Fight, an inside look at the NRA, The Century, Beatles Anthology, and the six-part series In the Jury Room. Anna, developed and directed her first feature-length independent documentary, Left Behind, after her son was diagnosed with dyslexia. She discovered the inadequate resources for millions of children across the country. She owns her own production company, Sandy Dog Productions, where she works on independent film projects.
Kareem Weaver, Executive Director and Co-Founder, FULCRUM
Kareem Weaver is the Co-Founder & Executive Director of FULCRUM. He is an award-winning educator and community advocate with extensive experience leading schools and systems in district, juvenile justice, and managed-care settings. His advocacy is featured in the 2023 documentary The Right to Read. He has engaged with the Council of the Great City Schools, the College Board, and the Ontario Human Rights Commission on literacy as a civil right. He has offered diagnostic support to districts, states, and educator preparation programs; presented at over 150 conferences, departments of education, universities, and community organizations; and led field visits for system leaders, all in service of bringing clarity to the literacy crisis and illuminating the most productive path forward so that all children have access to Full and Complete Reading, which is a Universal Mandate (FULCRUM).
Naomi Peña, Director of Community & Family Engagement, Literacy Academy Collective
Naomi became involved in educational advocacy work when her oldest child was diagnosed with Dyslexia almost two decades ago and given an IEP. She quickly had to learn how to navigate the special education bureaucracy in NYC and experienced first-hand the overwhelming complexity of the system. Through support from organizations, she learned the special education law and lent herself as a support for other special education parents in her community. In 2015 she joined the Community Education Council for School District 1, where she served as President for five of her eight years. As President of the CEC, and as a proud product of public housing, she helped develop and implement NYC’s first district-wide Diversity in Admissions system, and the first Family Resource Center in District 1. She has a professional background in legal, marketing, operations, and finance.