Conference Schedule
Check-In and Registration
As the conference starts at 9:00 AM, with keynote speaker Dr. Molly Ness, registration will open at 8:30 AM in the lobby of Stayer.
At the conclusion of the conference at 2:30 PM, participants are welcome to tour the new Children's Dyslexia Center in the Lancaster House on campus, as well as speak to any presenters who may still be in attendance.
Keynote Speaker
Dr. Molly Ness, Phd. | "Why Won't Tricky Words Stick: Supporting Spelling and Decoding at Home and School"
9:00-10:30 am : Stayer MPR
Session 1 (10:45 am-12 pm)
Dr. Pam Kastner | "The Power of How: Maximizing Practice Through Instructional Routines to Increase Student Learning and Mastery"
Using explicit instructional routines empowers teachers in providing a seamless flow in delivering a lesson. Instructional routines embed opportunities for students to respond, guided practice with feedback, and immediate error correction. Students can focus on the content to be learned rather than the task, leading to increased student learning.
Instructional routines related to word recognition with embedded practice opportunities for participants are modeled and practiced. The design and delivery of this session places an emphasis on translating research-to-practice for practitioners.
Participants leave with a toolkit of instructional resources.
*Jacquelyn Taylor | "Authentically Me: My Learning Disability Journey from Struggle to Strength"
"This presentation will detail my personal journey with dyslexia and dyscalculia from childhood to adulthood. I will talk about school evaluations, early intervention, evidence-based reading curriculums, and accommodations — and why all of these are so important for a student with a learning disability to truly succeed. I will also explain what dyscalculia is and share some signs of it, since a lot of people do not know what it is or how much it can impact student's learning. Toward the end, I will offer some honest advice to both parents and teachers based on what I’ve learned through my own experiences.
The presentation is titled 'Authentically Me: My Learning Disability Journey From Struggle to Strength,' because I believe it’s important to be real — and to share both the struggles and the progress I’ve made along the way. Lastly, I will conclude with a Q&A so you can ask any questions you might have!"
Heather Brown | TBA
*Mark Weakland | "Dyslexia: A Spotlight on Spelling"
Students with dyslexia often have great difficulty with spelling. This session explores spelling instruction that works for all students but is especially helpful to those who have dyslexia. The session will include most or all of the following: spelling (orthography) and the “eternal triangle,” the most effective teaching techniques for teaching spelling, strategies that teach students how to spell not what to spell, the reading-writing-spelling connection, spelling strategies useful during writing, and many engaging activities that effectively teach word spellings and meanings.
*An asterisk denotes a zoom-based, online presentation
LUNCH 12-1 PM
There will be boxed lunches provided for those who wish to stay on campus during this time, which are available for purchase as part of registration ($18.10). However, participants are more than welcome to explore the area and grab something to eat. A few local options include:
Chick-fil-A (on campus), Starbucks (on campus), The Sugar Bowl, Jack's Family Tavern, Cactus Cafe, House of Pizza, Two Cousins, Nino's, Koshary Station, Subway, Tropical Smoothie Cafe, Wayback Burgers, Poke Station, China Wok, and more!
Session 2 (1:15-2:30 pm)
Dr. Stacey Irwin | "Voices from the School to Prison Pipeline"
The Film "Dyslexia Behind Bars" is now in production. This presentation will share some recorded interview segments from specialists and advocates that will be used in the film, once it is complete, along with information about the "school to prison" pipeline that were discovered during research. The filmmaker will also seek feedback from the audience about this topic.
Dr. Eric MacDonald | "Adding AI to Students' Strategy Toolbox"
Thinking about AI tools as we do learning strategies can be a useful framework for guiding students to effectively utilize these tools. This can be especially true for students with learning differences, particularly in the area of literacy. Learn about one teacher’s experience teaching students to use AI tools, especially for writing, and engage in a conversation about their potential to boost literacy and learning.
Michelle Trostle | "Beyond Phonics: Unlocking the Logic of English Spelling with Structured Word Inquiry"
Phonics instruction is essential for students with dyslexia—but it isn’t the whole story. English spelling is a morphophonemic system, shaped not only by sound (phonology) but also by meaning (morphology) and history (etymology). In this interactive workshop, participants will explore Structured Word Inquiry (SWI), a powerful approach that helps students uncover the logic behind words often labeled “irregular.” Through hands-on word investigations and practical classroom strategies, you’ll see how SWI complements structured literacy by deepening students’ understanding of grapheme-phoneme correspondences, strengthening vocabulary, and reducing confusion about spelling. Leave with tools to help your students not just memorize words, but truly make sense of them.
Heather Strunk | "Supporting High School and Post-Secondary Neurodiverse Students"
Neurodiverse students bring creativity, insight, and resilience to high school and college classrooms, but they may also face barriers related to executive functioning, processing speed, or self-advocacy beyond reading and writing. In this session, participants will explore practical instructional and advising strategies that make learning more accessible for students with ADHD, dyslexia, autism spectrum differences, and related learning profiles.
*Erin Eighmy | "Vocabulary: The Linchpin of Comprehension"
In an age when every student has a dictionary in their pocket, building a rich lexicon remains critical for reading comprehension. Text comprehension requires instant access to word meanings. Your brain can retrieve word meanings in just 200 milliseconds, faster than you can reach for that device. A rich vocabulary reduces cognitive load by allowing the brain to focus on constructing meaning and exerting less effort decoding and deciphering word meaning. Once students master the alphabetic code, vocabulary becomes the single most powerful predictor of reading success, serving as the essential bridge between word-level processes and higher-level comprehension across all subject areas. Direct vocabulary instruction has an impressive record of not just amassing definitions, but building background knowledge, improving fluency and aiding inference making that fuel academic achievement.
This practitioner-focused session explores lexical quality research, strategic word selection using Beck's vocabulary tiers, and hands-on practice with Great Middle Schools' vocabulary mapping tool for systematic instruction planning. Participants will also discover how artificial intelligence can streamline vocabulary planning, making robust instruction both efficient and sustainable.
*An asterisk denotes a zoom-based, online presentation