The Learning Disabilities Association of America recently developed comments to submit to the Federal Commission on School Safety on how to improve safety in our schools and specifically how to address the needs of students with learning disabilities in a safe school environment.
LDA Opposes Delay in Implementation of Department of Education’s Guidelines
LDA recently submitted a letter in response to the U.S. Department of Education’s proposal to delay implementation of guidelines for public schools for identifying, monitoring and addressing disproportionality in special education identification, placement and discipline. LDA opposes this delay. Click here to find out why.
New Jersey Resident Receives National Educator of the Year Award
MEDIA CONTACT: Mary-Clare Reynolds, Executive Director
Telephone: 412-341-1515, extension 206
Email: mcreynolds@ldaamerica.org
Website: www.ldaamerica.org
Steven Korner Named Educator of the Year by Learning Disabilities Association of America
Pittsburgh, PA (March 8, 2018) – Steven Korner, PhD, was presented the Sam Kirk Educator of the Year Award during the 55th Annual Learning Disabilities of America (LDA) Conference, February 21-24, in Atlanta, Georgia. Korner, a licensed psychologist in private practice, is Coordinator of Special Education at the Harrington Park School District in Harrington Park, NJ.
Korner has been working to build a Response to the Right Intervention (RTRI) program based upon neuropsychological principles and a neurocognitive model. He is a leader of a legislative initiative supported by four of the largest professional associations in New Jersey to add the federal “third option” to the special education code. He offers workshops and trainings throughout the state with the goal of providing support to all children and teachers.
The Educator of the Year Award is given in memory of Dr. Samuel A. Kirk, pioneer in the field of special education. In 1963, Kirk proposed the term “learning disability” to describe children who have disorders in language, speech, reading, and associated communication skills. LDA annually presents its award to an educator at local, state, or national levels who has made outstanding contributions to the education of persons with learning disabilities.
According to Korner, getting to the bottom of a student’s learning problems requires a kind of detective work, and he finds the neuropsychological evaluation an invaluable investigative tool. “This kind of assessment not only identifies a student’s patterns of strengths and weaknesses but links these to accommodations and instructional practices–offering teachers, parents, and tutors the most effective ways to address learning and performance problems.”
Beginning his career as an elementary school teacher when special education did not exist and a neurocognitive understanding of learning was in its infancy, Korner used his creativity and avocation as a musician to catch and sustain the attention of struggling students. He earned a doctorate from the University of Pennsylvania and has been in private practice as a licensed psychologist for 40 years, specializing in child, family, and marital psychotherapy and psycho-educational and neuropsychological evaluations.
Appointments have included Director of the Child and Family Unit, Benjamin Rush Center in Philadelphia; Director of Psychology and Assistant Professor of Psychiatry at New York Medical College-Metropolitan Hospital Center, New York City; and Associate Professor (tenured), Doctoral Program in Child-Clinical Psychology and Director, School Psychology Program, Seton Hall University.
LDA’s annual conference on learning disabilities is a comprehensive resource for parents, educators, adults with LD, and professionals. Experts from across the country are featured speakers in more than 200 sessions looking at learning disabilities as they impact the individual across the lifespan. Topics include assessment and evaluation, effective instruction, use of technology, parent and family issues, transition to post-secondary education, advocacy and public policy, early childhood, cultural diversity, professional development, mental health, and much more. LDA’s 56th Annual International Conference will take place February 18-21, 2019 in Ft. Worth, Texas.
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About the Learning Disabilities Association of America:
The Learning Disabilities Association of America (LDA) is a non-profit organization of parents, educators, adults with learning disabilities, and professionals providing support, information, and advocacy on behalf of individuals with learning disabilities. For further information, go to www.ldaamerica.org.
Princeton Junction Resident Receives National Award
MEDIA CONTACT: Mary-Clare Reynolds, Executive Director
Telephone: 412-341-1515, extension 206
Email: mcreynolds@ldaamerica.org
Website: www.ldaamerica.org
Mark Brugger Presented Harrison Sylvester Award by Learning Disabilities Association of America
Pittsburgh, PA (March 8, 2018) – Mark Brugger of Princeton Junction, NJ, received the Harrison Sylvester Award during the 55th Annual International Learning Disabilities of America (LDA) Conference on Thursday, February 22nd at the Hilton Atlanta, in Atlanta, GA.
Brugger developed “Spotlight on Dyslexia,” an online conference that draws a national audience to the latest information on learning disabilities presented by nationally recognized speakers.
The Harrison Sylvester Award recipient is a person with learning disabilities who has shown a significant commitment and dedication to adults with learning disabilities and their issues. It honors Harry Sylvester, a gentle but strong voice in the field of learning disabilities. After struggling for most of his life, Sylvester discovered in his mid-50s, that he was an adult with learning disabilities. With this knowledge came an empowerment to help others and he dedicated his life to this work. As president of LDA, Sylvester carried LDA’s message of acceptance, understanding, and support throughout the country.
Like Sylvester, Mark Brugger struggled through high school without accommodations and specialized instruction. Encouraged by a teacher who recognized his potential, Brugger graduated valedictorian but at a heavy price: too many hours spent on homework, test anxiety, and limited friends or extracurricular activities. He went on to the University of Virginia (UVA) where he was identified with multiple learning disabilities.
Mentored by a School of Education professor who specialized in learning disabilities, Brugger graduated from UVA, earned an MBA from the University of Michigan, and continued on a career path he describes as “non-standard but rewarding” as a global software and telecom entrepreneur. He works with youths and adults who have special needs, he said, “to honor those educators and advocates that helped me become successful.”
Brugger designed “Dyslexia: Making It Personal,” a dyslexia simulation for the LDA New Jersey fall conference. It enables participants to experience low self-esteem, frustration, and the turn-off to learning that someone with dyslexia might have.
In addition to being the founder of “Spotlight on Dyslexia,” Brugger founded an online literacy training program for educators; volunteers with ProjectSearch.us, an internship program for students with disabilities who plan to transition directly to the workforce after HS; and co-founded SKIT –Special Kids Improvisational Theater which seeks to improve the social and communications skills of middle and high school students with disabilities.
In the attached photo of Brugger receiving the Harry Sylvester Award, is Julia Frost (center), Chair of LDA’s Adult Topics Committee, and Leslie Rubinstein (right), President of the Learning Disabilities Association of New Jersey (LDANJ). LDANJ will be holding a “Life after High School Transition Conference and Resource Expo”on June 3, 2018. More information can be found at www.LDANJ603.eventbrite.com.
LDA’s annual conference on learning disabilities is a comprehensive resource for parents, educators, adults with LD, and professionals. Experts from across the country are featured speakers in more than 200 sessions looking at learning disabilities as they impact the individual across the lifespan. Topics include assessment and evaluation, effective instruction, use of technology, parent and family issues, transition to post-secondary education, advocacy and public policy, early childhood, cultural diversity, professional development, mental health, and much more. LDA’s 56th Annual International Conference will take place February 18-21, 2019 in Ft. Worth, Texas.
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About the Learning Disabilities Association of America:
The Learning Disabilities Association of America (LDA) is a non-profit organization of parents, educators, adults with learning disabilities, and professionals providing support, information, and advocacy on behalf of individuals with learning disabilities. For further information, go to www.ldaamerica.org.
LDA Signs on as a Friend-of-the-Court in LSAT Accommodations Case
MEDIA CONTACT:
Mary-Clare Reynolds, Executive Director
Learning Disabilities Association of America
Telephone: 412-341-1515, extension 206
Email: mcreynolds@ldaamerica.org
Web: www.ldaamerica.org
Pittsburgh, PA (November 16, 2017) –The Learning Disabilities Association of America (LDA) has signed on as an amicus (friend-of-the-court) in a brief filed by Jo Anne Simon, PC, on November 3, 2017 with the U. S. District Court for the Northern District of California.
The amicus brief is in support of the request by California Department of Fair Employment and Housing (DFEH) for an extension of the Consent Decree stemming from its 2012 suit against the Law School Admissions Council (LSAC). DFEH was later joined in this suit by the U.S. Department of Justice. The suit alleged pervasive violations of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) in the administration of the Law School Admissions Test (LSAT).
In 2014, the parties entered into a Consent Decree, creating among other things certain requirements for the provision of accommodations, a victims’ compensation fund and specific provisions for monitoring and enforcement. In addition, a Best Practices panel was created to advise LSAC on policies and procedures to ensure future compliance with the law and the Consent Decree.
One of LDA’s missions is to create opportunities for success for all individuals affected by learning disabilities. Working to assure that all test applicants with learning disabilities obtain the accommodations allowed by law supports this mission. The LSAT case is important to all individuals with learning disabilities, and not just those who want to attend law school, because it establishes what the courts and the U.S. Department of Justice see as the standard for all testing accommodations and tests.
LSAC challenged many of the recommendations of the panel and on August 8, 2015, the District Court accepted all but minor portions of the panel’s report. LSAC was required to implement the Best Practices upheld by the Court starting with the December 2015 administration of the Law School Admissions Test (LSAT).
Since that time, the DFEH and the U.S. Department of Justice have identified several ways in which the LSAC has violated the Consent Decree. Efforts to resolve these violations have been largely unsuccessful and the DFEH has filed a request in the Northern District of California for an extension of the Consent Decree and other relief.
Simon, a former LDA Professional Advisory Board member and longtime member of LDA, filed the amicus curiae or “friend of the court” brief on behalf of 26 individuals and organizations. The brief is in support of the plaintiffs’ request for relief and stresses the importance of this relief as a matter of national importance.
LDA’s signing on as an amicus dovetails with LDA’s prior work to assure all test applicants with learning disabilities obtain the accommodations they need in compliance with the law. In 2016 LDA issued the report, “Stories from the Testing Room; High School Equivalency Exams: Accessibility of Accommodations for Persons with Learning Disabilities, February 2016.” In April 2016 this report was shared with the U.S. Department of Justice.
About the Learning Disabilities Association of America:
The Learning Disabilities Association (LDA) is a non-profit organization of parents, professionals and adults with learning disabilities providing support, information, and advocacy on behalf of individuals with learning disabilities. For further information go to www.ldaamerica.org.
LDA Submits Comments to U.S. Secretary of Education
The Learning Disabilities Association of America took the opportunity to submit comments regarding the U.S. Secretary of Education’s proposed supplemental priorities and definitions for discretionary grant programs (Fed. Register, Oct. 12, 2017).
LDA Weighs in on DACA
One in every five students has learning disabilities. The vision of LDA is to ensure all individuals with LD are empowered to thrive and participate fully in society. This vision extends to all children in our public and private schools regardless of their family background or status. To ensure all students continue to receive appropriate services, the LDA Board agreed to sign on to the following letter with a broad array of national education organizations.
LDA’s Maureen Swanson Testifies in Washington DC
Maureen Swanson, Healthy Children Project Director, testified in Washington, D.C. in September about the dangers of organohalogen flame retardants.
Toxic Chemicals in Macaroni and Cheese?!
Toxic chemicals called “phthalates” can harm babies’ brain development and were found in macaroni and cheese powder and in other cheese products! In fact, phthalates were found in eight of nine individual Kraft cheese products tested, and in other companies’ products too. Kraft is by far the largest producer of mac ‘n cheese.
LDA is part of a coalition asking Kraft to switch to safer processing and packaging to get these toxic chemicals out of their products and protect our children’s health. Parents and schools should never have to wonder if there are toxic chemicals in the mac ‘n cheese! Sign the petition here!
LDA Coordinates Leading Experts on Lead
Lead poisoning affects children in communities throughout the country; even low levels of lead can harm brain development, and result in learning disabilities and attention problems. The good news is lead poisoning is entirely preventable; we can solve this problem and protect children from lead poisoning once and for all. Last month, LDA convened a group of scientists and health experts to take those messages to Congress.
The group met with U.S. House and Senate offices to share a national strategy for eliminating lead poisoning in children. The experts published their recommendations for eliminating lead exposures in a May 15 article in the Journal of the American Medical Association Pediatrics. Maureen Swanson, LDA’s Healthy Children Project Director, is a contributing author. LDA and partner organizations also held a briefing for Congressional staffers.
The lead experts are part of Project TENDR (Targeting Environmental Neuro-Development Risks), co-directed by Maureen Swanson. Project TENDR is an alliance of scientists, health professionals and advocates, who in July 2016 published a consensus statement on the link between toxic chemicals and children’s neurodevelopmental disorders, such as ADHD, autism and learning disabilities.
Read Project TENDR’s lead recommendations here.
