We are looking forward to sharing insights about dyslexia with you on February 8th.
Check out the expertise that will be “in the room.”
Speakers in Order of Appearance
Sara Stinchcomb
Ms. Stinchcomb is a student at Millersville University majoring in Mathematics. She was diagnosed with dyslexia at age 7 and has since tackled many of the challenges of dyslexia.
Dr. Jill Craven
Dr. Craven is a Millersville University English professor. She received her Doctorate In Comparative Literature from the University of North Carolina Chapel Hill. She is Chair of the English Department and a parent of a dyslexic child. She is the founder and organizer of this conference.
Dr. Janet Josephson
Dr. Janet Josephson is an associate professor in the MU Department of Early, Middle, and Exceptional Education (EMEE). She conducts research in Universal Designs for Learning, behavior management for inclusive settings, and the experience of pre-service teachers in field placements. In previous years, she had worked as a special education teacher in New York and Philadelphia.
Dr. Margaret Kay
Margaret J. Kay, Ed.D. NCSP, FABPS is a licensed psychologist in PA and DE, a Nationally Certified School Psychologist, and a Fellow of the American Board of Psychological Specialties with Forensic Specialization in Educational and School Psychology. Dr. Kay has been in private practice since 1980 and performs Independent Educational Evaluations (IEE’s) for school-age children, college students, and adults with language-based learning disorders of the dyslexic type.
Rebecca Warner
Rebecca Warner is a founding member of Decoding Dyslexia Virginia and the creator of the Dyslexia Symbol pqbd. A graduate from Hampshire College in Amherst, MA, and a jewelry designer by trade, Rebecca’s advocacy began about 10 years ago as she began navigating her two sons through public school with dyslexia and ADHD. She serves on the Special Education Advocacy Committee with the Virginia Department of Education and is a partner with the Dyslexia Friendly Libraries of Virginia, but her passion is connecting with parents who are trying to support their dyslexic children. “Apparently it DOES take a village.”
Lauren Maffett, M.Ed
Lauren Maffett is a Pennsylvania-certified public school teacher with a master’s degree as a Reading Specialist. She currently works as a preschool director. She has two dyslexic children of her own. In addition, she is a Certified Dyslexia Practitioner with the Children’s Dyslexia Center and co-founder of Lancaster Reading Solutions, LLC.
Rachel Moore, MD
Rachel Moore has worked as a family physician, an artist musician, and a teacher. She lives with her daughter and husband, who both have dyslexia. She is a Certified Dyslexia Practitioner with the Children’s Dyslexia Center and co-founder of Lancaster Reading Solutions, LLC.
Hollie Woodard
Hollie Woodard is a high school English teacher and technology coach from the Council Rock School District in Bucks County, Pennsylvania. She is the PAECT Advocacy Chair, 2017 Keystone Technology Star, 2018 and 2019 Keystone Technology Star Lead Learner, and a member of PTAC and Decoding Dyslexia PA. As the mother of a special needs child, she is a passionate dyslexia advocate and credits much of her teaching innovation to her desire to meet the needs of her most vulnerable students.
Dr. Stacey Irwin
Dr. Stacey Irwin is Professor in the Media & Broadcasting program at Millersville University where she teaches a variety of courses in media production, public speaking, and leadership. Her husband and daughter are unique learners and the inspiration for her documentary, Raising Faith: Stories About Dyslexia, released in 2019. She hosts the dyslexiastories.com website where she shares information about the film and the forthcoming Dyslexia Stories podcast.
Heather Hinkel
Heather Hinkel has been the Director of the Children’s Dyslexia Center of Lancaster since 2013. She received her Certified Dyslexia Practitioner-1 (CDP-1) certification in 2008 and her CDP-2 certification in 2012. In 2015, she received certification as an Instructor of Practitioners and has been certifying adults as dyslexia practitioners at both the initial and advanced levels through the Children’s Dyslexia Centers. She has helped students of all ages overcome challenges associated with dyslexia.
Angela Kirby
Angela Kirby is the PaTTAN (Pennsylvania Training and Technical Assistance Center)- Harrisburg Office Director and has held this position since 2008. She has previously worked as a teacher, administrator, educational consultant and special assistant to the Pennsylvania Secretary of Education.
Daphne Uliana
Inspired by struggles with her three dyslexic children, Daphne along with other advocates helped to pass Act 69 of 2014, which established a pilot program to screen all children for reading difficulty in Pennsylvania. In 2018, she helped to pass a two-year extension for the pilot program, and she–along with other parent advocates–was instrumental in having an audio version of the Pennsylvania driver’s manual placed online. In 2018, Daphne started the Dyslexia and Literacy Network, an all-volunteer nonprofit to help parents who have children with dyslexia, bring more awareness of dyslexia and advocate for change.
Dr. Sara Haas
Dr. Sara Haas is a licensed child psychologist in PA who specializes in treatment and evaluations for toddlers through young adults with behavioral and attention struggles. As an established researcher and as a private practice owner (CenterForActiveMinds.com), Dr. Haas often sees clients with dyslexia and co-occurring ADHD and/or anxiety. She is dedicated to empowering youth and young adults to overcome their academic and behavioral challenges. A Buffalo, NY native, she has been sought after for many therapist and teaching positions locally, including positions at Penn State Hershey, Penn State Harrisburg, Dickinson College, and Elizabethtown College.
Kevin Ghaffari
Kevin Ghaffari has been teaching middle and high school students with reading challenges for over 20 years. He has taught in public and private schools in California, New York, Maryland, and, now, Pennsylvania. He is currently teaching at Wheatland Middle School in Lancaster.
Abby Rissinger
Abby Rissinger is a Millersville student with dyslexia.
Faith Irwin
Faith Irwin is a Millersville student with dyslexia. She is the inspiration for the documentary “Raising Faith: Stories about Dyslexia” which focuses on dyslexia and how it presents in children, along with the challenges dyslexia poses.
Katie Shuey
Katie Shuey has been working at The Janus School for four years. In 2012 she earned a Bachelor’s Degree in Early Childhood Education from Stevenson University in Baltimore, Maryland. Katie got her first teaching job at a public school in Baltimore County. After two years, she decided she wanted to dedicate her time to children who learn differently. She transferred to The Odyssey School in Baltimore, MD, focusing on dyslexia and a variety of learning differences. After two years at the Odyssey School, Katie moved to Pennsylvania for some life opportunities. Katie loves working at The Janus School where she can teach ALL learners and put her students first.
Jen Risser
Jen Risser has been a teacher and Reading Specialist at the Janus School for 19 years. She graduated from Millersville University with a Bachelor’s degree and a certification in Elementary and Early Childhood Education and a Master’s degree in Reading and Language Arts and a certification as a Reading Specialist.
Organizations
Decoding Dyslexia is a grassroots movement of parents concerned with the limited access dyslexic students have in public schools to services, technologies, and reading programs that truly work for them. Decoding Dyslexia PA is led by volunteer parents and other interested people who work together to increase awareness of dyslexia and related neurolinguistic learning disabilities; to educate parents, educators and policy makers; and to advocate for children with dyslexia. Chapters of Decoding Dyslexia are in every state in the USA, and the movement has spread to other countries, such as Canada.
Children’s Dyslexia Center
Since opening its doors in 2002, the Children’s Dyslexia Center of Lancaster has helped remediate reading and written language skills of over 200 children, and trained nearly 50 tutors. Housed inside the Masonic Center of Lancaster County on Chestnut Street, the Children’s Dyslexia Center of Lancaster operates as a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization and tutors children for free on a first-come, first-served basis regardless of race, ethnicity, economic status, gender, or religious affiliation.
The Janus School
The Janus School is an independent and accredited day school offering a core academic program to students in central Pennsylvania with learning differences such as language- or math-based learning disabilities, ADHD, high functioning autism, executive function difficulties, nonverbal learning disorders, or auditory processing disorder. The Janus School aims to inspire, prepare, and uplift students who learn differently to become thriving participants in diverse communities, empowered by their educations and enabled to succeed.
Lancaster Reading Solutions, LLC
Lancaster Reading Solutions offers private lessons and group lessons for students with dyslexia.