Dyslexia Grant Award Program Application Options and Examples

 

School districts and open-enrollment charters can apply for funding to provide high-quality training to classroom teachers and administrators in meeting the needs of students with dyslexia. LEAs can apply solely for this funding option or both options A and B. 

Training topics and implementation could be combined in various ways with different groups of educators to meet a variety of needs on selected campuses or across the district or charter organization.

The term classroom teacher applies globally to a variety of school staff. This training option could target general classroom teachers, dyslexia practitioners, dyslexia therapists, special education teachers, instructional coaches, assessment personnel, and other school staff.

The term administrators applies to principals, assistant principals, and district level administrators (i.e., directors, coordinators, and specialists).

The following are examples of training topics in meeting the needs of students with dyslexia or related disorders. This is not an exhaustive list.

The training topics might include:

  • Definitions, characteristics, and common risk factors of dyslexia to support early identification and intervention
  • Evidence-based components and the delivery of dyslexia instruction as provided in the Dyslexia Handbook
  • Interpretation of screening results and at-risk indicators to guide instruction
  • Science of reading
  • Evaluating dyslexia in the full and individual evaluation
  • Dyslexia and related disorders in the individualized education program (e.g., developing goals and monitoring progress)

Effective professional development consists of most or all of the elements below (Darling-Hammond et al., 2017):

  • Is content focused
  • Incorporates active learning using adult learning theory
  • Supports collaboration
  • Uses models and modeling of effective practices
  • Provides coaching and expert support
  • Offers opportunities for feedback and reflection
  • Is of sustained duration

School districts and open-enrollment charters can apply for funding to provide training to intervention staff resulting in appropriate credentialing related to dyslexia. This option requires the LEA to establish a minimum service requirement agreement between the LEA and educator (e.g., teacher will remain with LEA for three years after completion of grant funded training). LEAs can apply solely for this funding option or both options A and B. 

The term intervention staff is defined as educators that are currently or will provide dyslexia instruction or identification services to students.

This is not an exhaustive list. The following are examples of appropriate credentials related to dyslexia instruction or identification. Any credentialing program proposed by the LEA must be properly accredited.

  • Licensed Dyslexia Practitioner
  • Licensed Dyslexia Therapist
  • Certified Academic Language Practitioner
  • Certified Academic Language Therapist
  • Certified Structured Literacy/Dyslexia Interventionist
  • Certified Structured Literacy/Dyslexia Specialist
  • Wilson Level I Certification/Practitioner
  • Wilson Level I Certification/Therapist
  • Educational Diagnostician
  • Licensed Specialist in School Psychology