Dyslexia Conference at Mississippi College Attracts More than 200 Visitors

Robin Lemonis, of the Mississippi Department of Education was among the speakers at MC's fall dyslexia conference.

Comedian Jay Leno, actress Whoopi Goldberg, and film director Stephen Spielberg struggled with dyslexia for decades.

They’re among an estimated 40 million Americans challenged by this language-based learning disability characterized by poor word reading skills, and spelling difficulties. It’s much more than spelling words backwards.

Mississippi College’s fall dyslexia conference on October 20 is designed to give educators and parents the very latest information about the subject.

MC leaders say the 215 attendees at Tuesday’s sessions represents a record turnout on the Clinton campus.

An excellent lineup of speakers made a difference in attracting such a big turnout, Dyslexia Center Director Jan Hankins believes. The previous high total was around 175 guests.

Speakers included: Robin Lemonis, director of Intervention Services with the Mississippi Department of Education and Dr. Susan Buttross, chief of the Division of Child Development and Behavioral Pediatrics at the University of Mississippi Medical Center. Shellie Ziegler, director of Blind & Physically Handicapped Library Services at the Mississippi Library Commission also led discussions.

Conferences like these help teachers and parents become more familiar about an important learning issue, Hankins say. At the moment, 10 to 15 percent of America’s population has dyslexia. But only 5 percent of them receive help.

“The word is getting out,” Hankins says.

Visitors from public schools in Clinton, Meridian, Rankin County, Alcorn County, Madison County and Starkville learned about topics like dyslexia and the brain. They were advised about methods to improve classroom instruction for dyslexic students, the handwriting process and the use of talking books.

Staffing the conference table, MC sophomore Khrysten Glass of Canton plans to receive her master’s in dyslexia education. “I have a cousin who is autistic and a little dyslexic,” she said. Working with students like her cousin can be frustrating at times for teachers, she noted.

Glass hopes to make a difference as a dyslexic educator. Just by being a student worker at MC’s Dyslexia Center, “I’m learning a lot.”

So is parent Amy Matthews of Richland, the mother of a dyslexic student. For Amy, this marks the third time she’s attended a Mississippi College dyslexia conference. Each year, she leaves refreshed with a ton of information about the latest research.

Mitti Bilbo, the former MC dyslexia center director, serves as an interventionist with the McComb public schools. The Franklin County resident works closely with 50 kindergarten children encountering significant reading problems. “It’s a challenge,” she says. “But I love it.”

Mississippi College remains among the leaders in dyslexia education in the South and across the nation. The MC School of Education graduate program in dyslexia enrolls 82 students, and typically takes two years to complete. It is among the largest of its type in the USA.

For more information, contact Dyslexia Center Director Jan Hankins at 601-925-7766 or hankin00@mc.edu