By Suzy Alstrin
The Georgia Department of Education awarded Reinhardt University $56,000 to enhance Reinhardt’s Price School of Education (PSOE)’s Dyslexia Endorsement Program. Assistant Professor of Education Debby Pinion launched Reinhardt’s program four years ago, establishing Reinhardt as one of only a few higher education institutions in Georgia to offer the program.
The state funding complements Georgia’s new law requiring early childhood screening for dyslexia. Pinion takes to heart the importance of understanding how to best help dyslexic students succeed in the classroom. According to the National Institutes of Health (NIH), one in five people in the United States have dyslexia.
Pinion discussed how PSOE’s future teachers benefit from the new funds, “Now students with their dyslexia endorsement have the opportunity for scholarships and additional training, and that will make them exceptional teachers in the workplace.” She also thinks of how many young students will benefit explaining, “Anything that you do for a kid with dyslexia in your classroom not only benefits them but everybody.”
Under Pinion’s expert instruction, all PSOE elementary and middle school education majors earn a dyslexia endorsement along with their teaching certificate. High school education majors are encouraged to earn the endorsement. Pinion adds she regularly hears from PSOE alumni on how they use the strategies every day. She estimates at least 75 Reinhardt graduates are utilizing their dyslexia endorsement in their classrooms.
