Systemic Capacity Building

Advocates for increased public investment in adult literacy services through policy engagement, coalition leadership, and public storytelling initiatives. Leads the New York City Coalition for Adult Literacy, submits policy recommendations to state plans, and advances racial, social, and economic justice through the Literacy & Justice Initiative and the Listen Up for Literacy & Justice project.

Provides professional development, technical assistance, training, coaching, curriculum design, and data support to over 100 community-based adult literacy, adolescent literacy, and workforce development programs in New York City, including state-funded and city-funded initiatives. Offers services nationally on a fee-for-service basis.

Offers public workshops in New York City and at national conferences such as COABE 2023, both in-person and virtually. Develops and distributes instructional resources for adolescent and adult literacy programs, including best practices in reading, writing, and vocabulary instruction, and maintains a website supporting after-school literacy programs.

Conducts and publishes research on adult literacy outcomes, including findings from the $2.5M NYC Adult Literacy Pilot Project, the impact of the pandemic on literacy programs, and quality standards for adult education. Produces reports such as Investing in Quality and updates on high school equivalency policy and practice.

Provides free family programs including one-on-one and group coaching, parent tutoring training, and Family Navigation Sessions to help parents understand dyslexia, access resources, navigate school systems, and advocate for their children. Offers the Literacy and Dyslexia Roadmap, video-based learning modules, and phonics instruction training to support home-based reading development.

Convenes educators, advocates, and families through annual virtual conferences and workshops focused on transformative literacy practices, linguistic justice, culturally relevant pedagogy, and adolescent literacy. Events have engaged hundreds of participants annually, with documented reach across multiple years and formats.

Developed and operationalizes the ALIGN Framework™, a literacy justice ecosystem that integrates learning opportunities, leadership development, and advocacy to improve access to intervention and equitable literacy pathways for Black children with dyslexia. The framework guides family and educator programming and represents a shift from traditional workshop models.

Offers professional learning, leadership institutes, and school-based workshops to strengthen literacy systems, improve culturally responsive practices, reduce inequitable support patterns, and build family partnership structures for Black learners. Trained over 184 educators in partnership with 25 schools and reached 7,000+ educators through presentations and collaborations.

Operates the ALIGN Family Leadership Institute, a leadership development program that prepares families of Black children with dyslexia to become literacy advocates, systems navigators, and community leaders in their schools and communities.

Produces and shares video narratives of parents discussing their experiences raising children with dyslexia, using these stories to foster community support, deepen understanding of dyslexia, and empower advocacy among families and educators.

Hosts a signature team-based, non-elimination spelling competition each spring in Dutchess County, now in its 32nd year, supported by over 75 businesses and organizations, to raise funds for literacy programs serving children and adults.

Facilitates access to books and learning materials for literacy programs through office and school-based 'blue bags' and partnerships with the Mid-Hudson Library system, supporting both adult and children's literacy initiatives.

Provides free one-on-one and small-group tutoring in basic literacy and English as a Second Language (ESL) to adult learners with low literacy levels or limited English proficiency, including immigrants, across Dutchess, Columbia, Greene, and Orange Counties. Volunteers are recruited, trained, and matched with students based on assessed needs.

Recruits, trains, and matches volunteers to provide one-on-one and small-group reading and math support to school children in grades K–4 who are struggling with literacy or numeracy, with services delivered in schools and community settings across the Hudson Valley. Programs include Book Buddies and targeted math tutoring using hands-on activities.

Recruits, trains, and supports volunteers who deliver literacy instruction to children and adults, including providing instructional resources, digital tools, and ongoing guidance to enhance tutoring effectiveness. This includes support for volunteers working in basic literacy, ESL, reading, and math.

Hosts an annual conference and summit featuring experts in the science of reading presenting on evidence-aligned instructional practices, with 1,448 attendees in 2023 and over 3,000 in 2024. Also organizes symposia, podcasts, and virtual live events offered at low or no cost and supported by sponsorships.

Supports higher education institutions and educator preparation programs through curriculum redesign, faculty professional learning, and collaborative inquiry, including engagement of over 35 faculty from eight universities in LETRS training and course redesign funded by the Lilly Endowment Literacy Grant.

Makes The Science of Reading: Defining Guide available as a free downloadable resource and for purchase in hard copy, and creates Curriculum Navigation Reports to support evidence-aligned reading instruction.