HERNDON, Virginia, October 12, 2021 -- Organizational Design and Management consultant, Eleccion (ELX) today announced that it will be extending its ongoing support of Sliding Doors STEM & Dyslexia (SDSquared) Learning Center by sponsoring the newly launched Dyslexic Edge Academy. The Academy was developed in partnership between the non-profit organization Sliding Doors STEM & Dyslexia Learning Center and Virginia Tech’s Education and Workforce Labs in Falls Church, VA as well as in collaboration with the NAACP of Arlington’s Education Committee.
Under the agreement, ELX will sponsor one of 20 students in Arlington County Title I Schools who show signs of having dyslexia. Students will begin the two-year program in October 2021, meeting twice a week for 90 minutes with sessions divided equally between one-on-one reading intervention and STEM enrichment.
“We are committed to continuous investment in our community, especially around important initiatives supporting diversity, equity, and inclusion”, said Deanna Doan, ELX enabling partner and mother of a dyslexic student. “I’ve seen first-hand, the advantages neurodiverse talent can offer organizations that are working to solve some of our nation’s most difficult technical challenges”, added Doan. “We are so excited to take part in this program and help close the gap in our STEM education, learning, and workforce development. The Academy will absolutely serve as a pathway for students to reach their full potential and allow them to contribute their gifts to our community.”
By providing research-based reading instruction alongside STEM enrichment to students with dyslexia in Title I schools, the Dyslexic Edge Academy tackles two acute challenges specific to our region and elsewhere in the country, literacy and holes in our STEM pipeline. While some may argue falling literacy rates are unconnected to our inability to fill STEM jobs, the data shows they are intertwined – making it crucial to address both simultaneously, especially when it comes to dyslexic students who may be the key to solving both.
“Year after year, economically-disadvantaged and minority students fall further behind in reading proficiency, locking them out of opportunities and perpetuating systemic inequalities”, said Krista Gauthier, executive director, SDSquared. “The Academy will ignite the academic and creative potential of children with dyslexia through the power of STEM literacy – one of the most critical civil rights issues of our time. We are so appreciative and thrilled to have Eleccion be part of this program.”
October is Dyslexia Awareness Month. Learn more about how you can support neurodiversity in STEM education and workforce development. Help us spread the word and increase awareness. Watch and share this video.
About Eleccion
Eleccion (ELX) is a next-generation management consulting firm providing advisory services to government, commercial, and non-profit organizations committed to making fundamental change improvement. Based in Herndon, Virginia, Eleccion focuses on organizational modeling, technology adoption, and innovation management within the federal government and strategic industry partnerships. For more information on ELX, please visit eleccionllc.com.
About SDSquared
Sliding Doors STEM and Dyslexia (SDSquared) is leading a movement to develop future STEM leaders by building confidence in students with dyslexia and equipping educators to help them learn. We are changing the conversation about dyslexia education. By combining evidence-based language instruction with STEM enrichment, we set the standard for how students with dyslexia should be educated and inspired. For more information visit sdsquared.org.