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At 4, Kate Cassidy didn鈥檛 know the alphabet. In first grade, she still couldn鈥檛 read. Testing identified her as a 鈥渟truggling reader鈥� 鈥� a diagnosis that was 鈥渙f no help,鈥� said Dr. Laura Cassidy, Kate鈥檚 mother and the wife of Sen. Bill Cassidy of Louisiana.

Kate was ultimately diagnosed with dyslexia, and the ensuing years of private school and tutors it took to get her the help she needed shaped the lives of both her parents. In Baton Rouge, Laura opened a charter school for students with dyslexia. In Washington, the moderate Republican advocates for changes in federal policy. 

Now ranking member of the Senate education committee, Sen. Cassidy has a powerful perch from which to draw attention to a reading disability that affects an estimated Americans. 鈥淎t some point you’ve got to concede that the status quo is not working,鈥� he told 麻豆精品. 鈥淚f you look at reading scores, they’ve not budged.鈥�

But student achievement hasn鈥檛 budged much at Louisiana Key Academy either. The school, which Laura Cassidy co-founded in 2013, has never earned higher than an F in the state鈥檚 school grading system. Its performance score this year 鈥� based mostly on state test results 鈥� is 39.9, compared to a .

At the same time, the school has won praise for providing targeted, foundational literacy instruction for students who were grade levels behind in their traditional schools. Parents whose children failed to develop reading skills in district schools, even with special education, have watched them gain confidence and earn good grades at Key. The state board recently granted the charter approval to expand to two additional sites and add a high school. 

鈥淭here is huge demand for Key Academy,鈥� said Caroline Roemer, executive director of the Louisiana Association of Public Charter Schools. But though the school is clearly filling a void, officials shouldn鈥檛 let up on holding charters like Key accountable for students鈥� progress, she said.

鈥淲e will never say choice is enough,鈥� she said. Academic improvement should also be the objective, she said, bluntly adding that it鈥檚 important for schools to find 鈥渢he balance between the power of choice [and] the expectation that the goal is to suck less.鈥�

The earlier, the better 

At a time of heightened interest in how children learn to read, the Cassidys鈥� combined work demonstrates the challenges 鈥� and also, the paradoxes 鈥� facing families with dyslexic children and the schools they attend.

To Laura Cassidy, a retired surgeon, the F on the state鈥檚 report card is not a reflection of dyslexic students鈥� ability to learn. Many arrive in third, fourth and fifth grade when parents realize they aren鈥檛 catching up with their peers. 

鈥淎fter January, most traditional schools teach to the [state test], and we don’t do that. We’re trying to produce fluent readers,鈥� she said. 鈥淭he earlier they come to our school, the better because they’re in an environment where they’re like, 鈥極h, OK, I’m not the only one who was struggling with this and I’m not stupid.鈥� 鈥� 

Despite the F, the school earns a B from the state for student progress. Its performance score has increased since 2019 when it was 36.3. 

When their children are younger, many parents are more concerned with their improvement than hitting state proficiency targets, said DeJunn茅 Clark Jackson, president of the nonprofit Center for Literacy and Learning, near New Orleans. But as they prepare for graduation, those grades tend to matter more,

鈥淭he reality is the school is swimming upstream,鈥� said Jackson, also a leader of parent advocacy group Decoding Dyslexia Louisiana. But it鈥檚 鈥渞eaching parents in a place of desperation.鈥�

Angela Normand hit that point when her son Max was in third grade. He was getting D鈥檚 and F鈥檚 in reading at his school in Tangipahoa Parish, about 40 miles from Baton Rouge. Teachers told her that boys sometimes learn to read more slowly than girls. But even with special education, he didn鈥檛 improve.

He entered Key Academy in January 2020, and within two months, 鈥渉e was reading every sign on every building,鈥� she said. Despite remote learning through the end of the school year, Max鈥檚 reading skills grew stronger. Now in sixth grade, he has five A鈥檚 and one B. 

She said the 鈥渦nfair, inaccurate grade鈥� the state gives the school has probably deterred other parents from exploring whether Key Academy can help their children.

鈥楾he plight of families鈥�

The low grade hasn鈥檛 hurt state support. When the school first renewed its charter in 2018, the board added an to evaluate schools that serve students well below grade level. While Key Academy students must still take the Louisiana Educational Assessment Program, the schools also give additional standardized tests that measure students鈥� phonological, fluency and vocabulary skills.

State accountability systems 鈥渁re not set up to deal with a school like this,鈥� said John White, former Louisiana state superintendent. The adults responsible for Key Academy鈥檚 students, he added, 鈥渨ere not the adults who were there for the origin of the students’ struggles.鈥�

He credited the Cassidys for simultaneously 鈥渄rawing attention to the plight of families鈥� whose children have dyslexia and advancing school choice. 

A second school opened this year in Covington, east of Baton Rouge, despite opposition from the local St. Tammany Parish district, where there has never been a charter. A third site will open in Shreveport next year. An October report from the state board, supporting the expansion, said the charter offers 鈥渃ompelling evidence鈥� for its model and would provide something that doesn鈥檛 otherwise exist in that area.

The Cassidys, meanwhile, have advocated for reforms that would impact all Louisiana schools, including that recognizes training in dyslexia therapy in teacher licensing. 

鈥楴ot blue or red鈥�

At the federal level, Sen. Cassidy鈥� still a practicing gastroenterologist 鈥� focuses on some of the same thorny issues facing dyslexic students. He demonstrated his awareness of those challenges during a committee hearing last summer on pandemic learning loss.

鈥淒id they fall further behind than their peers?鈥� he asked Connecticut Education Commissioner Charlene Russell-Tucker about students with reading disabilities. 鈥淒o you screen children for dyslexia?鈥� 

And he in 2021 that would make dyslexia a separate disability under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act. Currently, it鈥檚 part of a larger 鈥渟pecific learning disability鈥� category. The change, he said, would draw more attention to dyslexia and help ensure students get help earlier, especially since don鈥檛 require screening.

But his bill faces resistance from some special education advocates. Denise Marshall, CEO of the Council of Parent Attorneys and Advocates, said learning disabilities 鈥渢end to co-occur鈥� and that removing dyslexia from that category might cause educators to miss other needs.

White, Louisiana鈥檚 former state superintendent, hopes Sen. Cassidy鈥檚 role on the committee will also prompt conversation about foundational reading skills at a time when states and districts have federal relief funds to train teachers and purchase curriculum.

鈥淣ow,鈥� he said, 鈥渨ould be an opportunity for some leadership in Washington to say, 鈥楲ets connect the dots.鈥� 鈥� 

Sen. Cassidy said Sen. Bernie Sanders, the committee chair, will set the agenda. But he hopes to work with Democrats on the issue, mentioning Sen. John Hickenlooper of Colorado, who about own struggles with dyslexia, and Sen. Maggie Hassan, who in 2016 when she was governor of New Hampshire.

鈥淭his issue is not blue or red,鈥� Sen. Cassidy said. 鈥淭his is, 鈥楧o I care about a child achieving potential even if the child learns differently?鈥� I’d like to think that would give us a lot of common ground.鈥�

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