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Board of Directors

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LIBRARY PROGRAM DIRECTOR

Beth Bevars

Library Program Director

Beth Bevars is the Director of the Lodi Whittier Library in the beautiful Finger Lakes region.  Beth holds a BA in Music from SUNY Geneseo and an MA in Folk Studies from Western Kentucky University.  She has worked as an arts administrator, folklorist, and Suzuki violin teacher.  While she has enjoyed her diverse career, her greatest work to date has been as a mother of, and advocate for, her severely dyslexic daughter.   Experiences in the education of dyslexics in public school, private school, parochial school, boarding school, and even her own homeschool have inspired and horrified Beth in equal measure. In 2017 she completed her Associate level training with the Orton-Gillingham Academy. 

Combining her administrative talents with her advocacy skills, Beth took on the role of Library Director in 2019 and is developing Lodi’s Literacy Hub, which will provide dyslexia and literacy resources to students, parents, and teachers in the local community. 

Evaluator

Mary Jo Pattison

Evaluator

MJ has extensive experience as an evaluator and researcher.  MJ has provided performance monitoring, local-level evaluation design, instrument development, data collection, training, and technical assistance to local grantees across the state of New York. She has also served as project manager for program evaluations of various federal, state, and local education and community initiatives.

From 2007 to 2020, MJ was a Program Research Specialist at the New York State Department of Health. She was the lead evaluator for two state-wide multi-site initiatives aimed at improving policy, practice, and environmental support for healthy eating and physical activity in high-need communities, their worksites, and school districts [“Creating Healthy Places to Live Work and Play” (2010 to 2015) and Creating Healthy Schools and Communities (2015 to 2020]).  

MJ worked at the Evaluation Consortium at the University at Albany/SUNY as an Evaluation Specialist from 2005 to 2007. MJ applies educational research design and methodology to TMKTR evaluation projects.

Advisors

Ernest “Tre” Hadrick III

Diversity/Inclusion Advisor

Tre Hadrick is an educator, certified counselor, author and community leader in Norristown, PA. For more than fifteen years he has worked to advance the lives of young children, teens and their families. He currently serves as a school counselor at Eisenhower Middle School and as an adjunct professor at Villanova University. Tre has spearheaded numerous initiatives to increase parent engagement, equity, career preparation and organizational development. He is founder of Norristown Men of Excellence Inc., a non-profit that implements programs and services to enhance overall well-being of families in the community, and he has shared his trademark S.E.E.D.S. of Leadership philosophy as a Tedx speaker and guest on the Leading Equity podcast by Dr. Sheldon Eakins. Tre is the author of Cheesesteaks and Clippers, a children’s book and the creator of “Mr. Lit,” an animation that promotes literacy.

Carolyn Strom, Early Childhood Literacy

Carolyn Strom, Early Childhood Literacy

Early Childhood Literacy Advisor

Dr. Carolyn Strom is an educator and classroom researcher whose work focuses on improving early literacy outcomes and reading experiences for young children. She collaborates widely with teachers, school districts, and curriculum developers; currently, she is leading an initiative for New York City preschool teachers called ‘Cortex in the Classroom,’ which centers on the practical application of reading science and learning technologies in early childhood. Dr. Strom has over a decade of experience as an elementary classroom teacher and reading specialist. Dr. Strom is a Clinical Assistant Professor of Early Childhood Literacy & Innovation at NYU Steinhardt School of Culture, Education & Human Development.

Dr. Todd Porter

Pediatrician Advisor

Dr. Todd Porter is a community pediatrician in Denver, Colorado. He received his medical degree from the University of Virginia and completed both a pediatric residency and preventive medicine residency at the University of Colorado where he also received a masters of science of public health. Dr. Porter has practiced primary care pediatrics for the past 13 years with the last 5 years spent in a federally qualified health care center where he cares for primarily low income children of color. Over his career he has had the fortune of working with mentors who have educated him on the struggling reader and the effects of school failure on the child’s mental and physical health. Yet his greatest teacher has been his now 11 year old daughter with dyslexia who continues to inspire,  enlighten,  and transform his role as pediatrician and parent-advocate for all of our struggling readers. 

Team Members

Our work would not be possible without the efforts of our volunteers and volunteer leaders. The following team members go above and beyond to help Teach My Kid to Read grow and help more children learn to read.

Barbara Marra Dower

Nassau County Volunteer Coordinator & Library Specialist

Getting involved with Teach My Kid To Read was an easy decision, post-retirement, from decades as an insurance broker and attorney. As someone who loves to read, the library is a favorite destination. As the model of TMKTR is partnering with libraries, I was led to volunteer with TMKTR in an effort (as the grandparent of a struggling student)  to learn as much as possible about Dyslexia and to help promote Dyslexia Awareness Month in 2019.

Meg Mauer

Graphics, Promotions, Program Materials

After attending a Teach My Kid To Read presentation at a local library, Meg Maurer was eager to share what she had learned about community literacy solutions. Meg understands the struggles of raising a child with a learning difference in the public school system and the thrill when a child achieves success with the appropriate instruction and supports. When she isn’t volunteering for TMKTR, Meg’s working as an Aide to Students with Disabilities, borrowing a book from the public library, or tending to her vegetable garden.

Ambor Moy

Ambor Moy

Social Media Editor, “Let’s Talk Decodable Books & Literacy Resources”

Ambor Moy is currently attending Mount St. Joseph University, studying early literacy and the science of reading. Ambor was the owner and director of an early childhood education center in the D.C. metropolitan area for ten years. When her oldest child was diagnosed with dyslexia, she relocated her family to Ohio to gain better access to affordable reading instruction and intervention and more dyslexia-friendly legislation. All three of Ambor’s children have dyslexia. Ambor was diagnosed with dyslexia in her early 20’s. Through her own experience as a struggling reader, Ambor has become a literacy advocate so more parents learn to support their children with the right resources and materials.

Rachelle Spielvogel

Rachelle Spielvogel

Connecticut Volunteer Coordinator

Rachelle Spielvogel is a special education family advocate, human rights educator, and proud mother of two boys. She has worked as a human rights educator, curriculum developer and anti-bias training facilitator for civil and human rights organizations, including the Anti-Defamation League, Amnesty International, and UNICEF-USA. In 2019 she completed training in special education parent advocacy through the Council of Parent Attorneys and Advocates, after years of advocating for her son diagnosed with dyslexia and ADD. She is the creator of Urban Exceptional, an online resource for NYC families with children who experience early developmental, social and learning differences. She serves on the boards of Everyone Reading in NYC, the KING School in Stamford, CT, Teach My Kid to Read in Albany, NY, and completed service as trustee for the Loyola School in NYC, her high school alma mater. She is also a member of the collective giving organization IMPACT-Fairfield County, CT, the area where she resides with her family. She holds a BA in Psychology from Columbia University and a Masters in Social Science from the University of Chicago.