Albany, NY – Assemblymember Robert Carroll (D/WF-44) announced that his bill A.2687/S.5569 establishing a Center for Dyslexia and Dysgraphia in the State Education Department passed both houses of the New York State Legislature today.

“For years, we have failed children with dyslexia and dysgraphia. This Center will finally create a statewide approach to solving one of our most challenging educational issues. Giving our schools and teachers the knowledge to identify students with dyslexia and dysgraphia and the training to provide appropriate interventions like structured literacy will be life changing for countless children” said Assemblymember Robert Carroll. "As someone who struggled with dyslexia as a child, I know firsthand how important early identification and intervention is to remediating dyslexia. Creating the Dyslexia Center will do just that and ensure that more of our children are as fortunate as I was. Enshrining the Center in law means best practices for addressing the needs of children with dyslexia and related disorders will be maintained over time. I want to thank Senator Patricia Fahy for sponsoring this bill in the Senate and ensuring its passage there. I also want to thank all the advocates, educators, and families throughout the State who helped to get this bill passed.”

“Roughly one in five children in New York State struggle with dyslexia, yet for far too long, New York has lacked a consistent, evidence-based approach to identifying and supporting these students,” said bill sponsor Senator Patricia Fahy (D-Albany). “We're not just creating a Center, we're giving educators, families, and students the tools they’ve needed to address this issue for years. Early screening, structured literacy instruction, and high-quality professional development are not luxuries, they are necessities for ensuring every New York kid and student can learn to read and write with confidence. I want to thank Assemblymember Robert Carroll for getting this done in the Assembly, and I’m proud that New York is now poised to become a national leader in supporting students with dyslexia and related learning differences.” 

“This bill’s passage marks a significant step forward in establishing the infrastructure needed to effectively support New York's students with dyslexia and dysgraphia. By expanding public understanding of these disabilities, screening children early and often for reading and writing difficulties, and offering timely, evidence-based interventions, we can close the gap on literacy outcomes in New York. We are so proud of Assemblymember Bobby Carroll for his tireless work to improve the lives of students with learning disabilities across the state. As a Windward alumnus, he has been a fierce advocate for meaningful change – informed by his own experiences – and his leadership has been instrumental in moving this legislation forward,” said Jamie Williamson, Head of The Windward School.

“Based on my experience as a teacher, principal, and superintendent of schools, I know that establishing a dedicated center for Dyslexia and Dysgraphia would provide invaluable resources and expertise for educators, students, and families,” said Dr. John Russell, Associate Director of the Haskins Global Literacy Hub at the Yale Child Study Center. “The development of clear and consistent standards is absolutely crucial to ensure that children with these learning differences are identified early, receive appropriate and effective interventions, and are supported throughout their educational journey. This bill represents a significant and necessary step towards ensuring that children with Dyslexia and Dysgraphia receive the support they need to thrive academically and reach their full potential.”

"EdTrust-New York and the New York Campaign for Early Literacy applaud the Legislature for passing A.2867/S.5569. Creating a Center for Dyslexia and Dysgraphia within the New York State Education Department (NYSED), lawmakers have taken an important step toward ensuring more students across the state receive the screening and interventions they need. This Center will play a critical role in supporting Black students, who are often undiagnosed and underserved. Research shows that schools diagnose Black students with Dyslexia at only half the rate of White students, denying them equal access to necessary services. We are eager to collaborate with Assemblymember Carroll, Senator Fahy, and NYSED to deliver the evidence-based literacy support all New York students and educators deserve,” said Jeff Smink, Deputy Director of EdTrust-New York. 

“My child’s story mirrors so many others in New York, not identified early in the public school system. While our child was drowning, we were desperately fighting for help from a system that did not understand dyslexia in the least,” said Sarah Kiefer, Skaneateles Parent Education, Support and Advocacy Group. “Most importantly, this bill will create immediate change for these kids, not in a few months or years. They don’t have a second to waste to access proper screening and intervention. We cannot thank Assemblyman Carroll enough for his tireless work.” 

“Establishing a Center for Dyslexia and Dysgraphia within the State Education Department is a monumental step forward for literacy in New York,” said Marion Waldman, Executive Director of Teach My Kid to Read. “We applaud Assemblymember Carroll’s leadership and commitment to evidence-based solutions that prioritize early identification, teacher training, and equitable access to resources. This Center has the potential to transform outcomes for thousands of children who, with the right support, can become confident, skilled readers. At Teach My Kid to Read, we believe literacy is a fundamental right, and this legislation moves us closer to ensuring every child has the opportunity to read and succeed.” 

"This is a major step forward for all striving readers and writers in NY. A State Center for Dyslexia and Dysgraphia will provide critical oversight for identifying and providing effective interventions for students diagnosed with Dyslexia and Dysgraphia and many others simply in need of support. In addition, the center will provide teachers with much needed professional learning on evidence-based practices to improve student literacy outcomes, and the center will also advocate for transparency of assessments that families are entitled to receive. Simply put, this will be a major shift in providing essential literacy support for students, families, and educators in NY," said Dr. Katharine Pace Miles, Director of Reading Science at Brooklyn College. 

“Dyslexia is the most common learning disability but also the easiest to remediate if students and teachers have access to the right resources. This Center will make sure they have such access, and the result will

be that we will have more space in our Special Education system for children with other challenges,” said Debbie Meyer, Iona University Department of Education.

"The WNY Education Alliance is thrilled to see the passage of Assemblymember Robert Carroll’s bill A.2678/S.5569, which will create the Center for Dyslexia and Dysgraphia within NYSED. This represents an important step toward ensuring that all children who struggle to learn to read receive the support that they deserve. We thank Assemblymember Robert Carroll for his continued efforts to help address the literacy crisis in New York State,” said Tarja Parssinen, President, WNY Education Alliance.

“Few things are more important than early intervention when it comes to screening for Dyslexia and Dysgraphia. Utilizing appropriate supports and being able to offer necessary services are critical. This bill will go a long way to insure this happens,” said Head of The Gateway School, Laurie Gruhn.

“This legislation is an important milestone for children with dyslexia and their families across New York State. At Promise Project, we see every day how proper identification and targeted intervention can transform a child’s future. Establishing a State Center for Dyslexia and Dysgraphia will set a standard to ensure that students with dyslexia have fair access to the educational support they need. We’re grateful to Assemblymember Carroll for his leadership and for turning the recommendations of the Task Force into meaningful, lasting change that gives all students with dyslexia an equal opportunity to succeed,” said Theodore Kamoutsis, Executive Director, Promise Project.

“I am thrilled to see that Assemblymember Robert Carroll's bill, A.2687/S.5569,which establishes a Center for Dyslexia and Dysgraphia within the State Education Department has passed and will become a reality, “said Tim Castanza, Founder and Chief Executive of Bridge Prep Charter School.“As a member of NYSED's Task Force on Dyslexia and Dysgraphia, this was something that my colleagues and I strongly recommended as part of the final report issues in last December, given the potential immediate impact it could have for students with dyslexia and other language-based learning needs. The growth and sustainable success that we are seeing with students who attend Bridge Prep, come as a result of our commitment to an understanding of our students' needs, dedicated funding and alignment with the Science of Reading. I look forward to continuing to work with our partners at NYSED, mission- focused elected officials like AM Carroll, and the new Center for Dyslexia and Dysgraphia to make sure that appropriately trained staff, policy guidance and sustainable academic success becomes the norm for dyslexic students across New York State.

“Putting the proper tools in someone’s hands is the key to success no matter what path in life you choose.As someone that grew up undiagnosed with dyslexia, I’ve had an uphill battle throughout my career to stay up with others who did not have this challenge. Children and adults with dyslexia have been misunderstood and untreated for too long.This is an important step to support and retool individuals to live productive lives and enjoy personal growth. I congratulate, Assemblyman Carroll for his vision of addressing childhood literacy that will benefit millions of young children throughout New York State,” said Mark Schienberg, President, Greater New York Automobile Dealers Association.

“Since being elected to the Assembly in 2016, I have spearheaded multiple efforts to address New York’s childhood literacy crisis and the special challenges facing children with dyslexia and their families. In the last 2 years, I have passed the Dyslexia Task Force Act, which created the State’s Dyslexia Task Force,

the Dyslexia Diagnosis Access Act, which requires private insurance to cover the cost of neuropsychological exams to diagnose dyslexia, and had essential elements of my Right to Read Act (A.78/S.7544) included in the Fiscal 24-25 State Budget, establishing teaching standards throughout the state based on the science of reading,” added Assemblymember Carroll. “I have also secured significant State funding for literacy programs throughout New York City including$280,000 to schools in my district for structured literacy programming, $50,000 to the Brooklyn Public Library to align their adult literacy programming with the science of reading, and $1.3 million in to support the Promise Project at Columbia University, which provides neuropsychological exams and teacher training regarding reading disorders for young children in marginalized and underserved communities in New York City. Finally, just this May, I secured $250,000 in the State’s Fiscal 2025-26 Budget to jump-start the Center for Dyslexia and Dysgraphia, making the passage of this bill especially timely.”

The Center’s mandate will include data collection and analysis, setting standards for the screening of students in grades kindergarten through five and for interventions, setting standards for professional development for educators and other school personnel regarding screening and interventions, creating a guidebook for educators, and public information dissemination.

Studies indicate that as many as one in five children may have dyslexia or another phonemic awareness issue, but to date there is still no consistent approach in New York State to addressing their needs. As well as hampering students’ educational achievement, untreated dyslexia and other learning disorders increase the risk of anxiety, depression, suicide, drug use, and incarceration; this leads to increased healthcare costs as well as substantial costs to society. Educational research has unequivocally demonstrated that early identification of dyslexia, coupled with intervention and multisensory sequential phonics instruction drastically improves educational outcomes limiting the harm caused by dyslexia.