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We’re parents, educators, and community members who believe in Oregon students and Oregon teachers.

Oregon Kids Read is truly a grassroots effort - everyone behind the website, our advocacy, and our first and second petitions is a non-paid volunteer. We have no financial or other affiliation with science of reading training that we want offered to Oregon teachers, especially those at our most struggling schools. We want Oregon to offer science of reading training because it's worked with struggling readers in other states and we believe it can work here too.

Angela Uherbelau started Oregon Kids Read because literacy is a civil right. She is a writer, racial equity advocate and past PTA president. Angela grew up in Southern Oregon and her public school teachers there had a huge, positive impact on her life’s trajectory. She’s worked on various local, state and national political campaigns and also served as a legislative director in the Oregon State Legislature. During the early days of COVID, she helped establish the Irvington Westminster Community Learning Hub which offered free full-time child care to families in need and also helped launch a Portland Public Schools one-on-one virtual tutoring program for struggling readers. Angela is a graduate of Smith College and Columbia University School of Journalism. She and her husband Curtis have daughters in 7th and 8th grade at their local, public middle school.

Dr. J. Schuberth is a writer and former E.D. of Alder College, a two-year liberal arts college concept. This work lives on at David Douglas High School as a free Early College Course. As an assistant professor at Portland State, J. created a popular program in the academic study of religion and has also taught at the University of Chicago, Oakton Community College, and in Oregon Humanitiesʼ free college course for adults who face financial barriers to continuing their education. J. is the parent of a middle-schooler with dyslexia and was themselves diagnosed with dyslexia in their late 20s. As an educator and parent, they understand the importance of early literacy to later academic success, and volunteers with PPS to make sure every child in Oregon receives the resources they need to become a confident reader.

Lisa Lyon, MPH, is a founder & community outreach director of Oregon Decoding Dyslexia, a state-wide advocacy group which spearheaded passage of Oregon's first dyslexia legislation. As the parent of a 10th grade son who has dyslexia, Lisa feels passionate about increasing public awareness of dyslexia. She enjoys connecting with other parents and sharing resources to make their journeys with dyslexia a little easier and more efficient. Currently, Lisa coordinates the monthly lecture series and supports the development of new Oregon Decoding Dyslexia chapters.

Dr. Tania McKey is past Interim Principal at Ockley Green Middle School in Portland, Ore. Former Senior Director of Humanities at Portland Public Schools, Tania also serves as an assistant professor of Educational Leadership and Policy at Portland State University. She started her career as a high school IB Social Studies teacher in St. Paul, Minn., and has held a multitude of administrative positions in K-12 schools and districts, in Alabama, Indianapolis, Texas and Minnesota. An experienced presenter, Tania has made dozens of presentations at professional meetings and has been a leader in school sustainability efforts. Tania earned a Bachelor of Arts in Public Education from Concordia University (in St. Paul), a Master of Arts in Urban Education from Hamline University, and a Doctorate in Administration, Supervision and Curriculum from Auburn University. She is trained in LETRS Science of Reading.

Dr. Ronda Fritz is an Associate Professor of Education at Eastern Oregon University, specializing in literacy instruction, specifically prevention and intervention of reading difficulties. Prior to coming to EOU, Ronda taught elementary and middle school for 19 years. Her work as a reading specialist, as well as experience as a parent of a son with dyslexia, drove her to learn evidence-based practices for teaching children to read. Eventually, this led her to University of Oregon’s Department of Special Education where she received her Ph.D. in 2016. During a 2020-2021 sabbatical, Ronda developed the Eastern Oregon University Reading Clinic. Through this clinic, practicing and pre-service teachers receive training to learn structured literacy methods, and children throughout EOU’s service area receive one-on-one or small group tutoring delivered by training teachers. Ronda currently serves on the Board of Directors for the Children’s Institute, and as Past-President of the Oregon Council for Exceptional Children. She is also a member of the Reading League and the Council for Learning Disabilities. Ronda and her husband, Shane, have two adult children, a daughter-in-law, and two adorable grandsons who she’s determined will have better school reading experiences than their amazing dad.

Imani Muhammad is a native of Oregon and began her youth development career over 20 years ago.  She is the founder of Y.O.U.th and currently serves as the Board President.  Imani has dedicated her life to the City of Portland and continues to work with families in a variety of ways.  She works for the Boys & Girls Club as the Senior Director of Equity & Community Engagement.  In her spare time she develops training and curriculum for those who work with youth, parents and members in the judicial system.  She is a proud mother of a 9 year old son and loves cheering him on as he develops his basketball skills and career.  She recently released her first book The Art of Living available at Traveling Pillar.

Danielle Thompson, MAT, C-SLT, is a language arts teacher at Forest Grove High School with over twenty years of experience, a dyslexia specialist, and President-Elect of The International Dyslexia Association - Oregon Branch. Certified as a Structured Literacy Teacher through the Center for Effective Reading Instruction, she brings this knowledge into her work with high school students who did not “grow out” of their reading struggles from elementary school. Danielle supports prioritizing early learning programs and a statewide push for equity initiatives through investing in professional development for all teachers to build deep knowledge - both in the structure of language and in the cognitive science of how our brains learn to read.  Teachers who have a profound understanding of the science of reading are able to teach all students to read, particularly those most vulnerable to struggle. #UntilEveryoneCanRead

Elizabeth Israel-Davis has been a teacher and reading specialist for almost 20 years. She has worked in the public schools in North, NE and SE Portland primarily in grades K - 2 but unexpectedly came to love middle school students as well. Early in her career, Elizabeth became interested in dyslexia and how best to teach reading to students who have it. She realized that this had not been covered even superficially in her Masters degree program and that she had qualified for a state reading endorsement without demonstrating any understanding of the most common cause of difficulty learning to read. This realization led to her seeking out and completing hundreds of hours of training and practicum in using the Orton-Gillingham Approach. It also led to her being on the first Oregon Dyslexia Advisory Council convened by the Oregon Department of Education and to years of dyslexia advocacy work in the Portland area. She is one of the founding members of the PPS Dyslexia Advocacy Group which consists of parents, teachers, and community advocates working together so that all of our students can receive the instruction they need to learn how to read. 

Kamelah (“Mimi”) Adams is a NE Portland native. She was raised in the historic Albina district, rich with the people and voices of her heritage. Kamelah has worked as a para-educator in Portland Public Schools and is the mother of a middle schooler and high school student. Kamelah served as Vice President of Racial Equity and Inclusion of her elementary school PTA where she spearheaded a plan to diversity PTA membership, established her school’s first Black History Walking Museum, and launched an annual Back to School Cookout that continues to distribute free school supplies to over 300 kids. Kamelah also served as PTSA Co-President at Harriet Tubman Middle School where students of color make up 60% of the student body. Kamelah is a small business owner: her company, Mimi’s Fresh Tees, creates socially-conscious clothing that empower customers to wear their truth.

Dr. John Watzke is Dean of the School of Education and Graduate School at the University of Portland. As a teacher educator and parent of children attending Oregon schools, he believes that K-3 literacy should be a priority funding stream for education and that early literacy predicts later academic success and social outcomes for students. Whether in professional discussions or conversations with community advocates, the message to Oregon is clear: the science of reading and the inequities in learning that exist must be addressed through funding and programming. Our teachers, our families, and our students deserve it.

Dr. Scott Smith has been in education for the past 40 years and is a third-generation successful dyslexic. Growing up in Eastern Oregon, he struggled with school. His fifth-grade teacher told his parents he needed to find a trade because he would never be able to spell or read or write or attend college. Instead, Dr. Smith spent 26 years in elementary classrooms in Umatilla, Oregon and became an Assistant Professor at Eastern Oregon University in the Elementary Pre-Service Teacher Program. Currently, Dr. Smith is an instructional coach for the InterMountain ESD, serving 18 rural school districts. His major area of focus is pre-reading skills and reading instruction, along with classroom instructional support. Dr. Smith lives in Hermiston, Oregon with his wife Susan.

Jared Blank is a third generation Portland native, an extreme runner, motivational speaker, sports trainer, dyslexia advocate, and author of Running the Distance - his story of how dyslexia prepared him for life and completing one of the most brutal races in the world. Jared was diagnosed with dyslexia at age 5, long before there was any help in the classroom. Fortunately, a combination of Jared’s will to succeed and his parents unending support resulted in Jared thriving academically and in life. In 2017 he decided to leave his career in collegiate football to use running as a platform for raising awareness and funds to help students just like him. Jared knows the hardships students with learning challenges face and wants to support future students in his home state. He believes that starts with K-3 literacy. Science based reading and equity need to be at the forefront of our education system.

Dr. Julie Esparza Brown’s 30-year career spans the fields of bilingual, special education and school psychology in K-12 systems and higher education.  As a professor in the Department of Special Education, College of Education, at Portland State University her research focuses on the intersections of multilingual learners and special education.  Currently, she is principal investigator of a model demonstration grant funded by OSEP investigating reading interventions within an MTSS model for English learner students in grades 3 – 5 at-risk for or with disabilities. She has also been principal investigator on three federal personnel preparation grants to prepare bilingual teachers in general and special education. Dr. Esparza Brown also served four years on the Public Portland School Board. Her current co-authored book, Supporting English Learners in the Classroom: Distinguishing Language Acquisition from Learning Disabilities (Haas & Brown, 2019) is available through Teachers College Press. 

Anne Adler is a first-generation Brazilian American, raised in the Pacific Northwest.  After graduating from the University of Washington, she worked in corporate America in Los Angeles and then New York City.  She earned her master’s degree in education at Columbia University, Teachers College and then helped lead the opening of one of New York City’s inaugural charter schools.  She then led the start-up and growth of a successful, reading-science-based early literacy organization in New York, READ Alliance. Since its inception in 2000, READ Alliance has helped thousands of underserved children become successful readers!  Anne now resides in Oregon and is thrilled to be mom to her school-age son, Leo, who is an avid reader.

Paula Byrd is a native of Chicago, Illinois. She graduated at Portland State University with a Bachelors of Arts and completed her Masters in Public Administration with a concentration in Nonprofit Management at the University of Illinois. She joined the Board of Y.O.U.th in 2013 and recently became their Director of Literacy. She is committed to the educational literacy of youth and adults. She desires to change the lives of all young people she works with and drives them to be their best. Paula is also a member of Decoding Dyslexia Oregon’s Board of Directors, serving as Secretary.

Our Mission

We are a grassroots literacy and racial equity group calling for systemic transformation of the way we teach and support Oregon’s struggling readers.