Lon Tweeten for TIME; Getty images BY ALANA SEMUELS(https://time.com/author/alana-semuels/) AUGUST 23, 2023 9:43 AM EDT Every week, I go onto Walmart’s website and order a bunch of groceries to be delivered to my house and then feel a little bit guilty.  Walmart is a multi-billion dollar corporation with headquarters more than 1,000 miles from my home; the money I spend there goes to shareholders and executives who live far away, instead of to my local grocery store, Key Food, an 86-year-old co-op of independently owned stores based near my home in New York. By shopping at Walmart, I am likely contributing to the demise of the independently-owned grocery store, which is disappearing across the country.(https://farmaction.us/2023/06/08/retail-consolidation-crisis-across-the-food-chain/) Read more https://time.com/6307359/government-ftc-walmart-prices/(https://time.com/6307359/government-ftc-walmart-prices/)

Katherine Rinderle's controversy is over "My Shadow Is Purple," a book she read to her gifted students. Author: Gabriella Nunez, Jon Shirek Published: 3:16 PM EDT August 18, 2023 Updated: 3:16 PM EDT August 18, 2023 COBB COUNTY, Ga. — A Cobb County teacher was terminated Thursday night after a months-long saga about whether she was purposely defying district policies and breaking Georgia's Divisive Concepts Law by reading a book to her class. Due West Elementary fifth-grade teacher Katherine Rinderle's controversy is over "My Shadow Is Purple," which discusses gender identity. Her lesson was challenged by concerned parents, which triggered the state law that places restrictions on how grade school teachers can discuss race and other topics in the classroom.  Read more https://www.11alive.com/amp/article/news/local/cobb-county-katherine-rinderle/85-521a3666-37b3-43ad-9eac-09d482404e3c

TIMESOFINDIA.COM | Updated: Jun 18, 2023, 06:31 IST Father's Day 2023 will be observed on June 18. This day is dedicated to the fathers. Not just fathers, this day kids honour the fatherly figures in their life like grandparents and also mothers. These days, Father's Day is celebrated by sending gifts and flowers to dads. Read this article to find out the history of Father's Day. Across the world, everyone is gearing up for Father's Day 2023. This year it will be celebrated on June 18. Ideally, Father's Day is observed on the third Sunday of June. As the name suggests, it is observed to honour fathers and to credit fatherhood for being such an important part of everyone's life. READ MORE https://m.timesofindia.com/life-style/parenting/moments/when-is-fathers-day-2023-date-history-significance-story-and-all-you-need-to-know-about-fathers-day/amp_articleshow/101020545.cms

Marybeth Gasman Contributor I write about systemic racism, philanthropy, HBCUs & faculty. The Geneus Family in Cap and Gown at Olivia PHOTO CREDIT: ALEXANDER HAROLD Everyone in the Geneus family is a doctor — either an M.D. or a Ph.D. Education is highly valued by the family, and parents Jacques and Chantal Geneus made sure to instill a love of learning and an obligation to help others in their children. Vladimir is the oldest, then Christian, and then Olivia. These siblings, from Boston, Massachusetts, are of Haitian origin, and attended the University of Massachusetts, Amherst (UMass-Amherst) for their undergraduate degrees — Vladimir graduated in 2009, Christian in 2011, and Olivia in 2017. READ MORE https://www.forbes.com/sites/marybethgasman/2023/08/13/excellence-in-science-and-math-run-in-the-family/amp/

By Leada Gore | lgore@al.com A new bill is taking aim at interest rates paid by student loan borrowers. Sen. Peter Welch, D-Vermont, and Rep. Joe Courtney, D-Connecticut, introduced the Student Loan Elimination Act that would cut interest rates to 0% for all 43 million student loan holders in the U.S. Future borrowers would pay interest on their loans but the amounts would be capped at no higher than 4%. Read more https://www.al.com/news/2023/08/student-loan-forgiveness-new-bill-would-cut-student-loan-interest-to-0-for-current-borrowers.html?outputType=amp

Being a black man in America means being my brother’s keeper. Being a black man in America means being my brother’s keeper while keeping a distance from my brother because I don’t trust him further than I can see him. It’s believing the cops don’t care about you. It’s learning how not to doubt yourself because when you’re born everyone else already does.” —Poet Prentice Powell, written following the fatal police shooting of Michael Brown in Ferguson, Missouri, in 2014 2020 was a year of reckoning about many things, but one central theme centered on police brutality toward Black men, sparked by the murder of George Floyd under a White officer’s knee. For psychologists who work with, study, and support Black men, that incident and the resulting protests were an added call to find better, more effective ways of promoting Black men’s mental health, said Howard C. Stevenson, PhD, director of the Racial Empowerment Collaborative at the University of Pennsylvania and a national expert in helping people of color address and heal from racism. “We should place less emphasis on whether Black men are resistant to therapy,” said Stevenson, “and more on understanding the contexts in which they already feel comfortable talking about their feelings and traumas. If a Black man is able to find a treatment that is culturally responsive, that he understands, and that embraces the uniqueness of his difference, he is more likely to use that service.” There is a long way to go toward making such mental health care universal, Stevenson and others say, but psychologists are crafting several promising interventions that address issues that Black men face. Besides adaptations of individual therapy, these include community programs in barbershops and other local venues, outreach through technology and social media, and national networks devoted to facilitating Black men’s mental health and well-being. The more that systems, programs, and providers find culturally relevant ways to foster Black men’s mental health—including directly addressing racial trauma and its effects—the more society will benefit, added Wizdom Powell, PhD, an associate professor of psychiatry at the University of Connecticut and director of the university’s Health Disparities Institute. Read More..... https://www.apa.org/monitor/2021/09/ce-black-mental-health

Busy men might want to consider sitting down when they pee — not because it’s one of the few moments of the day they can rest, but because it might be better for them. For older men with prostate problems, in particular, sitting down to urinate could help them empty their bladders more effectively and reduce the risks of cysts and other health complications.

A well-known Philadelphia architectural designer, Abele was the first black graduate of what is today the School of Design. Julian Francis Abele, born in Philadelphia on April 30, 1881, was the youngest of eight children born to Charles and Mary Adelaide Jones Abele. Through his mother Adelaide, Julian was a descendant of Reverend Absalom Jones (1746-1818), founder of the Free African Society and of St. Thomas Episcopal Church. His older brothers included Joseph B. Abele, an engineer with the Philadelphia Electric Company; Robert Jones Abele, who graduated at the top of his 1895 class at Hahnemann Medical College; Charles Abele, a brass sign maker who worked with artisan Sam Yellin. Young Julian Abele was educated at the Institute for Colored Youth, Brown Prep School and the Philadelphia Museum School of Industrial Art before enrolling at the University of Pennsylvania in 1898. An outstanding student, Abele received a number of prizes during his undergraduate years at Penn, including first prize in competition for the Library Tablet to commemorate alumni gifts, first prize in competition for the Conklin Memorial Gateway at Haverford College, first mention from the Beaux Arts Society, the Arthur Spayde Brooke Memorial Prize and the T-Square Club Prize. During his senior year, Abele served on the student yearbook committee and as president of the Architectural Society. He did all this while working all four years as a designer with the Louis Hickman Architectural Firm, juggling his job with afternoon and evening classes at the University. After graduating from Penn in 1902 with his degree in architecture, Abele was immediately engaged by established architect Horace Trumbauer, who is said to have helped to finance the young architect’s three years European travel and study. There is no record of his study at l’Ecole des Beaux-Arts in Paris, which is sometimes reported, although French architecture would be his lifelong passion. Abele returned to Philadelphia and the Horace Trumbauer firm in 1906. He spent his entire professional life with this large, nationally known firm, advancing to the position of chief designer in 1909 and taking over the office after Trumbauer’s death in 1938. Read more….. https://archives.upenn.edu/exhibits/penn-people/biography/julian-francis-abele/

A school psychologist offers advice to parents on how to support their child during school closures. With nationwide school closures in effect, many parents are now monitoring homeschooling while at the same time trying to make a living in the midst of a terrible economic crisis. In this environment of broken routine and uncertainty, chances are your child is showing big feelings and challenging behaviors. In my work as a school psychologist, I’ve been hearing from parents that despite their best efforts, their children are struggling with meeting homeschool expectations. Kids who never showed behavioral or emotional challenges are experiencing issues, and kids who had some struggles before are showing an uptick of challenges. Here are three ways to support your child (and manage your own stress) during school closures that parents I work with have found helpful. 1. Simplify: Relax your homeschooling and productivity standards to a level appropriate for a worldwide pandemic If you’re a parent suddenly trying to balance remote work and homeschooling, your household might look a bit like mine right now. As I am writing this, I am also toggling back and forth between helping my third-grader with Google Classroom, trying to set up my kindergartener for some independent writing work, and fielding questions every few seconds (wait, what is the difference between scalene and isosceles triangles again?!?). I’ve come to realize in these past few weeks that being super productive with my work as a school psychologist AND giving full attention to homeschooling my children is not possible right now. Turns out, being a parent, teacher, and school psychologist are three different jobs that cannot all be done well at the same time. Spending time wishing things were otherwise is an exercise in frustration. And since research shows that acceptance is an important trait in positive well-being, here are a few mantras about simplification you might want to try: I am not homeschooling. I am doing my best to help my kids learn at home during a crisis. I am not “working from home.” I am doing my best to work at home during a crisis. I cannot be as productive as normal because these are not normal times. I will focus on what I can accomplish in just the next 24 hours and let go of what I cannot accomplish right now. Read more…https://greatergood.berkeley.edu/article/item/how_to_reduce_the_stress_of_homeschooling_on_everyone

The Westtown School girls basketball team celebrates on the court after defeating Penn Charter on Saturday in the PAISAA girls basketball championship at La Salle University. (Owen McCue – MediaNews Group) PHILADELPHIA >> On Friday, the night before the PAISAA girls basketball championship final, Westtown associate head coach Doug West noted, “Our team has a lot of resiliency. We’ve been in a lot of different situations, done a lot of travelling and seen a lot of different teams, and we’ve found ways to win games.” Westtown relied heavily on that resiliency Saturday night for an emotional 51-50 victory against Penn Charter in the PAISAA championship final at LaSalle University’s Tom Gola Arena. Please read more: https://papreplive.com/2022/03/05/westtown-girls-basketball-squad-edges-penn-charter-for-first-paisaa-tournament-title/

With an important contract decision looming in the off-season, Brooklyn Nets star Kyrie Irving has changed his representation. Irving has hired Shetellia Riley Irving, who is also his stepmother, as his new agent, according to The Athletic’s Shams Charania. She is believed to be the only Black woman currently representing an active NBA player. Please read full article https://www.tsn.ca/kyrie-irving-hires-new-agent-hires-the-first-black-woman-to-represent-an-nba-player-1.1766334

President Biden formally announced Ketanji Brown Jackson as his nominee to the Supreme Court today. If confirmed, she would be the first Black woman to sit on the highest court in the nation. Senate Democratic leaders hope to have a vote confirming Jackson to the court by mid-April. Jackson, 51, currently sits on DC's federal appellate court and had been considered the front-runner for the vacancy since Justice Stephen Breyer announced his retirement. What Biden said about the nominee: Speaking from the White House, Biden said he was fulfilling his “responsibilities under the Constitution” in selecting Jackson, noting not only her character and talents, but also the significance of this specific nomination. “For too long, our government, our courts, haven't looked like America,” the President said. “I believe it's time that we have a court that reflects the full talents and greatness of our nation with a nominee of extraordinary qualifications, and that we inspire all young people to believe that they can one day serve their country at the highest level.” Biden said it was his "honor to introduce to the country a daughter of former public school teachers a proven consensus builder and an accomplished lawyer and distinguished jurist, on one of the nation's most prestigious courts." What Jackson said about the nomination: Taking to the podium after Biden, Jackson said she is "humbled by the extraordinary honor" to be the President's nominee. She also took a moment to recognize that Biden's nomination comes amid deadly conflict across the globe. "I am especially grateful for the care that you have taken in discharging your constitutional duty in service of our democracy, with all that is going on in the world today," said Jackson, a reference to the invasion of Ukraine by Russia. She credited her father, who transitioned from a teaching career to life as a law student, for first introducing her to her chosen profession. "Some of my earliest memories are of him sitting at the kitchen table reading his books," she said. "I watched him study and he became my first professional role model." Jackson also took a moment to pay homage to Breyer, a man for whom she once clerked, and once confirmed, will ultimately replace. "Justice Breyer, the members of the Senate will decide if I fill your seat. But please know that I could never fill your shoes," she said. Jackson thanked her friends and family members, while also revealing the large role her faith has played in her life and her career. "I must begin these very brief remarks by thanking God for delivering me to this point in my professional journey. My life has been blessed beyond measure and I do know that one can only come this far by faith," Jackson said when opening her remarks. "Among my many blessings, and indeed the very first, is the fact that I was born in this great country ... The United States of America is the greatest beacon of hope and democracy the world has ever known." What comes next: Biden, who reportedly called Jackson and offered her the nomination on Thursday, noted that it's his hope that the Senate will move forward without hesitation to confirm her, adding that he had spoken with ranking members of the Senate Judiciary Committee in advance of the nomination. Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, meanwhile, promised a “fair, timely and expeditious” confirmation process for Jackson and hopes she will win bipartisan support.

A Black woman is now a majority owner of a new multi-million dollar Film/Television studio in Atlanta, The Atlanta-Journal Constitution reports. Tammy ‘Dele Films has over 25 years of experience in the Film/Television industry. She has written and produced a plethora of projects such as films, biographies, documentaries, entertainment, and network news, according to her biography on IMDB. Williams owned her first digital production company called Tammy’Dele Film in 2016 and is now the first Black woman to own a $135 million studio and post-production facility space in Atlanta, Georgia. Williams and her business partner Gary Guidry, an investor and CEO of G-Square Events and Black Promoters Collective, founded Cinema South Studios. “We’ve been patient,” she said. “This has not been an overnight thing, this vision for us,” Williams has worked towards making her dream a reality for 12 years. They will begin to break ground in March for Cinema South Studios located north of Fayette County. The studio will occupy 60 acres and intends to have eleven soundstages, a back-lot, a prop house, a wardrobe rental facility, and a lighting grip rental house. The production facility will include a transportation company and an office building to house a theater and post-production facilities, reports AJC. Williams aims to have two soundstages operable by the first quarter of 2023. “The demand for soundstages is happening globally, and the ownership rarely looks like us, let alone an African American woman,” said Guidry said in an official release, reports AJC. “When I choose to invest, I evaluate the need of the business and the ownership. Investing in Tammy Williams and her team of professionals convinced me that buying the land in Fayetteville, GA.” Cinema South will serve as the umbrella for Williams’ production company, Tammy’ Dele Films. It will host the education section of Tammy’ Dele Films Workshop and Cinema South Film Academy, where she will conduct job training seminars. Currently, Tyler Perry Studios in Georgia us the largest film production studio in the United States, and established Perry as the first African-American to outright own a major film production studio.

By Ken Belson and Jenny Vrentas Published Feb. 1, 2022 The former head coach of the Miami Dolphins claimed in a class-action lawsuit filed Tuesday that the N.F.L. discriminated against him and other Black coaches in their hiring practices. “My sincere hope is that by standing up against systemic racism in the N.F.L., others will join me to ensure that positive change is made for generations to come,” Brian Flores said. Brian Flores, who was fired as coach of the Miami Dolphins last month and was rejected for new jobs with other clubs, has sued the N.F.L. and its 32 teams alleging that they have discriminated against him and other Black coaches in their hiring practices. His filing in federal court comes just days after the Giants, one of the teams he interviewed with for a position, named Brian Daboll, who is white, as their head coach. Flores cited text messages he said were sent by his former boss, New England Patriots Coach Bill Belichick. In the messages, Belichick appears to congratulate Flores for winning the Giants’ job, which he had yet to interview for at that point. Flores responded by asking if Belichick had intended the message for Daboll, who interviewed before Flores’s scheduled meeting. The respondent answered: “I think they are naming Daboll. I’m sorry about that. BB” A Giants spokesman, Pat Hanlon, said in a statement the team was “confident with the process that resulted in the hiring of Brian Daboll” and that “Flores was in the conversation to be our head coach until the eleventh hour.” A Patriots spokesman said he did not anticipate that the team would be issuing a response. Flores and Belichick shook hands after a game in 2019 in Miami Gardens, Fla. Mark Brown/Getty Images The N.F.L. said it is “deeply committed to ensuring equitable employment practices” and “we will defend against these claims, which are without merit.” The screenshots of a conversation purportedly initiated by Belichick, the notoriously tight-lipped coach, and as well as other anecdotes that paint an unflattering portrait of Stephen Ross, the Dolphins’ owner, provide a rare insight into the league’s business in a class-action suit that contends there is widespread discrimination in the N.F.L. Flores is the son of Honduran immigrants to the Brownsville neighborhood of Brooklyn. He led the Dolphins for three years, including two winning seasons, and in the suit said he was “humiliated in the process as the New York Giants subjected him to a sham interview in an attempt to appear to provide a Black candidate with a legitimate chance at obtaining the job.” In a statement, Flores said that he understood that “I may be risking coaching the game that I love and that has done so much for my family and me. My sincere hope is that by standing up against systemic racism in the N.F.L., others will join me to ensure that positive change is made for generations to come.” In his suit, Flores stated that there were more than 40 other coaches who could join the class action, though he did not name any of them. Still, the case faces high legal hurdles, most prominently because Flores needs to prove that race was specifically a factor in his being turned down for jobs, even as he continues to interview for open coaching positions. “I view this lawsuit as next to impossible to succeed and I’m extremely surprised he would put his career in jeopardy,” said Brad Sohn, a lawyer who has represented numerous N.F.L. players. The N.F.L. has acknowledged repeatedly that there are not enough coaches and team executives of color even as about 70 percent of players are Black. Nearly 20 years ago, the league introduced the Rooney Rule, which requires teams to interview a diverse list of candidates for coaching and general. The league has expanded and strengthen those guidelines since the rule’s introduction as the number of Black coaches has failed to grow appreciably, and fallen in some years. Yet the league still has only a handful of nonwhite men in head coaching jobs. With Flores’s ouster, Mike Tomlin of the Pittsburgh Steelers is the lone Black head coach in the league, while Ron Rivera of the Washington Football Team is the N.F.L.’s only Hispanic head coach. The Jets’ Robert Saleh is believed to be the league’s first Muslim Arab American head coach. Black coaches have long complained that they are often called for interviews simply so teams can comply with the Rooney Rule, and that they were not considered serious candidates. Flores named other Black coaches he said have been discriminated against, including the former Colts and Lions head coach Jim Caldwell; the former Cardinals head coach Steve Wilks; and the former Texans head coach David Culley, who was fired last month after one season. In his filing. Flores asserts that his experiences interviewing with league executives shows their callous approach to abiding by the Rooney Rule. In texts exchanged on Jan. 24, three days before Flores was set to meet Giants executives, Belichick wrote: “I hear from Buffalo & NYG that you are their guy.” Apparently aware that Daboll, who coached with the Bills this season, was also interviewing for the Giants’ opening, Flores asked Belichick whether he was referring to Daboll or him. Belichick then apologized. “I double checked and misread the text.” One of Flores’s lawyers, Douglas Wigdor, said that Flores reached out to their firm the same day he received the texts from Belichick. Wigdor’s employment litigation firm has represented numerous women who accused the film producer Harvey Weinstein of sexual misconduct, as well as former Fox News employees in harassment and discrimination cases. The complaint was filed as a putative class action, requiring certification from the court to proceed. Wigdor said his firm was currently investigating other claims from other coaches who could be part of the potential class. Flores is still a candidate in the open head coach searches for the Houston Texans and New Orleans Saints. Wigdor said they wanted to move forward regardless of the outcome of those interviews. “We weren’t going to wait and be coy and see if he got a job,” he said. Flores spent 15 years as an assistant under Belichick before getting his first head coaching job, but was interviewed as a candidate for other openings before being hired in 2019 by the Dolphins, where he had a 24-25 record in three seasons. Giants General Manager Joe Schoen posed with Brian Daboll, the team’s new head coach, on Monday. Before being hired by the Dolphins, Flores said he sat for what he called a “sham” interview with executives from the Denver Broncos. In that meeting, Flores said that John Elway, then the team’s general manager, and Joe Ellis, the team’s president, and others showed up an hour late. “It was clear from the substance of the interview that Mr. Flores was interviewed only because of the Rooney Rule, and that the Broncos never had any intention to consider him as a legitimate candidate for the job,” the lawsuit states.

On February 25, 1837, Cheyney University of Pennsylvania became the nation’s first Historically Black College and University (HBCU). The University was established through the bequest of Richard Humphreys, a Quaker philanthropist who bequeathed $10,000 — one-tenth of his estate — to design and establish a school to educate people of African descent and prepare them as teachers. First known as the African Institute, the school was soon renamed the Institute for Colored Youth. In its early years, it provided training in trades and agriculture, which were the predominant skills needed in the general economy. In 1902, the Institute was relocated to George Cheyney’s farm, a 275-acre property just 25 miles west of Philadelphia. The name “Cheyney” became associated with the school in 1913, though the school’s official name changed several times during the 20th century. As a charter member of the Pennsylvania State System of Higher Education (PASSHE), Cheyney State College became Cheyney University of Pennsylvania in 1983, the oldest of the fourteen member institutions and the only HBCU in the state system. While Cheyney University has a rich heritage as the first institution of higher learning for African Americans, our campus today welcomes students from a variety of races, cultures, and nationalities, all of whom receive educational instruction far beyond the vision of Richard Humphreys. Cheyney graduates still become teachers, but our alumni also enter careers such as journalism, medicine, business, science/technology, law, communications, and government service. The University offers baccalaureate degrees in an array of disciplines, and many graduates go on to secure advanced degrees in a variety of fields. Cheyney University boasts more than 30,000 graduates. Well-known alumni include: Late Ed Bradley, a correspondent for the CBS program “60 Minutes;” Pedro Rivera, Pennsylvania Secretary of Education; Robert W. Bogle, publisher and CEO of the Philadelphia Tribune, the oldest newspaper continuously owned and operated by an African American; Dr. Audrey F. Bronson, a member of the PA State System of Higher Education’s Board of Governors, ordained minister and retired educator; Dr. Gladys Styles Johnston, former Chancellor of the University of Nebraska at Kearney; Thaddeus Kirkland, State Representative and Mayor of Chester, PA; Late Bayard Rustin, a prominent civil rights activist.

Azie Taylor Morton, the only African-American to serve as United States treasurer, died here on Dec. 7. She was 67. Ms. Morton died at an Austin hospital after suffering a stroke at her home in Bastrop, said State Representative Dawnna Dukes, a longtime family friend. Ms. Morton was appointed treasurer in 1977 by President Jimmy Carter and served until 1981. The treasurer reports to the secretary of the treasury, the principal economic adviser to the president. Ms. Morton served on President John F. Kennedy's Committee on Equal Employment Opportunity and was an observer for presidential elections in Haiti, Senegal and the Dominican Republic. She graduated from Huston-Tillotson College in Austin in 1956 with a bachelor's degree in commercial education. Her first job after college was teaching delinquent students. Ms. Morton's husband, James Morton, died in January. She is survived by two daughters, Virgie Floyd and Stacey Hurst, both of Austin, as well as grandchildren and great-grandchildren

If the term “Moor” seems familiar but confusing, there’s a reason: Though the term can be found throughout literature, art, and history books, it does not actually describe a specific ethnicity or race. Instead, the concept of Moors has been used to describe alternatively the reign of Muslims in Spain, Europeans of African descent, and others for centuries. Derived from the Latin word “Maurus,” the term was originally used to describe Berbers and other people from the ancient Roman province of Mauretaniain what is now North Africa. Over time, it was increasingly applied to Muslims living in Europe. Beginning in the Renaissance, “Moor” and “blackamoor” were also used to describe any person with dark skin. In A.D. 711, a group of North African Muslims led by the Berber general, Tariq ibn-Ziyad, captured the Iberian Peninsula (modern Spain and Portugal). Known as al-Andalus, the territory became a prosperous cultural and economic center where education and the arts and sciences flourished. Over time, the strength of the Muslim state diminished, creating inroads for Christians who resented Moorish rule. For centuries, Christian groups challenged Muslim territorial dominance in al-Andalus and slowly expanded their territory. This culminated in 1492, when Catholic monarchs Ferdinand II and Isabella Iwon the Granada War and completed Spain’s conquest of the Iberian Peninsula. Eventually, the Moors were expelled from Spain. By then, the idea of Moors had spread across Western Europe. “Moor” came to mean anyone who was Muslim or had dark skin; occasionally, Europeans would distinguish...

Dyslexia is the most commonly diagnosed learning disorder and help is widely available. “If your child is having a hard time learning to read, struggling with pronunciation or spelling, and finding it difficult to recognize words, it may be time to have them tested for dyslexia. Dyslexia, or developmental dyslexia, is the most common neurobehavioral learning disorder. Between 80% to 90% of those diagnosed with learning disabilities have dyslexia, according to the Yale Center for Dyslexia and Creativity. Overall, dyslexia affects an estimated 1 in 5 Americans. Here is what parents need to know about testing for dyslexia in schools, where it often manifests most clearly. What is Dyslexia? Dyslexia is characterized by deficits in accurate and fluent word recognition, according to the Learning Disabilities Association of America. Students with dyslexia have difficulty with spelling, word recognition and decoding, despite normal or above-average intelligence. As a result, reading comprehension may be impacted. The brain-based reading disorder can manifest in different ways, depending on the child’s age and stage, as well as the context of the school and instructional methods being used, says Rebecca Mannis, a learning specialist and founder of Ivy Prep Learning Center in New York. The most common signs of dyslexia are omitting or transposing letters when reading or writing; taking a long time to complete a reading assignment; having difficulty decoding multisyllabic words; or experiencing difficulty reading aloud, says Kathryn Starke, a literacy consultant, reading specialist and author in Virginia. Children with dyslexia struggle with phonetic awareness, which includes things like rhyming and sound repetition in words, Flink says. “They may also become more reserved and less willing to engage with others, lose confidence in themselves, become disinterested in school, act out and get upset more easily,” he says. It is also common for students with dyslexia to have problems enunciating common letters, vowels or blends, says Raymond Witte, dean of the College of Education at the University of Toledo. “A slow and disjointed reading pattern is likely,” he says. “Extreme frustration can be demonstrated by students as they are working hard and putting forth effort to read just like their peers. These students know they are having problems but they don’t know why.” If your child shows these common signs, education experts say you should request testing for dyslexia in school.