2011 Organizing Institute a huge success

This intensive, four-day Youth Organizing Institute (O.I.), held each summer at Brown University, prepares our coordinators to go back to their home communities to run their chapters, implement the Project Eye-To-Eye curriculum, and to be leaders, speakers, and community organizers. This year's O.I. was the largest yet with 116 people involved from coordinators to presenters to board members. Beyond the training aspect, the O.I. is an incredible community-building and empowering experience that you've got to see for yourself:

At the end of the O.I., coordinators completed a survey sharing their thoughts and feelings regarding the training. Consistent with findings in past years, results from this year's evaluation were overwhelmingly positive, with 100% of coordinators reporting that they found the O.I. extremely helpful and rewarding. The coordinators' written feedback also conveyed genuine and sincere praise for the program. August Hunt, one of the coordinators of the Kildonan School Chapter, wrote, "It has been a stunning weekend for me, from the friendships I have made to the lectures I heard. Before I came I was unsure about how to get started, but now I cannot go wrong. Call me crazy, but I am excited about starting school so that I can get Project Eye-To-Eye going." To learn more about the Organizing Institute please click here.

Number of chapters on the rise - 20 more by 2013

As you may remember, in 2010 we received a generous grant from the Oak Foundation Learning Differences Programme to build 14 new Project Eye-To-Eye chapters by 2012. This fall we welcomed the final eight schools that include the University of Wyoming, Cherry Creek High School, and Wesleyan University, bringing our total number of sites up to 38 in 16 states. But wait, it doesn't stop there - we just received a grant to expand by 20 more chapters over the next two years! That means we're looking for 10 more schools to partner with by next fall, so if you are interested in starting a chapter let us know!

Join the LD/ADHD Take Action Tour on Facebook!

Our mentors across the country are bringing kids with learning disabilities and ADHD a crucially important message: YOU AREN'T ALONE. But our mentees aren't the only ones who need to hear that message - no one with a learning disability should ever feel that they are the only ones struggling because there are so many of us out there! Which is why during the Take Action Tour we are encouraging EVERYONE with an LD to stand up and say "I'm LD and proud to be!" Join us on Facebook to see where the tour has been and where we're heading next!

New program initiative: Think Different Diplomats

This fall marked the beginning of an exciting programming initiative for us - the Think Different Diplomats. This new Project Eye-To-Eye speakers’ board will bring current mentors, recent graduates, and our executive leaders to schools, universities, and conferences nationwide. Through lectures, workshops, and panel discussions, the Diplomats will share their own journeys to success - and inspire audience members to strive toward educational and personal empowerment as well.

At the beginning of October, 22 of our college student leaders gathered in Washington D.C. for the Think Different Diplomats Summit where they received training from members of our national staff on public speaking and telling their LD story. These students also had the opportunity to meet with members of Congress to bring awareness to LD/ADHD issues thanks to our partners at the National Center for Learning Disabilities (NCLD). In addition to arranging the congressional meetings, the NCLD team also educated the Think Different Diplomats on specific issues affecting people with learning disabilities that are currently being discussed on Capitol Hill.

To learn more about the Think Different Diplomats or to book a speaker in your community please click here.

Camp Vision: testing ground for art projects

Our summer program, Camp Vision, expanded to San Francisco, CA this summer in addition to the Geneva, NY and Keene, NH locations allowing over 50 students to attend Camp Vision, half of whom received partial or full scholarships.

In addition to opening up our mentoring program to students who may not have the opportunity to participate during the school year, Camp Vision plays an important and unique role in our overall programming model. By giving our national program staff the chance to do a test-run of new art projects that have been developed for the upcoming school year, Camp allows us to tweak the curriculum before implementing it across our 38 chapters. One such project this year was the "Ideal Learning Environment" where students design their ideal classroom in order to learn that their environment has a lot to do with how they learn and that if they use accommodations and technology their environment can be altered to help their learning. If you want to learn more about Camp Vision please visit our website here.

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- Fall 2011

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