METAIRIE — Louisiana Key Academy will host a free event entitled “Becoming Dyslexperts: What Everyone Needs to Know About Dyslexia!,” on Tuesday, May 19, from noon to 2 p.m. at the St. Mary Magdalen Discipleship Center, 6425 W. Metairie Ave. in Metairie.
The free, public event is designed for parents, pediatricians and speech-language pathologists and will cover how to identify dyslexia early on, what warning signs to look for and how early intervention affects a child’s long-term academic success.
1 in 5 students in Louisiana have dyslexia, but most have never been screened or diagnosed. Dyslexia is frequently missed because parents and caregivers do not know the warning signs. Key indicators include:
• Difficulty rhyming or recognizing sounds in words
• Difficulty learning the alphabet and difficulty learning to read
• Slow or labored reading
• Trouble sounding out unfamiliar words
• Persistent spelling struggles despite instruction
Children diagnosed and supported between grades 1 and 5 have the best outcomes later in life. Without intervention during this window, the academic gap widens significantly and becomes harder to close.
“Our goal is to make sure no child slips through the cracks because the adults around
them didn’t have the information they needed,” said Interim CEO, Dr. Laura Cassidy. “When parents, doctors and speech-language pathologists all understand what to look for, we give children a real chance.”
Parents and community members are encouraged to pre-register here.
Louisiana Key Academy will officially open their Jefferson Parish campus in August 2026. More information about the Academy and how to enroll your child can be found at www.lkaschools.com.
About Louisiana Key Academy: Louisiana Key Academy is a tuition-free public charter school serving students with dyslexia and related learning differences. The Academy operates four campuses across Louisiana in Baton Rouge, Shreveport, Covington and Jefferson Parish. Instruction is delivered using the evidence-based Orton-Gillingham method, a structured, multisensory approach to literacy instruction specifically designed for students with dyslexia. Students receive 90 minutes of dedicated daily instruction in small class settings with a teacher-to-student ratio of 1 to 6, ensuring each child receives the individualized attention needed to address their unique learning challenges.
This model provides the time, structure and personalized engagement that students with dyslexia need to close learning gaps and build lasting reading skills, something traditional classroom settings often cannot offer.