Amy's Academics

08/03/2026

08/01/2026

100% YES!!! On average, I see a 500% faster improvement in reading fluency in a speech-to-print approach as compared to a print-to-speech approach. (I am certified in both, so am implementing them both with fidelity.)

08/01/2026

After many years of development, I'm SO excited to share that this summer I completed the reading intervention I've been developing!!! It is evidence-based and can be implemented by trained parents, paraprofessionals, and educators. Best of all, there is no cost to purchase it, which eliminates financial barriers that too often limit access to quality reading intervention.

My vision is to ensure that every student in Illinois who needs reading support has access to evidence-based reading intervention, from rural communities to urban districts, so that every child has the opportunity to become a confident, successful reader with the freedom to choose their own future.

The next step is pursuing grants and funding opportunities to see if this vision can become a reality. I don't know exactly where this journey will lead, but I do know that every child deserves the opportunity to learn to read.

The Illinois Reading Initiative
Every Child Can Read.

06/30/2026

A great opportunity for 7-11 year olds who need help with their /s/ sound!

06/25/2026

What Parents Need to Know About Private School Tuition Reimbursement

When a public school district fails to provide a child with a free appropriate public education, federal law allows parents to place that child in an appropriate private school and seek reimbursement from the district for tuition and transportation. Before taking that step, however, parents must satisfy a notice requirement that is written directly into federal law.

Under 20 U.S.C. Section 1412(a)(10)(C)(iii) and the accompanying regulation, 34 C.F.R. Section 300.148(d), a parent must notify the school district in writing, at least ten business days before removing the child, that the parent is rejecting the placement proposed by the district and intends to enroll the child in a private school at public expense. This requirement appears in the procedural safeguards notice that every public school district must provide to parents.
What the procedural safeguards notice does not tell parents, and what is not explained anywhere on the Missouri Department of Elementary and Secondary Education's website, is that sending this notice is only half of what the law actually requires.

Courts in the Eighth Circuit, which includes Missouri, follow a rule known as the Thompson rule. Under this rule, a parent who withdraws a child from a public school district before filing a due process complaint against that district forfeits the right to seek reimbursement for a private placement altogether, even where the district was at fault and even where the parent sent a proper ten day notice. Missouri's Administrative Hearing Commission applies this rule regularly against Parents.

In practical terms, this means a parent can follow every instruction the State gives them, send the required notice, and wait the required ten days, and still permanently lose the right to recover a dollar of tuition or transportation, simply because they withdrew their child before a due process complaint was filed against the district.

If your child's school district has failed to provide an appropriate education and you are considering a private placement, contact an attorney before you give notice, before you withdraw your child, and before you sign an enrollment contract with a private school. The order in which these steps happen determines whether you keep the right to be reimbursed at all.

06/21/2026

For many families, the trauma of restraint or seclusion does not end when the restraint stops or the seclusion door opens. The emotional fallout, the unanswered questions, and the fear of it happening again can follow a child and parent long after the incident itself. I am honored to cohost this conversation about what schools can and cannot do, the protections children are entitled to, and the steps families can take when safety, disability, and trauma intersect. If your family has experienced restraint or seclusion in Missouri, we hope you will join us—either in person or by Zoom.

Zoom Link: https://us06web.zoom.us/j/83564304815?pwd=abH1VZsLmCRkcg4rEbZOTQB5igPbEH.1

06/10/2026

This great infographic brought to you by Carol Koch, EdD, CCC-SLP, BCS-CL, ASHA Fellow

06/02/2026

Recruiting Children with Persistent Speech Sound Disorders (Child Language and Literacy Lab at Vanderbilt)

Children participate in this study remotely, so children across the country can participate. We are seeking to understand the language and literacy skills of children with persistent speech sound disorders.