Annette Sang, MSW, is a social worker who has primarily focused her practice in the public policy realm. She spent several years in the Ontario Public Service with the Ministry of Community and Social Services and with the Ontario Human Rights Commission. In 2015, Annette along with four other parents, founded Decoding Dyslexia Ontario, a grassroots organization that advocates alongside and supports dyslexic students and their families as they navigate the Ontario education system. Their work led to the Ontario Human Rights Commission’s Right to Read Inquiry that has examined the systemic discrimination faced by students with dyslexia/reading disabilities in Ontario’s public schools. Annette also served as a founding board member of Dyslexia Canada. She is the proud mother of three brilliant and talented sons who also happen to be dyslexic.

-VICE PRESIDENT, PEOPLE CULTURE & AND DIVERSITY
ST. JOSEPH’S HEALTH CARE HAMILTON

-EXECUTIVE LEAD, HR
ST. JOSEPH’S HEALTH SYSTEM

-ADJUNCT LECTURER
UNIVERSITY OF TORONTO, INSTITUTE OF HEALTH POLICY, MANAGEMENT & AND EVALUATION

Carrie Fletcher has a healthcare career spanning 25 years. She currently holds the role of Vice

President People, Culture & Diversity at St. Joseph’s Healthcare Hamilton and Executive Lead

HR for the St. Joseph’s Health System which includes six partner organizations spanning acute

care, mental health and addictions, long term care, homes care, and rehabilitation in the

Hamilton, Brantford, Guelph and Kitchener/Waterloo regions. Her past roles encompass

frontline clinical care in cardiac diagnostics and cardiac rehab, primary care administration,

clinical application project management, implementing and operating an Enterprise Project

Management Office (EPMO), and health information management (HIM). Ms. Fletcher is

passionate about the staff experience working to ensure individuals can bring their authentic

selves to work in an environment that is both physically and psychologically safe. She has

worked effectively with healthcare union partners in addressing workplace violence, and in

implementing effective equity, diversity and inclusion initiatives. Ms. Fletcher is an Adjunct

Lecturer at the University of Toronto with the Institute of Health Policy, Management &

Evaluation teaching the Human Resources course in the Masters Health Science, Health

Administration program.

Ms. Fletcher has earned a B.Sc Kinesiology with a minor in Gerontology from the University of

Waterloo, an MHSc Health Administration from the University of Toronto, certificates in both

Strategic Human Resource Management and Advanced Health Leadership from Rotman School

of Management at University of Toronto, and a Human Resources Management certificate from

Sheridan College. She is also certified as a Canadian Health Executive with the Canadian College

of Health Leaders and a Certified Human

MANAGING DIRECTOR, TD SECURITIES NY

Curt Sang joined TD Bank in 1996, beginning his career in Toronto working in Operations and Risk Management for TD Securities. He serves as Global Co-Chair of Black Experience at TD Bank. He began work on the trading floor as an Associate in 2000 on the Interest Rate Swap desk. In 2011 he moved to New York to develop and build-out the US trading operation. Curt is currently responsible for managing the US Rates Trading team which includes a Swaps, Options, Treasuries and Agency desk. Curt and his wife Annette live just outside of Princeton NJ with their three sons ages 13, 16 and 19, and spends most of his time on the weekend driving the boys around to sporting events.

Melanie Brethour, is a full-time resource teacher from Montreal, Quebec, Canada. She is an advocate for dyslexia awareness and the science of reading. Her deep commitment to this cause was sparked by her son Benjamin's dyslexia diagnosis at the age of 9, which ignited a personal mission to understand dyslexia and support her son and her students.

Motivated by her son's journey, Melanie embarked on extensive research and training, achieving Orton Gillingham associate-level certification, and becoming a CERI structured literacy teacher.

Driven by a desire to help others facing similar challenges, Melanie established Decoding Dyslexia Quebec, a grassroots movement dedicated to raising awareness and providing support. In addition, she launched Soar With Dyslexia on her social media, offering resources and information to teachers and parents navigating the complexities of dyslexia and the science of reading. Melanie also volunteers for Dyslexia Canada, lending her support to parents on this difficult journey.

With a motto of "when you know better, you do better," Melanie Brethour continues to make a profound impact, advocating for dyslexia understanding and equipping individuals to support struggling students and their families, inspired by her son.

Karine Tremblay-Eley has been teaching elementary school-aged children for the last 20 years. She began her teaching career as a Kindergarten teacher and realized that she needed to learn more about neurodiversity to meet the needs of her students. After completing an M.Ed in Educational Psychology at McGill University, Karine transitioned to the position of Learning Specialist at a private school in Montreal, Quebec. In her role as Learning Specialist, she conducts academic interventions, and she is responsible for guiding pedagogical practices utilized in teaching literacy and mathematics. To better support her students with dyslexia, Karine completed the Orton Gillingham Classroom Educator and Associate level coursework and practicum. She obtained her Associate level certification in 2021. Karine is also certified by the International Dyslexia Association as a Structured Literacy Dyslexia Interventionist. She is a life-long learner committed to helping children with dyslexia succeed in school. Karine lives with her husband and their two children in a suburb of Montreal.

Faye Theriault is a proud wife, mom and grandmother who lives in a beautiful community around the Bay of Fundy in New Brunswick. Faye is 1 in 5.

Faye’s advocacy journey started early without an understanding of what Dyslexia really was. During the late 80s, she discovered that her nephew could not read. She was shocked that he could be in middle school and was not able to read? A few years later, the family lost him to suicide. Unfortunately, dyslexia, bullying and mental health issues were never openly discussed at that time.

In 2010. Faye retired and found her plans for these years had changed after discovering two of her grandchildren were diagnosed with learning disabilities. While supporting her grandchildren, she discovered her own interest in tutoring students who struggle to read. Faye continues as an active Barton (an Orton Gillingham based program), tutor in her community.

Faye is a consummate advocate! In an effort to provide support and information that was understandable for families with dyslexia, Faye created a Facebook group called Dyslexia Support New Brunswick Canada. In 2021, she started and maintains the Facebook group Canada’s Science of Reading – What I Should Have Learned in College. In 2022, she led the Canadian involvement in the International Dyslexia Group online community to join Canadian voices with partners around the world in support of the UN adoption for the “Declaration of World Dyslexia Day on October 8th”.

Faye has also led multiple fundraising efforts to support the training of New Brunswick teachers in the Science of Reading. Her efforts include founding the Route 790 Let's Make A Difference group, the 20 Women Who Care group and most recently, she lead a fundraiser in Charlotte County NB to ensure teachers at local schools could participate in TFRC’s OGA Classroom Educator course in August 2023.

Faye notes “My goal is for all teachers to be trained in the Science of Reading and empower all children with the ability to read. Everyone has the Right to Read. It is a human right.”

EdD, CERTIFIED READING CLINICIAN

Dr. Valdine Björnson has been an educator for over 20 years in public and private, international, and Manitoba schools teaching music, early years, EAL, and as a Certified Reading Clinician. She is a certified teacher in BC, Manitoba, and Ontario. She has worked overseas (Japan, Finland, and Egypt) teaching EFL and EAL in immersion, private/public, and English language schools from ages 3 to adult. She has provided in-services, training, as well as collaborative and formal diagnostic assessments, goal setting, and intervention in elementary and middle schools. She works as a Reading Specialist at the University of Manitoba (Indigenous Student Centre). She has completed a Doctor of Education degree in Language and Literacy (Educational Research) focusing upon dyslexia in adults in Manitoba.

Dr. Valdine Björnson is accredited with the International Dyslexia Association (Structured Literacy/Dyslexia Specialist), listed with the Ontario Branch of the International Dyslexia Association, and accredited with the Orton Gillingham Academy (Fellow-in-Training - FIT/OGA). She is a board member of Dyslexia Canada. She is currently the president and founding member of Manitoba Teachers for Students with Learning Disabilities (Manitoba Teachers' Society Special Area Group of Educators).

She founded the Reading and Learning Clinic of Manitoba which provides accredited Orton-Gillingham Academy training across Canada and the United States for individuals, school teams, and to support division-wide initiatives.

PhD, EDUCATION (COGNITIVE STUDIES)

Lindsay Heggie holds graduate degrees in Linguistics and Education, earning her PhD (Cognitive Studies in Education) in 2017. Her extensive background in the Science of Reading (SoR) extends over 15 years, from her time as a Knowledge Officer with the Canadian Language and Literacy Research Network (CLLRNet) to her doctoral work on word reading and the component skills that make children successful readers. In her current role at Queen’s University, Lindsay mentors and supports post-secondary students’ academic skill and strategy development; she supports students who have learning disabilities and those who are typically-achieving, focusing on a wide range of topics including self-regulation skills and reading comprehension strategies.

OCT, M.A. (CHILD STUDY & EDUCATION), Ed.D. STUDENT,

DIRECTOR AT BRIGHT LIGHT LEARNERS

Una is a doctoral student in Reading Science at Mount St. Joseph University. She is an Ontario Certified Teacher and the owner of Bright Light Learners, a private Toronto clinic offering structured literacy intervention. Una is trained in several evidence-based reading intervention approaches including Lindamood-Bell LiPS, Direct Instruction, and Phono-Graphix. Una is also an Acadience Reading Mentor, meaning she is certified to train teachers in the administration and analysis of Acadience assessment measures. She is passionate about bridging the research-to-practice gap to allow for effective structured literacy instruction in classroom practice. Una is an advocate for Response to Intervention/Multi-Tiered Systems of Support frameworks to provide equitable access to learning opportunities for all children through prevention.

M.Ed., FRENCH IMMERSION, STUDENT SUPPORT TEACHER

Kim Lockhart is a French Immersion, elementary Student Support Teacher (SST) in the Limestone District School Board in Kingston, Ontario. She graduated from the Trent/Queen’s Concurrent Education Program in 2000, with a double major in French and Biology. Kim earned her M.Ed from Queen’s University. She specialized in evidence-based instructional practices that support students with reading difficulties in French Immersion Programs and developed a resource for parents: “Supporting and Inspiring your Child with Reading Difficulties in the French Immersion Program”. In 2020, Kim received her Orton-Gillingham (OG) Classroom Educator certificate and has adopted the OG approach in her French as a Second Language (FSL) classroom. Kim is a member of the Ontario Modern Languages Teachers Association (OMLTA), the Canadian Association of Second Language Teachers (CASLT) and a Board member with the Learning Disabilities Association of Kingston.

VICE-PRINCIPAL, LITERACY CHAIR, SPECIAL EDUCATION TEACHER, OCT

Lark Barker is a special education teacher with over 20 years of experience in the education field. Originally a secondary school educator, she has held numerous roles in schools, including vice-principal, literacy chair and most recently as a special education resource teacher. She has spent the last decade teaching in Toronto, mostly in the Education Community Partnership Program. Her experience teaching in a northern Manitoba Indigenous community and in Mexico provoked her interest in culturally relevant pedagogy and curriculum. She began researching and focusing on teaching reading in 2014, when her son was diagnosed with a specific learning disability in reading phonemics (dyslexia). Since then, she has become a certified structured literacy classroom teacher and recently finished an Orton Gillingham associate-level practicum. She has served as President of Decoding Dyslexia Ontario and a member of EQAO's Modernization in Measurement Advisory Panel.