Specialized Literacy Personnel

Specialized Literacy Personnel

Pursuant to Code of Virginia § 22.1-253.13:2(G) and ACPS Policy AF (Section X), Amherst County Public Schools employs individuals that serve as reading specialists and dyslexia advisors.

Reading Specialists

Reading Specialists are teachers specifically licensed with a reading specialist endorsement based on the criteria outlined by the Virginia Department of Education.

Job Description/Responsibilities:

• Demonstrates expertise in the use of formal and informal screening, diagnostic, and progress monitoring assessments for reading and uses diagnostic data to inform instruction for acceleration, intervention, remediation, and differentiation;
• Demonstrates expertise in the knowledge, skills, and processes necessary for teaching communication, including developing students' phonological awareness skills;
• Demonstrates expertise in explicit and systematic phonics instruction, including an understanding of sound and symbol relationships, syllables, phonemes, morphemes, decoding skills, word analysis, and word attack skills;
• Demonstrates expertise in the morphology of English including inflections, prefixes, suffixes, roots, and word relationships;
• Demonstrates expertise in the structure of the English language, including and understanding of syntax, semantics, and vocabulary development;
• Demonstrates expertise in reading comprehension strategies, including a repertoire of questioning strategies, understanding the dimensions of word meanings, teaching predicting, inferencing, summarizing, clarifying, evaluating, and making connections;
• Demonstrates the ability to develop comprehension skills in all content areas;
• Demonstrates expertise in systematic spelling instruction, including awareness of the purpose and limitations of "invented spelling," orthographic patterns, and strategies for promoting generalization of spelling study to writing;
• Demonstrates expertise in the knowledge, skills, and processes necessary for teaching writing, including the domains of composing and written expression and usage and mechanics and the writing process of planning, drafting, revising, editing, and sharing;
• Demonstrates the ability to instruct and advise teachers in the skills necessary to differentiate reading instruction for both low and high achieving readers;
• Demonstrates the ability to coach and support teachers through classroom observations, demonstrations, co-teaching, and other forms of job-embedded professional development;
• Demonstrates the ability to organize and supervise the reading program within the classroom, school, or division;
• Demonstrates effective communication skills in working with a variety of groups, including parents, teachers, administrators, and community leaders;
• Demonstrates knowledge of current research and exemplary practices in English and reading

Current Reading Specialists:

Amherst Elementary:

• Jennifer Johnson
•  Kim Stark

Amelon Elementary:

• Victoria Grieser
•  Ashley Hutchinson
• Brooke Glass

Central Elementary:

• Olivia Linn
• Christine Spicer
• Susan Vanyo

Elon Elementary:

• Joy Kurko
• Melanie Tinsley

Madison Heights Elementary:

• Anita Adams
• Kandi Austin
• Clair Morck
•  Mark Sampson

Temperance Elementary:

• Haley Munson

Dyslexia Advisors

Dyslexia Advisors are reading specialists that have training in the identification of and the appropriate interventions, accommodations, and teaching techniques for students with dyslexia or a related disorder and shall serve as an advisor on dyslexia and related disorders.

ACPS Dyslexia Advisors:

• Robin Wheeler
•  Ruth Matheny