What if the problem isn’t that we don’t know what works—but that everything around it is out of sync?

In this episode, we explore the growing gap between policy and practice, where teacher preparation, curriculum, and classroom expectations often operate in silos. We unpack what happens when reading struggles go unidentified—and how those challenges extend far beyond the classroom, shaping behavior, confidence, and long-term outcomes.

Featuring a closer look at the role of the Kansas State Board of Education, this conversation reveals the limits of policy alone—and why real change depends on alignment, not blame. Because when systems begin to work together, every child has a real chance to learn to read.

In This Episode You’ll Hear:

• • Reid Lyon — National Institutes of Health researcher on reading science

  • Rob Eagan — Advocate and policy voice on dyslexia recognition and implementation in Kansas

  • Tim Odegard — Why policy without systems, time, and tools fails to translate into classroom change

  • Dana Hensley — The gap between understanding reading science and actually applying it in real classrooms

  • Sheree Utash — What it means when 60% of students arrive needing remediation—and what that reveals about earlier instruction

  • Savannah Ball — How reading struggles show up in the community through avoidance, confidence, and access

  • Judge Richard Macias — The patterns he sees in juvenile court—and how reading difficulties connect to broader life outcomes

  • Jeanine Phillips — Without structured literacy training instructors will never know how much impact they could have had.

  • Betty Arnold — Why addressing literacy requires resources, awareness, and a system prepared to meet diverse student needs

• Kansas State Board of Education
• Kansas Blueprint for Literacy
• Phillips Fundamental Learning Center (PFLC)
• Sold a Story Podcast by Emily Hanford
• Science of Reading research (National Reading Panel)

If this episode helped you better understand the system behind reading outcomes—

• Share it with a parent, educator, or policymaker
• Leave a review to help more people find this conversation
• And follow the podcast so you don’t miss what comes next

Because change doesn’t happen in isolation— it happens when more people understand the system… and choose to act.

In Episode 5, we go deeper into the question this episode leaves behind:

👉 Who actually holds the power to change literacy outcomes in Kansas— and what will it take to move from policy to real results?

This podcast is produced by KB PODCASTS

What does the research actually say about how children learn to read—and why hasn’t it reached every classroom?

In this episode, we examine decades of reading science alongside the real experiences of teachers, parents, and students. From the National Institutes of Health to classrooms across Kansas, the evidence is clear: we know how children learn to read.

So why are so many still being left behind?

As national organizations call for a $2.5 billion overhaul of teacher preparation, a deeper truth emerges—this isn’t just a reading crisis.

It’s a teacher preparation crisis.

If we know how children learn to read… why weren’t teachers taught it?

• Dr. Reid Lyon (NIH): Decades of research showing we’ve long understood how reading develops

• Neil Zoglmann (teacher): What it feels like to be trained in methods that don’t align with research

• Dana Hensley (retired principal): Why teachers leave training without practical tools

• Amy Nolan (professor): How literacy gaps show up in college students

• Savannah Ball (Wichita Public Library): What struggling readers look like in real life

• Tammi Hope (Rolph Literacy Academy): What happens when instruction finally aligns with the brain

• Heather Mora (parent): How the right instruction changed her child’s life

• Dr. Tim Odegard (researcher): Why preparation and classroom practice must align

• Dr. Carolynn Carlson (Washburn University): What responsible teacher preparation should look like

Teacher Preparation & Policy

• Education Week (2026): $2.5B teacher prep proposal
• American Association of Colleges for Teacher Education

Science of Reading

• National Reading Panel (2000)
• Reading Universe — Ten Maxims
• International Dyslexia Association

National Reporting

• Sold a Story — Emily Hanford

Kansas Context

• Kansas State Department of Education
• Kansas House Bill 2322 (2023)

If this episode resonated with you, follow the podcast and share it with a parent, teacher, or policymaker.

Because change doesn’t start in systems— it starts with awareness.

In this episode of My Child Can’t Read: A Heartland Crisis, we move up the ladder of responsibility to examine the adults caught in the middle of the literacy crisis. Teachers, administrators, and community members care deeply and take action—but knowledge gaps, systemic limits, and bureaucratic obstacles often stop even the most well-intentioned efforts. From classroom struggles to a privately funded structured literacy pilot that transformed students’ reading outcomes, we explore how adult action can help—and how the system can still block progress. By the end of the episode, we ask the hard question: Then who is actually holding the power?

• Neal Zoglmann – Middle school SPED teacher; shares the challenge of learning evidence-based literacy while university programs continue to teach outdated methods.
• Jaime Alford – Former principal and director of graduate workshops; discusses the emotional burden teachers carry, the “knowing-doing gap,” and the story of the Downing Project.
• Michelle Schmidt – Teacher; highlights student growth and self-advocacy through structured literacy.
• Joyce Temanson – Teacher; shares how professional development transformed her understanding of the Science of Reading.
• Bunny Hill – Administrator; reflects on systemic friction and the limits of teacher agency.
• Dana Hensley – Administrator; demonstrates how even knowledgeable teachers struggle to implement practices without structural support.
• Analyssa Noe – Founder of Cardinal Academy; describes how discovering the science of reading transformed a rural micro-school where most students entered behind in reading.
• Heather Mora – Parent; illustrates how gaps in adult preparation directly impact students and families.

Resources & References:

• Phillips Fundamental Learning Center: https://phillipsfundamental.org

• BuzzFeed News: Teachers Reveal What No One Wants To Admit About Literacy Education

• IDEA & Special Education Law Overview

• Sold a Story Podcast by Emily Hanford and AMP Reports

Next season on My Child Can’t Read: A Heartland Crisis… we’re widening the lens.

For the past three seasons, we’ve told the stories of parents, teachers, and children fighting for the right to read — often inside systems that weren’t built to help them.

We listened to the pain. We traced the history. We followed the science.

And along the way, something became clear.

This isn’t just a personal crisis.

It’s a systemic one.

So now, we’re asking a bigger question:

What is the state of literacy in America — really?

Welcome to Season 4: The State of Literacy — where we zoom out to examine the forces shaping children’s lives long before they ever pick up a book.

This season doesn’t start with debate.

It starts with harm.

We follow that harm upward — from children and families, to classrooms, to policy, to institutions that prepare educators.

Because once the evidence is clear, once solutions are proven,

neutrality disappears.

Season 4 traces a single arc:

From proof — to responsibility.

You’ll hear from families living with the cost of reading failure. Teachers caught between what they were taught and what their students need. Policymakers navigating mandates without infrastructure. Researchers who have been sounding the alarm for decades.

And finally — you’ll see what it looks like when responsibility is actually carried forward.

Because here’s the truth:

We already know how to teach every child to read.

What we haven’t done — not yet — is build the will, the systems, and the courage to make it happen everywhere.

Season 4 is about facing that truth — and asking what responsibility demands next.

The State of Literacy. Season 4 of My Child Can’t Read: A Heartland Crisis.

New episodes begin March 3, 2026.

In this special bonus episode, Jesica Glover sits down with Dr. Joyce S. Pickering — a globally respected leader in literacy, learning differences, teacher training, and multisensory instruction. With more than fifty years devoted to helping children with language-based learning differences, Dr. Pickering’s wisdom offers a rare, grounding perspective in the midst of America’s literacy reform movement.

Through deeply personal stories and decades of experience across Montessori, speech-language pathology, and structured literacy intervention, Dr. Pickering reflects on what has changed, what still hasn’t, and what future generations of educators must carry forward. This conversation is equal parts history lesson, masterclass, and call to courage.

If you are a teacher, parent, policymaker, or advocate navigating a system in need of transformation, Dr. Pickering’s voice will feel like an anchor — steady, clear, and profoundly compassionate.

• How Dr. Pickering’s early clinical work led her to Montessori education and eventually to developing the Shelton Model of Education.
• Why she believes today’s reading crisis is both preventable and solvable.
• Her reflections on the rise of dyslexia identification — and the misconceptions that still persist.
• What she’s learned after training thousands of educators in structured, multisensory instruction.
• Her call to parents and teachers: "You are not helpless. Knowledge gives you power — and responsibility."

“If we don’t prepare teachers, we fail children. And when we fail children, it reverberates through their entire lives.” — Dr. Joyce S. Pickering

If Dr. Pickering’s message moved you, please share this episode with one teacher or one parent who needs encouragement right now. And if you’d like to support teacher training or structured literacy efforts in your community, visit the Shelton School & Evaluation Center’s resources to learn more about their impact.

1. Academic Language Therapy Association (ALTA). “Luke Waites ALTA Award of Service: Joyce Pickering (2019).” ALTA Awards, https://www.altaread.org/about/alta-awards/ (See Joyce Pickering listed as 2019 recipient). altaread.org+2altaread.org+2
2. International Multisensory Structured Language Education Council (IMSLEC). “History & Development.” https://www.imslec.org/history.asp (Includes reference to Joyce Pickering’s role and the development of accreditation and standards). imslec.org+1
3. Shelton School & Evaluation Center. “Joyce and Bob Pickering – Donor Story.” https://sheltongiving.org/?pageID=3&storyNum=26 (Bio of Joyce Pickering’s work at Shelton School, her background, and lifelong commitment). sheltongiving.org
4. “Spotlight Dr. Joyce Pickering.” Baan Dek, blog post, Oct 2013 (or earlier) — includes early career background, Montessori work, and service history. Baan Dek
5. “Training – Shelton School MSLE Training Courses.” PDF catalog describing Shelton’s MSLE courses and Joyce Pickering as Executive Director Emerita and instructor. https://resources.finalsite.net/images/v1616609702/shelton/oxbsefo5sstht2qc7ufq/SheltonTraining2021comp4c.pdf Cloudinary

This podcast is produced by KB PODCASTS

In rural Kansas, access to reading specialists, dyslexia services, and evidence-based literacy instruction can be limited — or completely unavailable. When schools say “wait and see,” families are often left navigating the system alone.

In this episode, we tell the story of what happens when the system says no — and communities rise.

You’ll hear how parents, teachers, and local advocates organize, train, and create solutions from the ground up — filling gaps left by underfunded systems and transforming reading outcomes for children who were once overlooked.

This is a story about grassroots advocacy, structured literacy, and the power of ordinary people refusing to accept that reading failure is inevitable.

• Jen Barrett — Kansas mom A parent whose experience reveals the emotional and financial toll families face when early concerns are dismissed and meaningful support is delayed.

• Michelle Schmidt — Kansas educator & reading interventionist A veteran teacher reflecting on what she was never taught about how reading works — and how structured literacy training changed everything.

• Heather Mora — Kansas mom & grassroots literacy advocate A parent whose advocacy reshaped how her district understands dyslexia and literacy instruction.

• Alana McWilliams — Kansas mom & grassroots literacy advocate A powerful voice on why early identification matters — and the lasting cost of waiting.

• Dr. Timothy Odegard — Dyslexia researcher A national expert explaining why literacy laws alone don’t solve the reading crisis — and why communities often carry the work forward.

• Why rural families struggle to access dyslexia screening and reading intervention
• How grassroots organizing fills gaps when systems fall short
• Why early intervention changes outcomes — and what happens when it’s delayed
• The difference between identifying dyslexia and truly supporting students
• How structured literacy transforms classrooms and communities

Parents: Trust your instincts. Ask questions. Document concerns. Advocacy often begins at home.

Teachers: Seek structured literacy training. Partner with families. Change starts one classroom at a time.

Advocates: Organize, connect, and persist. Every conversation builds momentum.

Coming next: Joyce S. Pickering — The Elder of the Revolution

For more than fifty years, Joyce preserved and passed on structured literacy knowledge when few others would — reminding us that revolutions don’t start loud. They start small.

Sources & References:

• Odegard, T. N., Hall, C., & Kloberdanz, K. (2025). Literacy legislation in practice: Implementation, impact, and emerging lessons. Annals of Dyslexia.

• International Dyslexia Association. (2023). Effective reading instruction and dyslexia identification resources. https://dyslexiaida.org/
• Kansas State Department of Education. (2023). Dyslexia recognition and support resources.https://www.ksde.org/Agency/Division-of-Learning-Services/Special-Education

This podcast is produced by KB PODCASTS