Emily Hellstrom News Today

New York City is slated to expand its dyslexia initiatives this fall, from the first public school for students who struggle to read, to screening for the disorder at Rikers Island and in juvenile detention school programs.

The new school, known as South Bronx Literacy Academy, is the culmination of years of advocacy from a handful of parent advocates.

A summer program for dyslexic children showed promising results. Now, a pilot is being implemented in the Bronx.

Mayor Eric Adams and his schools chief David Banks made no secret of their top priority for the new school year: improving how schools teach children how to read.

The announcement comes as part of a wider plan by Mayor Eric Adams to identify and support students with dyslexia or other reading challenges.

If the new school comes to fruition, it would be the second public school in NYC to focus specifically on students with dyslexia.

PhD student Emily Hellstrom is this year's Equus Foundation Veterinary Research Fellow. She is looking into intestinal function in colic patients.