Students with Learning Disabilities are Finding How to DO-IT

Thanks to a summer study program, students with learning disabilities are finding out how to DO-IT. The summer program in Seattle is called “Disabilities, Opportunities, Internetworking and Technology,” and brings students with disabilities together for summer study and mentorship at the University of Washington.

Students who might not have otherwise succeeded at their schoolwork now want to go to college and have a vision of a future that includes completing their education.

16 year old Rochelle Bowyer remembers an incident in middle school when a classmate asked her how to spell the word “orange”. She knew it was an easy word, but spelling words like “orange” for a dyslexic student is difficult.

For many years Bowyer and her family were not sure how to cope with dyslexia, especially around other students who were not copin with her condition.

This summer, she is one of six students with disabilities participating in the 23 year old DO-IT Scholars program bringing high school students with disabilities together. During the course of the ten day program, students will focus on robotics and neurobiology.

“I’ve only ever interacted with people who aren’t dyslexic,” Bowyer said. “Here, it’s different. We’ll sit around a table, and it’ll be like, ‘Well, I don’t know how to spell this’ and ‘I don’t either.’ ”