Megan* was diagnosed with cerebral palsy as an infant.
The Santa Barbara School District did such an amazing job of supplying her with the social and academic resources she needed during the school year, but when summer came around, she would lose some of the strides that she made during the year because of the long break. Her mother then learned at a United Way presentation at Santa Barbara Bank and Trust (now Union Bank) about United Way’s United for Literacy initiative that provides students 24/7 access to practice and enhance literacy skills through online Power Reading software. Megan started using the program the year before she began 9th grade at Dos Pueblos High School.
After two summers of using Power Reading, Megan moved from 100% resource classes to half resource and half mainstream classroom. In her senior year, Megan was 100% in mainstream classes - a huge success for a girl that doctors thought would not be able to walk or talk. Her reading ability, comprehension skills, and confidence grew exponentially! The consistency and incremental challenges that Megan received as a participant in Power Reading made a huge difference. When she walked across the stage at graduation, she knew that she accomplished what others thought impossible.
*Name changed for privacy. Megan is not pictured.