Dyslexia Therapy Scholarship for Students with Dyslexia Program; revise definition of "dyslexia."

S. B. No. 2289 *SS26/R1133* ~ OFFICIAL ~ G1/2
26/SS26/R1133
PAGE 1 (icj\tb)

To: Education
MISSISSIPPI LEGISLATURE REGULAR SESSION 2026

By: Senator(s) DeBar

SENATE BILL NO. 2289

AN ACT TO AMEND SECTION 37-173-1, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, 1
TO REVISE THE DEFINITION OF "DYSLEXIA" FOR PURPOSES OF THE 2
DYSLEXIA THERAPY SCHOLARSHIP FOR STUDENTS WITH DYSLEXIA PROGRAM; 3
AND FOR RELATED PURPOSES. 4
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MISSISSIPPI: 5
SECTION 1. Section 37-173-1, Mississippi Code of 1972, is 6
amended as follows: 7
37-173-1. As used in this chapter, the following words and 8
phrases shall have the meanings ascribed in this section unless 9
the context clearly indicates otherwise: 10
(a) "Board" means the State Board of Education. 11
(b) "Department" means the State Department of 12
Education. 13
(c) "Dyslexia" * * * is a specific learning disability 14
characterized by difficulties in word reading and/or spelling that 15
involve accuracy, speed, or both and vary depending on the 16
orthography. These difficulties occur along a continuum of 17
severity and persist even with instruction that is effective for 18
the individual's peers. The causes of dyslexia are complex and 19
S. B. No. 2289 *SS26/R1133* ~ OFFICIAL ~
26/SS26/R1133
PAGE 2 (icj\tb)

involve combinations of genetic, neurobiological, and 20
environmental influences that interact throughout development. 21
Underlying difficulties with phonological and morphological 22
processing are common but not universal, and early oral language 23
weaknesses often foreshadow literacy challenges. Secondary 24
consequences include reading comprehension problems and reduced 25
reading and writing experience that can impede growth in language, 26
knowledge, written expression, and overall academic achievement. 27
Psychological well-being and employment opportunities also may be 28
affected. Although identification and targeted instruction are 29
important at any age, language and literacy support before and 30
during the early years of education is particularly effective. 31
(d) "Dyslexia therapy" means an appropriate specialized 32
dyslexia instructional program that is delivered by a Mississippi 33
Department of Education licensed dyslexia therapist which is 34
scientific, research-based, Orton-Gillingham based, and is offered 35
in a small group setting to teach students the components of 36
reading instruction which include: 37
(i) Phonemic awareness to enable students to 38
detect, segment, blend and manipulate sounds in spoken language; 39
(ii) Graphophonemic knowledge (phonics) for 40
teaching the letter-sound plan of English; 41
(iii) The entire structure of the English language 42
that encompasses morphology, semantics, syntax and pragmatics; 43
S. B. No. 2289 *SS26/R1133* ~ OFFICIAL ~
26/SS26/R1133
PAGE 3 (icj\tb)

(iv) Linguistic instruction directed toward 44
proficiency and fluency with the patterns of language so that 45
words and sentences are carriers of meaning; and 46
(v) Strategies that students use for decoding, 47
encoding, word recognition, fluency and comprehension. 48
These components shall be taught using instructional 49
approaches that include explicit, direct instruction which is 50
systematic, sequential and cumulative, following a logical plan of 51
presenting the alphabetic principle commensurate with the 52
students' needs, with no assumption of prior skills or language 53
knowledge; individualized to meet the specific learning needs of 54
each individual student in a small group setting; intensive, 55
highly concentrated instruction that maximizes student engagement 56
and uses specialized methods and materials; meaning-based 57
instruction directed toward purposeful reading and writing, with 58
an emphasis on comprehension and composition; and multisensory 59
instruction that incorporates the simultaneous use of two (2) or 60
more sensory pathways during teacher presentations and student 61
practice. 62
(e) "AA license" means a certification issued by the 63
department to educators who hold a master's degree, indicating 64
their eligibility to teach in specific academic settings within 65
the State of Mississippi. 66
(f) "Qualified Instructor of Certified Academic 67
Language Therapists" means a professional who is certified in 68
S. B. No. 2289 *SS26/R1133* ~ OFFICIAL ~
26/SS26/R1133
PAGE 4 (icj\tb)

instructor competency through a nationally recognized 69
Orton-Gillingham-based dyslexia therapy organization or 70
Orton-Gillingham-based academic language therapy organization and 71
has: 72
(i) Experience in Orton-Gillingham-based dyslexia 73
therapy situations that include remediating students of various 74
severity levels, ages and group sizes not exceeding six (6) 75
students; 76
(ii) Completed a minimum of fourteen hundred 77
(1400) clinical therapy hours; 78
(iii) Completed a minimum of two (2) curriculum 79
therapy cycles remediating students; 80
(iv) Trained in a minimum of two (2) 81
Orton-Gillingham-based dyslexia therapy curriculum programs; 82
(v) Assisted in training educators through an 83
Orton-Gillingham-based dyslexia therapy program under a Qualified 84
Instructor of Certified Academic Language Therapists; and 85
(vi) A master's degree or higher level of 86
education. 87
(g) "Department of Education licensed dyslexia 88
therapist" means a professional: 89
(i) Who has completed training in a 90
department-approved Orton-Gillingham-based dyslexia therapy 91
training program attaining * * * an AA license in dyslexia 92
therapy; or 93
S. B. No. 2289 *SS26/R1133* ~ OFFICIAL ~
26/SS26/R1133
PAGE 5 (icj\tb)

(ii) Holding or currently participating in a 94
master's degree that leads to an AA license and a 95
department-approved Orton-Gillingham-based dyslexia therapy 96
training program; or 97
(iii) Holding a standard five-year license or 98
administrator license and a master's degree having completed a 99
department-approved Orton-Gillingham-based dyslexia training 100
program; or 101
(iv) Holding: 102
1. A national certification for 103
Orton-Gillingham-based dyslexia therapy or Orton-Gillingham-based 104
academic language therapy from a nationally recognized 105
professional organization; 106
2. College transcripts as proof of a master's 107
degree or greater level of graduate education; and 108
3. Current membership in a national 109
certifying organization for Orton-Gillingham-based dyslexia 110
therapy or Orton-Gillingham-based academic language therapy as 111
proof of maintenance of professional continuing education 112
standards. 113
(h) "Approved dyslexia therapy training program" means 114
a program accredited by the International Multisensory Structured 115
Language Education Council (IMSLEC) and includes: 116
(i) A minimum of two hundred (200) hours of 117
coursework and seven hundred (700) hours of clinical work, 118
S. B. No. 2289 *SS26/R1133* ~ OFFICIAL ~
26/SS26/R1133
PAGE 6 (icj\tb)
ST: Dyslexia Therapy Scholarship for Students
with Dyslexia Program; revise definition of
"dyslexia."
observed and monitored by a Qualified Instructor of Certified 119
Academic Language Therapists; and 120
(ii) A reading-science competency examination, 121
including multisensory structured language, administered by a 122
nationally recognized organization with authority to issue 123
national certification. 124
(i) "Mississippi Dyslexia Therapy Scholarship for 125
Students with Dyslexia Program" means a scholarship to provide the 126
option to attend a public school other than the one to which 127
assigned, or to provide a scholarship to a nonpublic school of 128
choice, for students in Grade 1 through Grade 12 diagnosed with 129
dyslexia in order to receive comprehensive multisensory dyslexia 130
therapy delivered by holders of an appropriate license in dyslexia 131
therapy issued by the department. 132
(j) "School" means any public or state-accredited 133
nonpublic special purpose school that provides a specific learning 134
environment that provides comprehensive dyslexia therapy 135
instruction delivered by dyslexia therapists licensed by the 136
department providing highly qualified education and intervention 137
services to children diagnosed with the primary learning 138
disability of dyslexia. 139
SECTION 2. This act shall take effect and be in force from 140
and after July 1, 2026. 141