AJC Digging Deeper: Education
AJC Digging Deeper: Education

Kemp to sign Georgia’s first dyslexia mandate for schools

ajc.com
By Ty Tagami
May 1, 2019

Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp will sign historic dyslexia legislation at a Cobb County high school Thursday.

The legislation for the state's first dyslexia mandate, Senate Bill 48, also requires new teacher training and a three-year pilot program to test out screening and intervention methods before the full-blown mandate to screen all kindergartners starting in 2024.

Kemp's office said he will also sign other education bills during the ceremony at Wheeler High School, including Senate Bill 108 requiring computer science courses in every high school (plus "exploratory" courses in middle schools), House Bill 218 extending eligibility for the HOPE Scholarship from seven to 10 years, Senate Bill 60 requiring training for student athletes about the nature and warning signs of sudden cardiac arrest, and House Bill 68 prohibiting school accreditors from serving as Student Scholarship Organizations.

About the Author

Ty Tagami is a staff writer for The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Since joining the newspaper in 2002, he has written about everything from hurricanes to homelessness. He has deep experience covering local government and education, and can often be found under the Gold Dome when lawmakers meet or in a school somewhere in the state.

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