Session Presenter - Jonathan Mooney

Jonathan Mooney is a dyslexic writer and activist who did not learn to read until he was 12 years old. He is a graduate of Brown University’s class of 2000 and holds an honors degree in English Literature. Jonathan is founder and President of Project Eye-To-Eye, a mentoring and advocacy non-profit organization for students with learning differences. Project Eye-To-Eye currently has 20 chapters, in 13 states working with over 3,000 students, parents and educators nation wide.

A winner of the prestigious Truman Scholarship for graduate studies in disability studies and social change, Jonathan was also a finalist for the Rhodes Scholarship. With the publication of Learning Outside The Lines (now in its 14th printing) when he was 23, Jonathan has established himself as one of the foremost leaders in LD/ADHD, disabilities, and alternative education. His second book, The Short Bus: A Journey Beyond Normal, is a memoir, published by Henry Holt in June, 2007. Lauded as “a heartfelt rebuke to the rigid definitions of normality,” by Kirkus Review, the book is Jonathan’s journey across the United States, in a converted short school bus, as he seeks to celebrate cognitive and physical diversity through profiles of people who have been labeled abnormal their entire lives. His work on behalf of students with disabilities was recognized by the LD Access Foundation in 2003 when he was awarded the Golden Advocacy award. Previous honorees include David Boies, Judith Rodin, former President of The University of Pennsylvania, and The Honorable Thomas H. Kean, former governor of New Jersey.

Jonathan is a highly sought-after speaker and has lectured in 43 states and three countries. He has lectured at Harvard University’s Graduate School of Education, Brown University, the University of Wisconsin School of Education, New York University Medical School’s Grand Rounds, Teachers College Columbia University, the University of Pennsylvania, Vassar College, and many other institutions of higher education. Jonathan has also given keynote addresses at most major national education conferences and speaks frequently to students of all ages.

Jonathan has been featured and quoted in The New York Times, USA Today, NPR, ABC News, New York Magazine, The Washington Post, The Boston Globe and numerous other local and regional papers in the cities, states, and countries where Jonathan has traveled.

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