Hi! I'm Phoenix! As you probably have already noticed, I am the creator of this site, the LD Project. Nice to meet you!

Obviously Phoenix isn't my real name, it's just what I'm using as an online alias of sorts. You see, a phoenix was a mythical bird that rose from its ashes to begin a new life...that's kind of why I decided to use this name, because I kind of associate myself and all learning disabled people with the phoenix. Those who are LD must continue to rise from the ashes of defeat and continue the struggle to get ahead in life.

Well, now that you know who created this site, you probably would like to know why it was created.

I was diagnosed with ADD in second grade, and then with a specific LD in sixth grade. Throughout my school life I've encountered people that baby me, people that pity me, and people that just try to hold me back from attempting potentially difficult academic endeavors. Being LD has prevented me from achieving so many things, from honor roll on my report card to even more important matters, such as being rejected for governor's school summer camp simply because of my GPA. Sometimes I'm even afraid that colleges will reject me because of how my low math scores affect my grade point so badly.
I'm actually very grateful that my disabilities aren't as severe as they could be. In fact, most people would probably consider me one of the lucky ones, one of the few disabled students who actually succeeds with better than average scores in all but one subject, who can fit in so well with the rest of the school that most people are shocked to discover my little LD "secret". But I disagree, I don't believe that luck has anything to do with it. Instead I give credit to my parents, who always challenged me while at the same time praised me for my intelligence that the school could not see, who taught me that grades are not important as long as you are learning. I also credit my high school Latin teacher, my junior year English teacher, and most importantly, my ninth and tenth grade English teacher, who always believed in me, with or without my label.
But even with all these wonderful mentors that I have been fortunate enough to have on my side, I have still come to realize that the school systems methods of dealing with LD children is...well...less than perfect to put it kindly. That's when my freshman English teacher came around to all the different junior English classes telling us about her "independent study" program, a relatively new program in which those chosen to participate could devote a class period to an entire year of study in the individual's field of choice.
This website is only one of the projects I am completing during my independent study on learning disabilities this year. In creating this website, I hope to provide encouragement and helpful resources to those students with L.D. who believe that they cannot succeed in life. Its very hard for anyone with a difference to exist in today's society. It takes determination and courage to stand up against the system and live life to the fullest when it seems as though you've been beaten down again and again almost from the start. That is the purpose of this site.

Well, that's the little story of my life!...man this was a lot bigger of a section than I had planned it to be, I hope it wasn't too tedious or melodramatic.