LD Resources

Posted in Colleges | 27 Comments

27 Responses to “Grand Valley State University”

1. Posted on 02 Oct 2006 at 11:29 am1christina killarney

   i think having a college for people that sare ld is the best thing that has been done for quit some time. everyone deserves a chance at life and just couse your slower than others dosnt mean you have to be a loser at life i will be succesful i will complete my education i want to thank GVSU for being the wonderful college that they are they are a true inspriation for me, i now feel as though i will be some one thank you

   sinceraly christina killarney

2. Posted on 02 Oct 2006 at 11:35 am2christina killarney

   i am now attending the 11th grade and i found this site. i am enthused to find a college that take people such as myself.I am so happy knowing I can be someone to

3. Posted on 04 Oct 2006 at 11:16 am3christina killarney

   here i am again in school not knowing what the hell im doing here. school is so difficult for people who are ld. Its very hard for me especialy to stay on task i am in SOME special classes but i find those hard to.in a way i feel somewhat dumb being lower than everyone elses although i have been told my IQ level is quit high i just dont get why i dont undersatnd nor comprehend stuff id give anything to be normal anything. i am in the 11th grade and i attend mt.pleasant high school in michigan. they are helping me tramendoesly and i appreciate that i just wish it wasnt so hard. i know it will get better i know it will ill go to college get a good job possibly with computers and i’ll be somone i will.

   christina

4. Posted on 04 Oct 2006 at 11:38 am4Richard

   Christina, sounds like you’re a bit overwhelmed with the beginning of the school year. My wife, who teaches in a high school, says that most of her students are feeling this way, both the ones with LD and not. So, give it a little more time before you freak out completely.

   I remember (a long time back) being completely overwhelmed with school and the beginning is hardest because so much new information is thrown at you. I just can’t take it all in and make good sense of it and it seems that not many teachers understand that overwhelming people with information doesn’t really help them learn, it makes learning harder. So, know that you are not alone in feeling this way about the beginning of school.

   My recommendation is to make lists the best you can of everything you need to do and keep remaking the lists moving the things to the top that need to be done now and taking things off the list that you’ve done already. Lists are your best friend and can help keep you organized. Take your time, write slowly and clearly and it will help you see what you have to do and by when. Let us know how it’s going and thanks for posting here.

5. Posted on 05 Oct 2006 at 11:14 am5christina killarney

   Richard, yeah i am a bit overwhelmed okay fine ALOT overwhelmed. I am just freaking out knowing i only have this year and my senior year and im done. I have no clue what i plan on doing ofter graduation i think about it constantly.Its all that ever goes thru my head is what my plans are im so nervous. But im sure in the long run every thibng will be okay it allways is. thank you

   chrissy

6. Posted on 05 Oct 2006 at 4:50 pm6Richard

   Chrissy: Ah, post high school worries. That’s a long way off and many things will happen and your viewpoint will change considerably by then.

   When I was your age not only did I not want to go to college but if I didn’t go to college I was going to be drafted to go fight in the Vietnam war, a war that I was against and didn’t want to fight in. So, my choices were:

   1. Go to colleget to get out of Vietnam (junior college, my grades were not good enough to get into much more).

   2. Go to Vietnam and probably die but certainly have a very rough time of it.

   I chose to go to junior/community college and my motivation to do well and not flunk out was my fear of being drafted and going to Vietnam. Vietnam made things quite intense for me then and in a way, that was good as without it I’m not sure what I’d have done.

   After that my life got “traction” and I transfterred to a better college/University and did ever better.

   I’m sure that as your life unfolds you’ll have lots of choices, some great and some less than great but all of them interesting. You’ll do fine, no need to freak about it now (or ever really).

7. Posted on 10 Oct 2006 at 8:30 am7Christina killarney

   Richard,
   thanks yeah im sure everything will bw fine. So what did you go to college for? I am interested in somthing in the feild of law im not sure what kind yet but ive allways wanted to be a lawyer just a childhood dream though. I am thinking about attending CMU/central michigan university i think it will be good. richard thank you so much you have made me feel alot better about school

   chrissy

8. Posted on 11 Oct 2006 at 7:53 am8Richard

   Chrissy: I went to West Los Angeles College for 1 term to get my GPA high enough to transfer to a 4 year college. I chose the University of Oregon (Eugene, Oregon) because it is smaller than many of the Univeristy of California schools and a bit less rigorous. Once I got in there I didn’t do very well (general liberal arts major) but once I discovered art and design I did a lot better in all subjects.

   You might want to read this essay I wrote on that process: One Person’s Path to Literacy.

   Keep dreaming and trying various life ideas out and go for your dreams. Where there’s a will, there’s a way. And, don’t be in any rush: law school is a load of reading and high pressure so make sure you want that path, then make a plan for how to attack it. I’m sure you’ll do fine.

9. Posted on 17 Oct 2006 at 11:13 am9Christina killarney

   richard,
   my grades have dropped and im very confused on what to do. Its so hard for me to keep them up. its like there over loading me. can u give me some helpfull advice on how to get my grade back up thank you

   chrissy

10. Posted on 18 Oct 2006 at 5:28 am10Richard

    Chrissy,

    What happened? Tests problems? Papers? Are you taking too many courses? Too much reading? Or, are you spending too much time worrying about problems and not enough studying?

    I used to spend a considerably amount of time worrying so I know what that’s like.

    Tell me more about the subjects and what happened with each and I’ll do my best to help you Chrissy.

11. Posted on 18 Oct 2006 at 12:32 pm11Carrie

    Chrissy,

    I am a student with a Learning Difference. I understand where you are comming from. I know I am smart, but many of my professor can only see that I am a LD student not my intelligence. I did graduate from college and I am starting graduate work. The best advice I can give you is first and formost, believe that you can be successful. Second, understand how you learn. I could not be successful in any learning environment until I grasp how I learn. I know that I have to organize my time well, and I can not cram, because when I am tired, the more the letters begin to bend and move around. I know that I have to draw a mental picture in my head in order to understand and retain any information. Have a picture, willhelp you recall information on test. Most imprtantly, never feel dumb. I look at Albert Enstien, and think that many people thought that this man was mentally impaired and how wrong they were. You have to hold your head high and be proud. There are many many things that I can do because of my dsylexia that someone with out a ld will never comprehend. I feel lucky to be ld.

12. Posted on 03 Nov 2006 at 8:52 am12Chrissy killarney

    thanks so much carrie. you are an inspiration to me. i want so bad to be succesuful and attend college. Its great knowing that some one like me did that.

    thanks chrissy

13. Posted on 03 Nov 2006 at 8:54 am13Chrissy killarney

    richard,
    hey i havnt been on here for awhile. yeah im doin better now thanks for helping me

    chrissy

14. Posted on 05 Nov 2006 at 7:15 am14Richard

    Chrissy, Thanks for checking in and I’m delighted you’re doing better. Keep us in the loop on how things go for midterms and finals this term… we’re rooting for you.

15. Posted on 07 Nov 2006 at 9:05 am15Chrissy killarney

    richard,
    thanks so much

    chrissy

16. Posted on 07 Dec 2006 at 12:13 pm16christina killarney

    hello richard,
    im doin alot better now. I will be attending night classes to get my credits up. I am behind about 6 credits and i graduate next year but i have faith that i can do it. not much is new since the last time i wrote so i’ll cut it short thanx for beleiveing in me

    Chrissy

17. Posted on 07 Dec 2006 at 12:19 pm17christina killarney

    What are the signs for dyslexia? My mom thinks that i may have it. I often tend to mix up my letters when i write and type. If some one has some information on it please email it to me at: bja_cdk@yahoo.com

    thanks so much

    chrissy

18. Posted on 07 Dec 2006 at 3:26 pm18Sanford Shapiro

    Hello Chrissy,
    Here’s a link to part of an article about signs of dyslexia in young adults. www.readingrockets.org/article/71 Hope it’s helpful. If not let us know and we’ll find some stuff that is.

19. Posted on 07 Dec 2006 at 5:15 pm19Richard

    Chrissy: glad you wrote, great to hear from you and I’m delighted you’re doing better now.

    There are many reasons people mix up letters (transpose, reverse and more) and not all of them are signs of dyslexia.

    Let me ask you a question: when you are typing on your computer, how do you think about words? Do you just type them or do you think about how to spell them? If you think about spelling, do you sound out words? If you do, how does that work for you? In other words, when you sound out a word, do you generally get the spelling right? I’m not trying to dianose you (I’m not qualified) but I’m trying to give you some tools for figuring some things out about your spelling on your own.

    Take a look at how you approach spelling words, especially words you don’t know how to spell. There will be a lot of interesting information in that.

    Thanks for checking in Chrissy, hope to hear from you soon.

20. Posted on 17 Jan 2007 at 10:01 am20Chrissy Killarney

    Richard,
    sorry bout the late responce i have been very busy with school and what not. Well about 5 minutes ago i just got done with my Tech-Core final exam and i think it went well. Yes i do think of how to spell words while typing odd that you say that couse im doing it right at this moment lol. Well gotta go

    Chrissy

21. Posted on 12 Feb 2007 at 11:42 am21Timoshi Huang

    why not Oregon State University instead of University of Oregon? Can you tell me the reason why?

22. Posted on 12 Feb 2007 at 12:43 pm22Richard

    Timoshi, I take it that question is for me. I thought Eugene was a nicer town to live in than Corvalis and Eugene had a bigger and more sophisticated fine arts program. None of this had anything to do with learning disability issues, I was clueless about my own learning issues at that time and neither school offered any support to speak of.

23. Posted on 14 May 2008 at 9:42 am23christina killarney

    I’m asking that the old comments I posted in 06 were deleted.

    Thank you

24. Posted on 14 May 2008 at 10:23 am24Richard

    Christina: why do you want to have your comments deleted? They show clearly how you moved from a tough place to a much better place. There are also many other useful comments that are interwoven with yours.

25. Posted on 09 Jun 2011 at 7:53 pm25Christina

    Richard,

    I Ran into this cleaning our my yahoo inbox. I sent that in 2008 because my aunt googled my name and fount this and I was thinking that people would judge me because I am learning disabled. I don’t mind at all that they are still up, I’m glad that they have/can help people. Its so interesting reading this and seeing how far I have come since I was 16. I’m now 21 and still trying to figure out where my place in life is, but who isn’t? Thank you for your help back then. I can’t tell you how much it meant. I never really had anyone to root me on or give me educated advice. Hope to see a response soon. Chrissy

26. Posted on 10 Jun 2011 at 12:51 pm26Sanford

    Hi Christina. My name is Sanford and I’ve been Richard’s friend for many years and recently took over this website.

    I’m sure you have been an inspiration to others who’ve read about your journey and how much you’ve grown up through some of the struggle and achievements.

    I will be sure to pass this along to Richard.

    Thanks and take care

27. Posted on 10 Jun 2011 at 2:20 pm27Richard

    Hey Christina, great to hear from you again after all these years. I just read through the comment thread and it’s wonderful to see how far you’ve come and interesting to read my replies to you.

    All of us are in this together and it’s great that you’ve allowed us to let your comments stay up, many others have read them and will read them and they are truly inspirational.

    Please keep this site in your thoughts and please come back and post an update from time to time. I know Sandy would love to hear from you. And, if you ever feel really inspired, get in touch with Sandy about writing an autobiographical essay for the site. I’m quite sure it would be extremely popular and you’d get great feedback from all over.

    Be well.

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