Climbing the Ladder of Reading & Writing

Meeting the Needs of ALL Learners

The theme of the 2026 Fox Reading Conference comes from this best-selling volume of Benchmark Education’s PDEssentials series. Climbing the Ladder of Reading & Writing: Meeting the Needs of ALL Learners is edited by Nancy Young, Ed.D., creator of the original Ladder of Reading and Writing infographic, and Jan Hasbrouck, Ph.D. With contributions from more than 30 leading experts, this volume offers practical, scientifically based guidance for educators seeking to bring the science of reading to life in their classrooms.

We are excited to announce Dr. Jan Hasbrouck as the keynote speaker for the 2026 Fox Reading Conference! Dr. Hasbrouck will open the conference each day and deliver a special keynote address to close the conference Friday afternoon. Throughout the two-day conference, chapter authors will lead engaging presentations that will explore data-informed decision-making, differentiated instruction, and research-based reading instruction for students with reading comprehension difficulties, attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), or intellectual disability, as well as those who are deaf or hard of hearing.

The conference is 100% FREE, thanks to the generosity of the Tom and Elizabeth Fox Endowment for Reading and the support of our sponsors. Registration is required, and capacity for in-person attendance is limited. Register below to secure your spot today!

Discount for 2026 Fox Reading Conference Attendees

Benchmark has created a 20% coupon on Amazon for Fox Conference attendees to order Climbing the Ladder of Reading and Writing. To order the book using this coupon, see below.

Order: Climbing the Ladder of Reading and Writing

The 2026 Fox Reading Conference has been approved by the Academic Language Therapy Association (ALTA) for 9.5 CE hours.

Please consult the ALTA member website for CE policies implemented on June 1, 2025.

Jan Hasbrouck, Ph.D. is an award-winning researcher, educational consultant, and author who works with schools and agencies in the U.S. and internationally. Dr. Hasbrouck worked as a reading specialist and literacy coach for 15 years and later became a professor. Her research in reading fluency, academic assessment and interventions, and instructional coaching has been widely published. She is the author, coauthor, and co-editor of several books along with some assessment tools. She continues to collaborate with researchers and school colleagues on projects related to reading interventions, assessment, and instructional coaching. She enjoys volunteering at her grandson’s K-8 school in Seattle. 

Carlin Conner, PhD is a Principal Scientist at the University of Virginia (UVA) in the School of Education and Human Development. At the UVA, Carlin leads efforts to develop and pilot the new state-supported literacy screener for PreK-Grade 8 students, used by all students attending public schools in Virginia. She also works on several federally funded research grants focused on literacy interventions and translational science. Her research interests include literacy assessment and interventions, with a focus on supporting students with and at risk for reading disabilities. Carlin has also spent time as both a special education teacher and instructional coach.

Dr. Carolyn Denton is a researcher, author, and educational consultant specializing in reading interventions for students with reading difficulties and disabilities, including dyslexia, and students with ADHD. For over 20 years, Dr. Denton collaborated on scientific research in which she developed and evaluated reading interventions for these students. Before completing her Ph.D., Dr. Denton was a classroom teacher and reading interventionist, and she specializes in communicating with educators to help them understand and implement evidence-based practices in classrooms. Dr. Denton is the lead author of Effective Instruction for Middle School Students with Reading Difficulties and a contributing author of Climbing the Ladder of Reading and Writing.  She has authored or co-authored numerous book chapters and more than 70 journal articles on reading intervention, multi-tiered systems of support, ADHD, and related topics. Dr. Denton has presented numerous keynotes, sessions, and workshops for educators, clinicians, and researchers across the US and in Europe and Asia. Prior to her retirement, Dr. Denton was a professor in the Children’s Learning Institute at the University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston. She now lives in Port Townsend, Washington.

Vicki Gibson, Ph.D., is a national educational consultant, author, and speaker specializing in early childhood education, differentiating instruction and collaborative practice, classroom management, reading instruction, and special education. Dr. Gibson taught regular and special education classes in public schools for 10 years before owning and directing four private preschools that served children ages 2-12 years.  Dr. Gibson taught at Texas A&M University and authored numerous professional development and comprehensive educational curricula. From 2008-2020, Dr. Gibson was the former Owner/Chairman of a professional development consulting company, Gibson Hasbrouck & Associates. 

From 2018-2023, Dr Gibson was the Founding Director and Owner of the Charlotte Sharp Children’s Center (CSCC), a full-inclusion research-child lab and preschool serving children ages 2-6 years located on the Texas A&M University campus in College Station, Texas. Dr. Gibson sold CSCC to Texas A&M University and joined the faculty as a Professor of Practice in the College of Education and Human Development, Department of Teaching, Learning and Culture (TLAC).  

As of mid-January 2026, Erica is the Manager for the Georgia Department of Education’s (GaDOE) Deaf/Hard of Hearing Early Intervention Program. Erica leads a team of approximately 125 contractors throughout Georgia who provide in home and virtual weekly services to families who have a child who was diagnosed with hearing loss. The goal of these weekly sessions is to build the skills of caregivers to ensure constant communication between the family and child – leading to age-appropriate language development of every child in Georgia. Prior to her role at GaDOE, Erica served as the Director of the Katherine Hamm Center at the Atlanta Speech School. The Katherine Hamm Center serves children through preschool programming and Auditory-Verbal Therapy (in person and virtual) and is involved in grant work that serves all children who are deaf or hard of hearing throughout the state. Erica is a graduate of the University of Georgia where she received a bachelor’s and master’s degree in Communication Sciences and Disorders. Erica’s career began at The Atlanta Speech School as a Teacher of the Deaf. She completed 14 years in this role and then become a Birth to Three Coach/Mentor where she worked closely with Early Intervention Specialists through the program that she now leads. After this coaching work, Erica served as Curriculum Specialist of the Katherine Hamm Center’s Preschool, then Director for 6 years. Erica has served as Staff Representative on the Speech School’s Board of Directors, coached interns from multiple teacher prep programs, mentored individuals through PPCI (Professional Preparation in Cochlear Implants), presented on subjects such as coaching and making LSL (Listening and Spoken Language) skills “habits”, guest authored a chapter in Nancy Young and Jan Hasbrouck’s book, Climbing the Ladder of Reading and Writing, and served as a board member for OPTION Schools. Erica loves to interact with others, learn from them, and share her passion.        

Erica and her husband, Darren, have four sons (ages 16-21) and two dogs. They live in Atlanta, Georgia. When everyone is together the family enjoys traveling, hiking, skiing, and pickleball. When Erica steals time away, she enjoys reading, walking, Barre3, and working in the yard.   

Dr. Katherine O’Donnell is an Assistant Professor in the Educational Psychology department’s Literacy, Language, and Learning program housed in the College of Education at the University of Utah. She was hired in conjunction with the Utah State Board of Education as the science of reading faculty member for the University of Utah. Her research focuses on set for variability and other cognitive processes that may underlie and support reading fluency. In addition, she researches reading legislation and its impact on student outcomes, and how to best support pre- and in-service teachers in using evidence-based reading instructional practices. 

Jennifer Stewart, Ph.D. is the Assistant Director of Research Initiatives for the Tennessee Center for the Study and Treatment of Dyslexia at Middle Tennessee State University. At the Center, Jennifer leads the research team on several funded evaluation projects around the implementation of teacher and administrator training in high-quality reading instruction. Additionally, Jennifer provides technical assistance for school districts through the National Center on Improving Literacy. Her research interests focus on observations of literacy instruction for students at-risk for reading difficulties and disability and administrator perceptions of providing multi-tiered systems of support (focusing on their campus-wide support of data-based decision making and delivery of intensive interventions). Jennifer has also spent part of her career as both a special education teacher and behavioral therapist.