The Oxford School District recently honored eight teachers from the district who recently became Certified Academic Language Therapists, or CALTs.

The program is designed to help teachers better understand and serve children with dyslexia and other disorders of written language.

The certification involves rigorous coursework, practicum and a national examination. The teachers put in more than 100 hours of coursework, 60 45-minute sessions and demonstrative videos.

“It’s a real rigorous study the girls had to do,” said Director of Curriculum and Instruction Candi Mize. “They took the national ALTA (Academic Language Therapy Association) exam. They can teach this anywhere in the nation.”

The teachers recognized were Anna Purvis, Michelle Swindall, Paula Whitaker, Kay Parker, Beth Parker, Pam Hakim and Keri Jo Finnie.

The district was able to fund the CALT training through a dyslexia grant that was awarded three years ago.