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On this week’s episode, Jana sits down with Russell Van Brocklin, a dyslexia researcher and founder of DyslexiaClasses.com, whose experience with discrimination in college sent him on a mission to challenge conventional approaches to dyslexia and help students achieve what once seemed impossible.

Russell takes us back to the moment that changed the direction of his life.

Despite excelling in a New York State Assembly internship program and receiving extraordinary opportunities, Russell had his recommended grades changed from 15 credits of A-minus to 15 credits of failing grades because his university disagreed with the accommodations he had received for his dyslexia.

That was the breaking point.

Rather than accept what happened, Russell decided he would solve the problem himself. He went on to audit law school classes, teaching himself to read and write through a process that took years. Along the way, he discovered a different way of approaching dyslexia, focusing on writing rather than reading and helping students engage the parts of their brains that worked best for them.

But he didn't want to keep that discovery to himself.

Russell set out to bring his research to other highly intelligent, motivated students who struggled with reading and writing. To do that, he pursued New York State Senate funding, a process he describes as mission impossible. He had to gain support from distinguished professors, state education officials, research organizations, school districts, teachers, and parents.

The results began to speak for themselves.

In one pilot program, students who initially scored at the bottom of the scale on graduate-level writing assessments made significant progress in just five months. The program eventually helped students improve their writing, graduate, and move on to college, at a fraction of the cost of traditional approaches.

What started as a personal fight against discrimination became a decades-long mission to make effective dyslexia education more accessible.

This episode breaks down:

• How an experience with discrimination changed the entire trajectory of Russell's career
• Why he chose to pursue one of the most difficult funding paths available rather than take the safer route
• How he developed a different approach to dyslexia by focusing on writing instead of reading
• Why collaboration between researchers, teachers, students, and parents was essential to making the program work
• How his pilot program produced significant improvements in student performance at a fraction of the traditional cost
• Why perseverance sometimes means navigating chaos rather than following a perfectly mapped-out plan
• How AI can help people evaluate major life decisions and explore paths they may not have considered

Russell also shares the personal sacrifices required to pursue this mission, including putting other parts of his life on hold and continuing through years of obstacles and contradictory advice. He explains why he believes the work was worth it, how he learned to let teachers adapt his methods rather than simply follow his instructions, and why making a difference often requires challenging systems that have resisted change for decades.

Because at the end of the day, sometimes the experiences that knock us off our expected path reveal the work we're meant to do. Russell's story is a reminder that you don't have to accept a system simply because it's always been done that way. You can challenge it, build something better, and create opportunities for people who might otherwise be left behind.

Where to find Russell:

• https://www.linkedin.com/in/russell-van-brocklen-2007ab87/
• https://dyslexiaclasses.com/

Where to find Jana:

• https://janaaxline.com/
• https://www.linkedin.com/in/janaaxline/
• Instagram: @unstoppableleaders
• TikTok: @jana_axline