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The Center for Learning and Leadership expands access to
Catholic education for students with intellectual and developmental disabilities by investing in schools, forming educators, strengthening leaders, and engaging families in the Diocese of Arlington.
Building Schools of Belonging
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Our Impact in the Diocese of Arlington
161
students with intellectual and developmental disabilities served in Porto grantee schools
1,463
students with an identified disability served in Porto grantee schools
9,030
students enriched by inclusive programs in Porto grantee schools
45
educators and volunteers have received a tuition-free, graduate-level Introduction to Special Education course at George Mason University.
40+
educators participate every year in our conference, webinars, and workshops for professional development in inclusive education
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We are excited to partner with the Institute for Multi-Sensory Education (IMSE) to bring the Orton-Gillingham method to schools in our Diocese. Taking a whole-school approach, instead of teacher by teacher, we are providing IMSE training that is backed by the Science of Reading and which provides a direct, multi-sensory strategy to teach focused phonics lessons in a systematic and sequential way.
The first cohort of teachers received their training in the Summer of 2026, and we are looking forward to watching and tracking the application of the IMSE training in the general education classroom where students with intellectual and developmental disabilities learn to read right alongside their neurotypical peers.
