top of page
Founded and run by a passionate team of women, our company comprises certified Structured Literacy Dyslexia Specialists and dedicated educators committed to making a positive impact. Our goal is to help them not only overcome their struggles but also to foster a lifelong love for reading.
About
Bowman’s Orton-Gillingham “Plus” was developed in 1984 by the late Dr. Fran Levin Bowman, a brilliant, dynamic educator with a passion for students who struggle. She started her career as a special educator in Baltimore County and quickly encountered a group of striving readers who weren’t responding to interventions. She remembered learning about Orton-Gillingham in college and decided to try it. The students’ incredible response to Orton-Gillingham ignited her curiosity, and she spent the next several years reading research and taking Orton courses. Fran became a Fellow in the Academy of Orton-Gillingham Practitioners & Educators and developed Bowman’s Orton-Gillingham “Plus”. She began sharing it with teachers and tutors and her enthusiasm was contagious. Word spread quickly about Dr. Fran Bowman’s engaging course, which teachers often say is the best professional development they have ever had, leaving them empowered and excited to teach students how to read.
A Dynamic Educator
Our Team Of Professionals
Fran Levin Bowman
Ed. D., C-SLDS
Founder and AOGPE Fellow (in Memoriam)
Dr. Fran Bowman Remembered as Pioneer in Her Field
Stephanie Pratt
M.Ed, C-SLDS
Director, Bowman Educational Services, Inc.
Director, The Pratt Program at Bishop Walsh School, Cumberland, MD
Bowman’s Orton-Gillingham “Plus” Instructor
Jennifer Wheat
M. Ed., C-SLDI
Bowman’s Orton-Gillingham “Plus” Instructor
Educational Consultant
Diane Simms
M. Ed., C-SLDS
Bowman’s Orton-Gillingham “Plus” Instructor and Tutor
Brandi Troutman
Course Administrator, Lead Educational Technology Specialist
Stephanie Pratt took Bowman’s Orton-Gillingham “Plus” course out of desperation. It was the early 2000s, her third grade son couldn’t read, the school didn’t know how to help him, and as a high school Chemistry teacher, Stephanie didn’t know how to help him either. They lived in a rural community with no options for students with dyslexia, so Stephanie took Fran’s course, began working with her son, and, like Fran, was amazed at the immediate progress he made. Stephanie realized there were more students like her son who needed help, shifted careers, became a special educator and reading specialist. With Fran as her mentor, she began a program for students with dyslexia at the local Catholic School, where she taught hundreds of students to read using Fran’s program. Stephanie and Fran talked constantly about dyslexia, students, reading research and, in 2015, Stephanie began helping Fran teach Bowman’s Orton-Gillingham “Plus”.
A Mentorship Begins
In 2021, Fran was diagnosed with cancer. She asked Stephanie to carry on her life’s work by continuing to train teachers and tutors in Bowman’s Orton-Gillingham “Plus”. Fran died in November 2021. Our team expanded to include additional instructors and technology specialists. We are honored to carry on Fran’s legacy, working toward the day when every child reads.
A Legacy Endures
bottom of page