Board Members

Lisa Lyon, MPH, Founder & Interim President
As the parent of a 10th grade son who has dyslexia, Lisa feels passionate about increasing public awareness of dyslexia. She enjoys connecting with other parents and sharing resources to make their journeys with dyslexia a little easier and more efficient. Currently, Lisa coordinates the monthly lecture series and supports the development of new Oregon Decoding Dyslexia chapters.

Paula Byrd, Secretary
Paula Byrd is a native of Chicago, Illinois. She graduated at Portland State University with a Bachelors of Arts and completed her Masters in Public Administration with a concentration in Nonprofit Management at the University of Illinois. She joined the Board of Y.O.U.th in 2013 and recently became the Executive Director in 2019. She is committed to the educational literacy of youth and adults. She desires to change the lives of all young people she works with and drives them to be their best. Paula serves as the Decoding Dyslexia Oregon Equity Council Co-Chair.

Kelly Ravsten, Treasurer
Kelly is an Independent Consultant/Advisor who provides operational expertise, organizational advice and process improvement planning to organizations and individuals. Kelly is a parent of a child with dyslexia and is passionate about raising dyslexia awareness and improving resources and access to resources for students with dyslexia in Oregon schools.

Cézanne Tyner
Cézanne Tyner is a former classroom teacher with a passion towards education success – especially with dyslexia. Her experience in teaching spans countries such as Kenya, Nicaragua, Romania and Japan. Cézanne has an undergraduate degree in Family and Human Services and a Masters in Teaching with an emphasis in English language arts and English as a Second Language.

Julisa Rodriguez
Julisa Rodriguez is a product of Salem Keizer Public schools in Salem, Oregon, which is where she currently serves as an elementary bilingual classroom teacher. She received Bachelor degrees from the University of Texas at San Antonio. Her bachelor degrees include a Bachelors in Interdisciplinary Studies with a focus in Bilingual (Spanish ) Education and a Bachelors in Mexican – American studies. She is currently pursuing a Masters degree in Education – Dyslexia Specialist program from Colorado College. Julisa is passionate about dismantling the school to prison pipeline by way of literacy justice. Julisa is a member of the Decoding Dyslexia Oregon Equity Council.

Dr. Scott Smith
Dr. Scott Smith has been in education for the past 40 years. Growing up in Eastern Oregon he struggled with school. His fifth-grade teacher told his parents he needed to find a trade because he would never be able to read or spell or write and attend college. Dr. Smith is a third-generation successful dyslexic.

Dr. Shaheen Munir-McHill
Dr. Shaheen Munir-McHill is an assistant professor of practice at Portland State University and the coordinator of the PSU Special Education K-12 license and endorsement programs.

Tracy Morgan
Tracy is the Executive Director for the Alzheimer’s Association. As the parent of two children with dyslexia, Tracy loves helping bring resources to families as they navigate their journeys with dyslexia. She is passionate about showing kids that dyslexia is a true advantage for them. Tracy is the founder and coordinator of the Decoding Dyslexia Kids Network. She enjoys creating a program that allows children to connect with others and embrace their dyslexic advantages.
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Staff

Diana Sticker, MPH, Founder & Marketing Director
Diana is a former research professional with a Master of Public Health from Johns Hopkins University. She and her daughter have dyslexia. Diana is passionate about creating systematic change that supports children with dyslexia and manages the marketing, communications and operations efforts and contributes to the legislative arm of Decoding Dyslexia Oregon.

Ross Faulkenberg, Staff
Ross joined Decoding Dyslexia Oregon in 2019. He is a teacher in SW Portland and an Orton-Gillingham trained linguistics tutor. In 2010, he graduated from Portland State University with a degree in English and Creative Writing.