Dale Sherman remembers his third grade teacher saying he would never amount to anything. He was pulled out of regular classes for being a slow learner. "In the sixties, they really didn't know how to deal with learning disabilities," he said. "I was teased and called stupid by the other kids."

By junior high, Dale had become good in sports, but he barely made passing grades. When he was a senior in high school, he decided, "I need to learn. I want to do something with my life."

When other kids were out playing sports, Dale was home studying. He would copy chapters from his textbooks by hand. "I knew I had a problem with reading, and it took me at least twice as long as other kids o do my assignments."

Most people with learning disabilities have average or above average intelligence. Dale is no exception. He was determined to do well, and he did. Dale graduated from high school with a 3.8 grade point average. He figures he was reading comfortably at about the third grade level.

Dale was diagnosed with attention deficit disorder in January 2001 and was referred to a specialist for a battery of tests designed for screening adults for learning disabilities. As a result of this testing, he was diagnosed with a reading disorder.

Dale started at Project: LEARN, in Medina, Ohio six years ago when he was referred by his children's daycare provider. He has trouble concentrating and focusing, and he needs more time to process information.

"Sometimes it's like the words scatter all over the page. That's when I use blue plastic overlays, and that helps a lot. But when I get stuck on a word, sometimes I lose track of a whole sentence and have to read it all over again," he explained.

Even so, his reading and writing have improved so much that he recently joined the staff as an Americorp VISTA volunteer to work on student-related projects.

Dale coordinates the student support group and has become a strong advocate for adult literacy students. He is president of Ohio's Adult Learners for the Future and serves as an Ohio Literacy Network board member. He is also active on the board of Voice for Adult Literacy United for Education (VALUE), a national student advocacy group.

Dale is the custodial parent of his two young sons, Taylor and Alex. He is concerned that the children may develop problems with reading and is a strong advocate in the school system. "Alex is having some problems with his speech, and we're watching that right now," he said.

"When I was a kid, I was teased a lot and I felt like a nobody," Dale said. "Now I'm proud of who I am."

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