The DuBard School for Language Disorders at The University of Southern Mississippi (USM) is Mississippi's only PUBLIC (FREE) option for children with language disorders in Mississippi, and it's located right here in Hattiesburg, and they need our support. You may think that because they are located on USM's campus they would also be funded by the university—they are not. While USM does contribute in-kind services, a large percentage of its funding is appropriated by the State Legislature. However, it is not enough to fund what is needed to keep the doors open. For this, they must fundraise every year. For the past 15 years, that job was mine. Now, as a member of the BREAD family, I am just as determined to see that they remain funded and never have to tell a child in Mississippi that they do not have a place for them because of funding.
The DuBard School for Language Disorders was established in 1962 and is a clinical division of The University of Southern Mississippi's School of Speech and Hearing Sciences. The DuBard School is a public school that offers a full-time enrollment program, which is the total educational program for approximately 80 students each school year. These students have severe language-speech disorders, hearing impairments, and the written language disorder of dyslexia. The students return to their local school districts when they have achieved the oral communication and academic skills necessary to be independent and successful in a traditional school environment. The full-time Enrollment Program is provided at no charge to students and their families. Students come from school districts across the state.
The DuBard School Outclient Therapy program provides fee-based individual and small-group therapy for clients ages birth through adulthood who have a diagnosed language, speech, or hearing disorder, or a combination of these disabilities. Included are those whose learning differences are in oral language, speech, reading or a combination of oral and written language deficits, including dyslexia.
