ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

Many thanks go to many people. Dr. Arvidson, my Supervising Professor, has been an exceptional instructor, guide, and sounding-board from the very beginning. It has been an honor and a delight to work with her. My Committee, my Advisor, and the educators and administrators who helped me make this journey to completing a dissertation and earning a doctorate from learning to read have been inspiration and guidance. Theirs is an influence I will never be without. My mother and my daughter, my siblings, my extended family, my friends, my mentors, and my peers have been extraordinary in their encouragement. I would not have made it to this point without their support, realistic practicality, and understanding, including that of some who did not live long enough to see this day. Whatever good I’ve done here I couldn’t have done without any of these staunch allies, and I genuinely hope there is joy for all in my achievement. Along the way there have been innumerable youngsters, known and unknown, who have pointed my attention or banished the doldrums of a moment in their unique ways; I am grateful for every one. My father, God bless his soul, died before I began graduate studies but I like to think he would’ve been supportive. Last, but certainly not least, I must say thank you to God for surely I would not have seen this journey through, even with all the caring direction and thoughtfulness, but for the grace of God