Arthur Circle Elementary School closed its doors in 2020. Today, the campus at 261 Arthur Ave. in the Broadmoor neighborhood is undergoing a metamorphosis that will change the way many students learn. Louisiana Key Academy has acquired the former public-school facility for its Caddo campus.

Students have different levels of dyslexia, from mild to severe, so the curriculum will be student-centered, she said. Students will be monitored in the program, and instruction will be modified when needed.

“It’s certainly a unique model that sets us apart,” she said. “We knew that if we could model that here, that we would be ensuring success for kids with dyslexia. I call it life changing.”

Students with dyslexia can struggle with self-esteem, she added. The curriculum aims to combat the idea that these students are unable to learn.

“Immediately they begin to feel success,” she said. “The light bulb goes off.”

Most classes at LKA Caddo will have a 16:1 student-teacher ratio, Barker said. Students also will have a 6:1, 90-minute pullout session in reading. Some will have the same in math.

LKA Caddo will start with about 160 students in first through fourth grades, Barker said. She said LKA Caddo is currently recruiting teachers and evaluating perspective students. Plan include adding one grade a year through eighth grade after that.

“Our ultimate goal is to provide the intervention and remediation and tools for that child to re-enter into regular classes.”

Barker said that through this process she has met many adults who learned their own ways to overcome challenges with dyslexia. It’s not something new, she noted.

“Dyslexia’s been around forever,” she said. “Our first president had dyslexia. Picasso had dyslexia. Those people didn’t have formal, specialized instruction. They had their own coping skills. 

“We know the need exists, obviously. There’s a lot of new 21st-Century scientific evidence that’s bringing a newfound informational section. Science and education are coming together.”

It’s about breaking a stigma about dyslexia. “They are slow readers, not slow thinkers,” Barker said.

LKA Caddo is looking for one key asset as it recruits teachers — a passion for working with students with dyslexia.

“We want new teachers,” she said. “We want the specialized teacher who has experience. We want those who say, ‘I’ve delved into this. I understand what it is to overcome dyslexia.’ We don’t have an exact mold.”

Barker herself is so passionate that she came out of retirement to lead the charge. She has degrees in elementary and special education.

“I am an oldie, I say. I was at the forefront of identifying students and working with them,” she said. “I have always had a passion. It has always been my love.”

And she is excited to have the Arthur Circle campus available. 

“That was such a vital, exciting part for all of us,” she said. “The investors wanted to revitalize an area of our town. They looked at schools that had been closed. The Broadmoor area and Arthur Circle School was a gift. It wasn’t a free gift. But the building, the location, it’s just such a blessing. It’s a win-win for everyone.”

The school plans to open this fall and follow the same Caddo Parish schools calendar. For more information about teaching at LKA or about screenings, evaluations, and the curriculum, visit lkaschools.com or call (318) 752-6257.