Sylvie McCavanagh ’29 learned to embrace her identity as a student with dyslexia and uses her experience to uplift others with learning differences.
Sylvie McCavanagh ’29 didn’t need the bathroom. She needed an escape from her own embarrassment.
In second grade, when her class launched into book discussions or lessons turned to math, the words and numbers in front of her stirred panic. So she slipped out of the room each day with an excuse, walked to the restroom — and cried.
“I wouldn’t understand anything that was going on,” says McCavanagh, today a sport management major from Massachusetts with aspirations of working for the Boston Celtics. Her teacher took notice, and within a year, doctors identified dyslexia, dyscalculia and dysgraphia as obstacles to her learning. Then came the hard part: being singled out, removed from class “in front of all my classmates” for instruction, a routine that left her “broken down every day.”
Support, however, kept showing up in the form of teachers who made learning feel possible again. A specialized program helped in elementary school. Later, in middle school, one-on-one instruction brought the pieces together, and by high school she had rebuilt her confidence, even as she navigated the depression and anxiety that often accompany dyslexia.
There were early signs that Elon University was the right collegiate community for her. According to McCavanagh, during the application process, it was the only university that replied to questions about support for students like her. Then, on a campus visit, she overheard conversations where students weren’t avoiding eye contact as they talked about their learning differences.
Another sign? During her first semester, McCavanagh’s mother alerted her about the establishment of the Roberts Academy at Elon University, a transitional school for elementary school students with dyslexia set to open in August.
McCavanagh leans into her identity as a learner with dyslexia. It’s no longer a barrier, she’ll tell you. It’s shaped her work ethic and her ability to adapt. She uses her own journey and a sense of humor to connect with others, including her new classmates and close friends at Elon, describing herself as “an empath” shaped by years of fighting a feeling of inferiority. “After you go through something and overcome it,” she says, “you want to be there for those around you.”
News of the Roberts Academy felt like proof that what once isolated her could become a bridge for others through volunteer work with children there. And it brought back the pride McCavanagh felt in delivering remarks to her high school class during a Baccalaureate service on the eve of graduation.
“Your struggles don’t make you weaker,” she concluded from the auditorium’s lectern. “They make you human. And your differences? That’s where your power lives.”
Sylvie McCavanagh is part of Huemanity of People, a series by the Division of Inclusive Excellence highlighting the people, paradigms and praxis of inclusive excellence that shape Elon University’s community. Learn more on the Inclusive Excellence website.