Senior Steph Llorente is a woman of many dimensions. Student. Skier. Advocate.

She found out she was dyslexic in the fourth grade.

“Whenever I was reading I struggled. Math problems were impossible. Teachers blew it off because they didn’t want to deal with someone with a learning disability,” Llorente said. But her parents knew better.

They found a program called Learning Ally, which has audiobooks and different tools to help kids with dyslexia. Llorente found the help she needed and began to flourish in school and athletics. Her grades skyrocketed, and she was one of the top skiers in Colorado.

In the fifth grade, she began speaking about dyslexia to give a voice to kids like her. Freshman year, she found the YES! Program.

“I’m part of a program called YES!. YES! stands for Youth Examples of Self-Advocacy. We mentor young kids who are dyslexic or have a learning disabilities on how to advocate for themselves in and outside of the classroom,” Llorente said. “We also speak nationwide to students, parents, and teachers about dyslexia.”

Llorente’s advocacy includes leading a writing campaign to state legislatures, interviewing governor Hickenlooper on his own dyslexia, helping to create explore1in5.org, and speaking in front of the Colorado Department of Education.

On November 7^th, this upcoming weekend, the annual YES! event will take place.

“Every event focuses on a different way to advocate for yourself. This year it will celebrate those with dyslexia that have really succeeded,” Llorente said.

Whether it be in the classroom, on the mountain, or advocating for others, it is obvious that Llorente is a success of her own.