Inclusion: recent publications

As an AuDHD woman (autistic with ADHD) who was diagnosed later in life, I know what it’s like to be discriminated against and exploited, especially in the workplace, for my differences. It was those demeaning experiences that inspired me to pursue a Ph.D.

What matters most in a job? For neurodivergent individuals, especially, a workplace that includes and celebrates employees who think differently is often (and rightfully) a foremost priority.But how do you truly and fairly gauge a company’s dedication to diversity, equity, and inclusion? Your interview with a prospective employer can reveal important information about the company’s climate, culture, and attitudes toward neurodivergent talent and inclusion in the workplace. If you’re interviewing for a new job, be sure to ask the following key questions to understand if the company welcomes and harnesses the strengths of all kinds of people.Does the company participate in workplace neurodiversity training and other diversity, equity, and inclusion programs? Does it have diversity and inclusion teams? The company’s mission and/or vision statements on its web site may also offer insight into its attitudes and efforts around hiring and nurturing neurodivergent talent.You can also ask how the company gauges its culture and climate (including stigma) around invisible disabilities.

Is Inclusion Optional? Nope. Not Optional. It’s the Law.

Fans of Mickey Mouse who use ASL to communicate will be seeing themselves represented by a new character, Fig, a gnome friend who is deaf.

Do you have a child with a disability? If you do, I’m almost positive that at some point in this parenting journey you have felt the pain of wanting them to be happy and included. Do you have a child without a disability? Have you ever been sad when your child felt left out? If you have, I can confidently say to multiply that feeling by infinity and you’ll have a small understanding of how awful it feels when your child with a disability is excluded.

Our school district is slowly moving towards inclusion as the rule, not just an exception that parents need to fight really hard for. I believe our son Daxon is the first child with Down syndrome that his first-grade teacher has ever had in her General Ed classroom.

May 2-6 is National Teacher Appreciation Week. My daughter Rachel is 22 years old and has Down syndrome. While she has completed her formal education, showing teacher appreciation is always appropriate. I believe there are some common threads among the good teachers she had that helped make inclusion work for Rachel. I wanted to share some of those common threads.

My son ROCKS! I wish others saw him as I do!

My son can be described using a lot of words such as adorable, awesome, autistic, and amusing, but athletic is not one of them. He is the type of kid who can trip while sitting, bump into things a room away, and run into a tree while focusing on a bird. For these reasons, I’ve felt so lucky to live in a town that has baseball, soccer, and basketball leagues for kids with disabilities. These leagues help the kids learn the basic skills of the sport while creating friendships and camaraderie. These leagues are my comfort zone; my kid is out on the field with kids of similar abilities, I am in the stands with parents who share the trials and triumphs of parenting a child with a disability. During these practices, I can sit back and chat, or chase my other kids with full confidence that the coaches and volunteers know how to best help my kid and that there is no judgment from teammates or other parents.

October is National Disability Employment Awareness Month. The theme for NDEAM 2021 is America’s Recovery: Powered by Inclusion.

Not long after our second child Henry was born, we learned he would have developmental challenges. Like most new parents of children with disabilities, we were forced to quickly learn how to care for him, and move forward with our lives. But while my husband and I navigated our new normal, we were simultaneously concerned with how our son’s differences would impact his then-2-year-old-sister.

we can stretch to see beyond ourselves. But these diverse lenses are what also lead to disagreements because it’s frustrating when others don’t feel or see things the same as we do, right?Black Lives Matter (BLM), LGBTQ, and feminism seem to exhaust some people.

My whole life, I always knew I learned differently than most others. I never thought it was bad, just different. I couldn’t study in bright, loud or busy areas, for example, and I knew I could never work in such environments. For months I suspected I was autistic. Getting diagnosed with autism included a five-hour assessment priced at about $100 of total insurance co-payments. Once in grad school, I then had to send my diagnosis to the Disability Services Center here at University of Oxford. I hadn’t disclosed a disability until after term started, so it took about a week or so for the Disability Service to process my request. Once approved, I had an in-person meeting with the service to see how they could best meet my needs.

his sister Amy Hyde immediately shared the news on social media.She said, “Thank you, UPS, for giving my brother a chance & promoting inclusion in the workforce. Jake has Down Syndrome, but that doesn’t stop him! He loves his new job running packages up to 8 hours per day.

For many parents, having a school-aged child sucks right now, and having a school-aged child with disabilities is unbelievably difficult.

Inclusion is a hot word that has a universally understood general meaning, yet has lots of interpretations between people and groups. Some people define inclusion as everyone being in the same classrooms, workplaces, and residences with no exception while others define inclusion as being in the same place and still having access to the “separate” places or organizations in the community (such as Special Olympics, group homes, etc.)

Read the report here.In June and July of 2020, we contributed $10,000 to individuals and organizations that support BIPOC or are BIPOC-owned.

Diversity and inclusion aren’t just good for an organization’s morale. This dynamic duo is also good for the bottom line.

I have been fortunate to teach a class at a local university for preservice teachers for the last few semesters. The course is designed to help secondary educators learn strategies to include students with disabilities in regular education classes. As a leader who spent many years as a special educator and as the proud parent of two children with disabilities, I was thrilled to have the opportunity to spend a semester with these amazing students helping them to understand areas of disability and how a disability can impact learning and self-esteem.

My son Charlie had one of the best nights of his life two months ago.