113. Supporting Neurodivergent Youth in Schools with Vanessa Castañeda Gill

Many of us go into our fields because we’re inspired by someone who supported us as youth or we see something that we want to fix. For Vanessa Castañeda Gill, this week’s guest, it was something else. She wanted to fix herself.

After a neurodivergent diagnosis at 14, then hiding that diagnosis from everyone but her family for more than six years, Vanessa was looking for a way to be successful. She had heard so many stories about those with a similar diagnosis that she tried to fit that mold. Through studying neuroscience, Vanessa hoped to fix herself. What she discovered instead was that she wasn’t broken at all but rather could have used some additional resources and support as a teen so she wouldn’t feel so alone.

That’s where Social Cipher came from. And this week on the podcast, Vanessa is sharing more about how her platform supports neurodivergent youth and their parents and community.

The structure of Vanessa’s team is incredibly unique and it’s just what an organization that supports differently wired kids needs to be successful.

Listen in this week and learn more about how to step up and support those with neurodivergence.

It's Vanessa Castañeda Gill's mission to unite her passions for art and stories in innovative ways that help people. Learning from her experiences growing up on the autism spectrum, she founded Social Cipher: a game-based social-emotional learning platform for neurodiverse youth and the professionals who work with them. Her 50% neurodivergent team recently released their game series, Ava: a space-pirate adventure that explores social challenges through the eyes of an autistic protagonist. Vanessa and her team have earned recognition as Forbes 30 Under 30s, AT&T Aspire Fellows, and Facebook Global Gaming Citizens.

• [1:50] - Why Vanessa is interested in neurodiverse youth
• [5:26] - Social Cipher Platform
• [7:15] - Parents can use the system too
• [8:08] - Collaboration with big organizations
• [9:22] - A neurodivergent team
• [10:43] - Adding to the platform
• [12:24] - How to support neurodivergent kids to the fullest
• [15:12] - Turbo Time
• [18:17] - What people need to know about neurodivergence
• [21:13] - How to be an activist in supporting neurodivergence in schools
• [23:23] - Vanessa’s Magic Wand
• [24:37] - Maureen’s Takeaways

• Social Cipher
• Learn Play Thrive podcast episode
• Email Maureen

• Maureen’s TEDx: Changing My Mind to Change Our Schools

• The Education Evolution
• Facebook: Follow Education Evolution
• Twitter: Follow Education Evolution
• LinkedIn: Follow Education Evolution
• EdActive Collective
• Maureen’s book: Creating Micro-Schools for Colorful Mismatched Kids

• Micro-school feature on Good Morning America
• The Micro-School Coalition
• Facebook: The Micro-School Coalition
• LEADPrep