We’re thrilled to bring you another great interview today! Melanie Oates is a motivational speaker, philanthropist, and advocate for special needs families, including her own. Stay tuned to hear more about her amazing nonprofit, Here For A Reason, Inc., and the work she does as an advocate, the intensive research she did on behalf of her children, and the plethora of knowledge and resources she is now able to share with families who are looking to be their own best advocate for not only their ch...
May 18, 2021•20 min•Ep. 170
It’s been a little more than a year since the start of this pandemic, so we thought we’d take a look back at California-specific senate bills to revisit how we saw them played out. We’ll also be discussing how you can be preparing for the summer and the upcoming school year. We hope you join us! Show Highlights: California Senate Bills: an overview of the highs and lows. It’s important to note that state senate bills do not trump federal law’s IDEA (Individuals with Disabilities Education Act). ...
May 11, 2021•33 min•Ep. 169
We’re so thrilled to have Dr. Whitney Casares (“Dr. Whitney”), creator of the popular “The Modern Mommy Doc” website with us for today’s interview! Join us as we dive into the topics around new parenthood and self-care, and discuss her newest book, The Working Mom Blueprint , which will be released May 11, 2021. Whitney Casares, M.D., M.P.H., F.A.A.P. is a pediatrician and a mom to two young girls in Portland, Oregon. After completing her undergraduate degree in journalism, she completed her med...
May 04, 2021•41 min•Ep. 168
We can’t wait to share our wonderful conversation with you today! Our guest is Renee Pena Lopez, an Early Childhood Learning Specialist, a Special Education Itinerant Teacher (SEIT), and the host of “The Magic of Littles” podcast! Join us as we talk about advocacy, early intervention, the importance of play, and making sure each child receives what they need. Show Highlights: Renee shares her introduction into (and passion for) early childhood education. The importance of early intervention. Ren...
Apr 27, 2021•32 min•Ep. 167
In recognition of Autism Acceptance Month, we’re honored to speak with Nicole Ballingoff. Nicole is a Board Certified Behavior Analyst (BCBA) and the Regional Director at Kyo, formerly known as Gateway Learning Group. Kyo has undergone recent rebranding and other exciting changes and continues to grow across the nation. Kyo’s focus is autism therapy and achieving results that matter to each child’s future. Today, Nicole discusses ABA (Applied Behavior Analysis), consistency, and the value of col...
Apr 20, 2021•26 min•Ep. 166
We’re so happy to have Kara Ryska with us today! Kara is local to SoCal and has her own podcast that we think you will find very helpful. In this episode, Kara shares how her journey propelled her to become a life coach to specifically help other special needs moms. We’re sure you’ll find encouragement and inspiration as you listen! Show Highlights: Kara relates the story behind her becoming a special-needs mom. Kara went from feeling ill-equipped to being a mom of a child with special needs to ...
Apr 13, 2021•20 min•Ep. 165
If you’ve never heard of the Inclusive Digital Expression and Literacy (IDEAL) program out of Georgia State University, you’re in for a treat! IDEAL is an inclusive, post-secondary education program with a unique focus on creative and digital media. We are so excited to bring you this conversation with Cara Davis, who serves as the Academic Access Coordinator for the IDEAL Program, and other members of the IDEAL team (Deriq Graves, Banji Bamidele, and Teymbi Toliver Tannis) for an insightful and...
Apr 06, 2021•25 min•Ep. 164
Among many other roles and accomplishments, our guest today, Robin Williams Evans, is a wife, a mother to a child with severe disabilities, an ordained minister, a coach to families with special-needs children, and author of the Washington Post best-seller, Living a Happy Life with a Special-Needs Child: A Parent’s Perspective . As Robin explains, for the first two years after the birth of her son, Wyatt, she was in an emotionally dark place because she wasn’t prepared for the journey of being a...
Mar 30, 2021•36 min•Ep. 163
We’re excited to get to speak with Rachel Lissy, an educational consultant for the podcast series, “ Nice White Parents ”! Listen in to hear the inside scoop on how the podcast came about, the role she played in it, and what her own research and experience reveal about the intersection of integration and the discipline gap. Show Highlights: Rachel details her background and how she became interested and involved in integration. The “discipline gap” is disproportionate racialized discipline, whic...
Mar 23, 2021•22 min•Ep. 162
We’re so pleased to talk today with Lee Lombardo from the YMCA of Orange County. She has been a Licensed Clinical Social Worker since 1996 and has been in the fields of social services and mental health since the mid-80s. Lee has always had a heart to serve vulnerable populations in the community. The programs that Lee currently oversees are two that focus on those with developmental disabilities. One program is for adults and the other one that is our focus today is for children ages 3-17. Join...
Mar 16, 2021•25 min•Ep. 161
We are so very pleased to share this enlightening conversation we had with Andrew Edwards, the author of three books, including the memoir, I've Got a Stat For You: My Life With Autism . Listen in as Andrew opens up with us about his life with autism, what inspires him, what he does to maintain his positive outlook, and the legacies of determination and strength that his beloved mother left behind. Show Highlights: Andrew describes his experiences and ensuing opportunities leading up to writing ...
Mar 09, 2021•28 min•Ep. 160
We’re excited to share this enlightening conversation with you today. It will give you a whole new meaning of the term “good schools” and it will give you a reason to consider the benefits of an integrated school. Our guest, Andrew Lefkowits, is part of the leadership team at Integrated Schools and is the host of the Integrated Schools Podcast. Integrated Schools is a grass-roots organization started back in 2015 with the focus on parents with the racial or economic privilege to engage in the ed...
Mar 02, 2021•24 min•Ep. 159
Our guest today is Will Butler, Vice-President of Community of the Be My Eyes app. If you haven’t heard of this app yet, we think that you’re going to be blown away when you learn how a small act of kindness can have such a big impact in the lives of blind and low-vision people. Listen in to learn more about this app, the people behind it, who it reaches, and how it stretches across a global community with a bold, yet simple, mission in mind. We hope you come away with the same sense of “wow” as...
Feb 23, 2021•26 min•Ep. 158
Our guest for this episode is Leah Moore, a high school English teacher and a 2009 recipient of the prestigious, “Teacher of the Year” award, which is presented to ten New York City Teachers annually. She also teaches adaptive theater to mostly non-verbal students, which gave her an opportunity to learn a whole new way to approach a curriculum that she knows and loves. Leah is passionate about storytelling and getting your voice heard, whether that voice is in a traditional, general education cl...
Feb 16, 2021•33 min•Ep. 157
Today we’re joined by fellow podcaster, Janice Scholl of “Money, Career, and Motherhood Podcast”. You’re in for a treat (and some reflective moments!) as our conversation centers not only around the intersection of money, career, and motherhood but the wild cards that appear in our lives, at times! We hope you join us! Show Highlights: Janice shares her background and her experience when her family lived overseas. Living in foreign countries gave Janice a new perspective on what really mattered ...
Feb 09, 2021•31 min•Ep. 156
Ever since we talked to Jill Stowell, Founder and Executive Director of Stowell Learning Center, some time ago about Getting to the Root of Learning and Attention Challenges [IEP 090] and hearing about how evidence-based science and clinically researched programs encourage the brain to develop new, and more effective neurological pathways, we have been looking forward to learning even more about what their programs have to offer. That’s why we’re so excited to be speaking with Lauren and Chantel...
Feb 02, 2021•28 min•Ep. 155
Hello, listeners! We just wanted to check in with you and give you our most up-to-date information on what we’ve been experiencing so far, now that we have a full first semester of the 2021 school year behind us. Show Highlights: On the positive side, California’s Governor Newsom is taking education during this time seriously, but unfortunately, all of the school districts are not following his guidance and orders. There is still a myriad of differences between school districts and their educati...
Feb 02, 2021•26 min
We are so thrilled to have Donna Tetreault back on our podcast. This last year has been a rollercoaster ride of emotions, and Donna will be sharing her resources, tips, and tricks for parents to help their children in identifying and moving past what they’ve been feeling. Donna Tetreault currently hosts the podcast ‘Kids Under Construction.’ Her parenting book by the same name is coming out in fall 2021! Donna is an author at Familius Workman. Donna has been a TV reporter for more than 15 years ...
Jan 26, 2021•21 min•Ep. 154
Joining us today is TJ Nelligan, author of the newly-released book, Live Like Sean. TJ is an entrepreneur, advocate, and former Chairman & CEO of the 2014 Special Olympics USA Games. The sudden passing of his son, Sean, stirred TJ to write a loving tribute that is poignantly captured via a first-person perspective of seeing the world through the eyes of his special-needs son. As you will hear TJ express, Sean taught the world more than it could ever teach him. Listen in to hear more about wh...
Jan 19, 2021•26 min•Ep. 153
We’re excited to bring you this conversation with Haley Moss! Haley is a South Florida native who was diagnosed with autism at age three. She is now an attorney who is open about her journey, inspiring hope for other autistic people and their families and friends. Haley is a leader on disability inclusion, autism, and neurodiversity in the workplace, employment policy, accessibility, and lawyers with disabilities. She is the author of two books: “ Middle School: The Stuff Nobody Tells You About ...
Jan 12, 2021•30 min•Ep. 152
Welcome to 2021! We’re excited to bring you this great conversation with Mallory, Katie, and Lori from The Childhood Collective. Mallory, Katie, and Lori all have experience working with neurodiverse kids: kids with ADHD, learning and language differences, anxiety, and autism spectrum disorders. Once families receive a diagnosis, they often feel underprepared to know how to parent their kids. This is where The Childhood Collective comes in, helping parents on their journey after diagnosis by pro...
Jan 05, 2021•37 min•Ep. 151
Please join us in what will be our last conversation of 2020. We’re taking a break during the month of December to rest and rejuvenate from what has been a difficult and unpredictable year for most of us, and we plan to return in January 2021 with a fresh perspective and more interviews with some really great guests. Our hope is that you will also take this time to slow down and recharge, even if it’s just during the time you share with us on this episode. We have a special treat for you that wi...
Dec 01, 2020•24 min•Ep. 150
Rob Gorski is an author, influencer, and advocate. He is known on social media as The Autism Dad and we are honored to have him on the show with us. Rob is a single dad of three kids with autism, and he shares his compelling story of how he started a blog years ago in order to cope with his overwhelming feelings and how that has evolved into him being the internationally-recognized autism advocate that he is today. Show Highlights: Rob provides an overview of why he started blogging about his fa...
Nov 24, 2020•29 min•Ep. 149
What do you remember about being in middle school? It can be such a difficult transition time for many of us, and our children and students in that same age group are no exception. That’s why we are so thrilled to have Phyllis Fagell with us today. Phyllis Fagell is a school counselor for K-8 children and teens. She is also a psychotherapist, a columnist for The Washington Post , and the author of Middle School Matters: The 10 Key Skills Kids Need to Thrive in Middle School and Beyond--and How P...
Nov 17, 2020•35 min•Ep. 148
We’re pleased to sit down with Maria Davis-Pierre for today’s conversation! Maria is a Licensed Mental Health Counselor who works with children who are on the spectrum and their families. Her oldest daughter is autistic, and as both a parent and professional, Maria noticed gaps in the representation and servicing of black families with ASD diagnoses. Her passion is to bring awareness and advocacy to these under-represented families through her Autism in Black organization, of which she is the Fo...
Nov 10, 2020•32 min•Ep. 147
Our guest today is Dr. Katherine Cumings Mansfield and she walks us through a fascinating glimpse into the research behind the historical, political, and socio-cultural roles of education, and the way it all intersects with race, ethnicity, gender, religion, and language. We know that you’re going to enjoy this episode! Dr. Katherine Cumings Mansfield is a seasoned school teacher and program administrator and has been certified to teach in four states due to her husband’s prior military status. ...
Nov 03, 2020•45 min•Ep. 146
We’re thrilled to have Fiona McEntee, from McEntee Law Group, as a guest today. Fiona is an immigrant from Dublin, Ireland, who has been in the United States for more than fifteen years and is a naturalized citizen. She is a mom, a wife, and an immigration lawyer based in Chicago. Fiona is also the author of a recently published, award-winning children’s book, Our American Dream, which helps children to understand the importance of a diverse and tolerant America. Join us for this moving conversa...
Oct 27, 2020•35 min•Ep. 145
We’re thrilled to have Melinda Arnost on the show today for an exciting conversation around teachers and providing them not only the tools they need to successfully create and lead their inclusive classrooms but a guidebook that breaks it all down for them. Melinda Arnost is an Intervention Specialist who currently teaches grades K-3 in autism units. She previously taught middle school and high school and has always been an inclusive advocate. Melinda also runs a non-profit ice skating program c...
Oct 20, 2020•36 min•Ep. 144
If talking kindly to plants helps them to grow, just imagine what it would do for us humans! Today we’re chatting with Andi Long, Founder and CEO of Bloom Foundation, a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization whose mission is to empower and encourage girls experiencing bullying. Listen in to this encouraging conversation around learning how to be kind to others as well as ourselves, and changing the narrative from being bullied to becoming a leader. Show Highlights: Andi shares her traumatic personal ...
Oct 13, 2020•22 min•Ep. 143
We’re excited to welcome Todd Hasak-Lowy back to the show. There was an amazing Netflix documentary called “Crip Camp: A Disability Revolution” that aired right around the time the pandemic hit, and many people, including us, missed out on seeing or hearing about it because of that event. Thankfully, Todd let us know about it, we’ve watched it, and now we’re all going to be sharing our thoughts on its relevance today and why you just might want to watch it, too! Todd Hasak-Lowy is an author and ...
Oct 06, 2020•45 min•Ep. 142
