Assembling Inclusion Katie Nieves Licwinko

In this episode, we talk to Jari Majewski Price, the founder and CEO of Feel the Beat. Feel the Beat is a nonprofit organization and dance studio in Colorado that is dedicated to creating inclusive and accessible environments in dance education. Founded by Jari and Julia Faliano, who were both Deaf educators at the time, Feel the Beat allows Deaf and Hard of Hearing dancers and dancers with and without disabilities to learn to express themselves through music. Feel the Beat uses an innovative and special bone-conductive dance floor that allows dancers to use the vibrations to guide their movements. In addition, Feel the Beat provides a variety of supports to help all dancers, including specialized training for all instructors and an accessible, adaptive, and inclusive curriculum. (Episode Transcript)



Show Notes:


Feel the Beat website
Contact Feel the Beat
Donate to Feel the Beat

In this episode, we talk to Shell Mendelson, career counselor and author of the book A Course for ADHD Adults and Teens: Unlock Your Career Path. Shell discusses her educational journey, and the factors that led her work in career counseling, including her current work with adults and young adults with ADHD. Shell emphasizes that there are no specific jobs that people with ADHD should do, and they should have the same opportunities to explore their interests and identify what fulfills them, which can lead to a meaningful career. During our conversation, Shell shares how the ideas in the book were developed and tested, and why the book is an excellent resource for secondary classrooms, university career centers, and more. This episode is filled with takeaways and ideas for avoiding the status quo and helping people with ADHD find fulfillment in their work. (Episode Transcript)



Show Notes


Buy Shell's book on Amazon
A Course for ADHD Adults and Teens: Unlock Your Career Path
Career Coaching with Shell website
Passion to Career Website

In this episode, we interviewed Allis Kensing, the Enabling Technology Coordinator at Penn-Mar Human Services. Penn-Mar has a new initiative to empower people with disabilities through the use of assistive technology. The initiative includes an assistive technology lending library, which allows people to try out different technologies to see how it can fit into their daily life. Penn-Mar is also working to train the staff on how to use assistive technology to better support their clients and individuals in the community. Allis breaks down assistive technology and its capabilities for us, including how it can be used in communication, mobility, and daily living skills, and shares some of the lending library options, from low-tech devices, like adaptive cutting boards, to high-tech devices like smart speakers. She also shares some of the biggest challenges when it comes to learning about new assistive technologies. (Episode Transcript)

SHOW NOTES:


Penn-Mar Human Services website
Penn-Mar YouTube channel
Scissors demonstration
Giraffe Bottle demonstration
"Assistive Tech Offers Something for Everybody" article

In this episode, we talk to Matt Tilford from Active Project and the Kelly Brush Foundation. Active Project offers a way for athletes to learn about adaptive sports by creating a community of adaptive sports organizations and athletes. Within the platform, athletes can discover new adaptive sports, find local adaptive sports organizations and programs, and talk to people with spinal cord injuries who are also interested in living an active lifestyle. We talk about how Active Project has grown and changed, as well as its future goals and aspirations. We also discuss the grants and initiatives offered through Kelly Brush Foundation (Episode Transcript)



Show Notes


Active Project website
Kelly Brush Foundation Grants
Kelly Brush Foundation website

In this episode, we talked to Krista Weltner, author of Everyday Adventures with Molly and Dyslexia, a three book children’s book series about dyslexia. During our conversation, we discuss Krista’s decision to represent dyslexia through the personified character of Lexi. The series overall aims to empower children with dyslexia by showcasing their strengths and positive aspects of having dyslexia. Each book centers on a different topic, including asking for help, self-advocacy, and self-confidence. Krista’s series shows that dyslexia can appear differently in individuals, and these unique strengths and attributes are highlighted through the supporting characters across the books. Finally, we dive into how Everyday Adventures with Molly and Dyslexia can be a valuable tool for both children with dyslexia and educators. It allows the children to see themselves represented in the texts they read and gain confidence, while educators can use this as a teaching tool and way to help their students feel seen and empowered in the classroom. (Episode Transcript)


Krista Weltner website
Buy Everyday Adventures with Molly and Dyslexia (Bookshop)
Buy Everyday Adventures with Molly and Dyslexia (Amazon)
View "Partially Compensated" film

In this episode, we talk to Dr. Coral Hoh, a linguistic expert and the co-founder of Dysolve. Dysolve is an artificial intelligence powered solution for evaluating and addressing dyslexia. During our conversation, Dr. Hoh addresses the problems with the traditional approach to dyslexia evaluations, including scattered assessments and data points that often don’t give a clear roadmap for intervention. Using over thirty years of research, Dysolve provides an individualized evaluation through a gamified platform that allows the root causes of dyslexia to be pinpointed for each student. Dr. Hoh explains the evidence surrounding the effectiveness of Dysolve’s AI in providing intervention and remediation for students experiencing language processing related issues. Finally, we discuss how Dysolve can significantly improve learning outcomes for students, allowing students to overcome challenges with reading more quickly than other approaches. (Episode Transcript)



Show Notes


Dysolve website
Research behind Dysolve