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Neurodiversity Support Fellows:

Inclusive Excellence Professional Development for Graduate Students

“My number one priority is giving opportunities to students,” said Sally Izquierdo, Ph.D., a Board Certified and NYS Licensed Behavior Analyst and Psychologist. As Director of QC Project REACH, she has developed behavior analytic supports for autistic CUNY students, and workshops for neurodivergent students and faculty. She is also a member of the QC HHMI Advisory Board.

Dr. Izquierdo created the Neurodiversity Support Fellowships in response to a “growing interest among faculty and students to support neurodivergent peers.” The Fellowships offered a foundational work opportunity for graduate students who are, Dr. Izquierdo noted, “always looking for ways to boost resumes and get experience.”

After an application and interview process, two graduate students in the psychology department were selected as Neurodiversity Support Fellows in 2022. The Fellows collaborated with Dr. Izquierdo to develop educational presentations for faculty, and their research generated the resources in the Neurodiversity Hub.

The Fellowship was “life-changing for me,” said Kartika Kumari, who had learned about her own neurodivergence just before becoming a Fellow. “I do enjoy research. I got to delve into understanding myself and the needs of the neurodivergent population on campus, and how we respond differently to stressors and motivators as students.” Ms. Kumari completed her Masters in Behavioral Neuroscience while she was a Fellow and then worked as a Resource Coordinator at QC Project REACH, where she built an online, student-focused hub to help neurodivergent undergraduates navigate the college experience.

Ms. Kumari said, “It’s really gratifying to see a student smile after a conversation, if they’re anxious and I can alleviate those anxieties. If I’d had that support, things could have looked different for me, so I want to be there to support them.” The Neurodiversity Support Fellowship started a professional journey for Ms. Kumari, who has gone on to a new role as a Learning Support Specialist at a college in New Jersey.

Dr. Izquierdo partnered with the team of Neurodiversity Support Fellows to offer two professional development sessions for faculty and staff, with the aim of deepening awareness about neurodiversity.

One of the main things for faculty to keep in mind, Ms. Kumari observed, is “learner variability. We take in information in all different ways. Some students may be able to read a textbook and take in information, while others may respond better to an audiobook. It may seem small, but it has a huge impact.”

The first presentation focused on the range of neurodiversity among students and offered a reminder that diversity can take many forms, including disabilities that are invisible.

That’s why Universal Design for Learning, which supports learning for all students, is such a powerful pedagogical approach. “I think it’s important that folks know they don’t have to be aware of a person’s disability to support them in their classrooms,” said Dr. Izquierdo. “If we create a learning environment with those universal principles built in, in most cases we don’t need to know [a student’s disability].”

The second seminar presented inclusive classroom practices. Universal Design for Learning can inform all aspects of the class experience, from syllabus design to classroom environment to course content delivery. “I would love to see instructors be more intentional in designing all of their learning environments,” Dr. Izquierdo said. “Preparing for your semester includes evaluating your syllabus, how does your Brightspace [learning management system] site read, what is your classroom like?”

To support inclusive teaching, Dr. Izquierdo designed an Instructor Checklist for an Inclusive Course Environment. The checklist and other strategies for implementing Universal Design for Learning are featured in the Inclusive Classroom Practices presentation and can be downloaded from the .