Think Inclusive

DJ Nicholson is an experienced educator and advocate for inclusive education. She has a background in special education and has worked with students with disabilities for many years. DJ is passionate about finding innovative ways to support learners with disabilities and believes that technology, including AI, can play a crucial role in creating inclusive learning environments. In this episode, DJ...

Luvy Jenkins is the Education Manager and Medical Outreach Manager at the Down Syndrome Association of Central Texas (DSACT). With a background in special education, Louie is passionate about promoting inclusion and providing resources and support to educators and families of children with Down syndrome. Luvy Jenkins, Education Manager at the Down Syndrome Association of Central Texas (DSACT), dis...

Oaklee Thiele is a young artist and disability advocate. She co-founded The My Dearest Friends Project with DisArt in March 2020 to create a public platform where disabled people could share their stories and experiences during the COVID-19 pandemic. Lawrence Carter-Long is the Director of Communications for DisArt and has a background in disability advocacy. He joined the organization in 2022 and...

Beth Liesenfeld (she/her) — Occupational therapist and founder of The IEP Lab , where she equips parents with “insider” understanding of school processes and culture to make IEP teams more collaborative and child‑centered. She hosts The Parent IEP Lab podcast and offers online workshops and courses for families navigating special education. Host Tim Villegas talks with Beth Liesenfeld about why IE...

Raul Krauthausen is a renowned disability rights activist, social entrepreneur, and founder of the nonprofit organization Sozialhelden (Social Heroes) in Germany. For more than 15 years, Raul has worked to advance accessibility and inclusion through innovative projects and advocacy. He is best known for creating Wheelmap , a crowdsourced online map that identifies wheelchair-accessible places worl...

Susan Stone — Attorney and co-leader of the Student & Athlete Defense Group at KJK in Cleveland. Susan has over 30 years of experience advocating for students, with a focus on special education law and student discipline. She’s also a nationally published author and co-host of Real Talk with Susan and Kristina . Kristina Supler — Attorney and co-leader of the Student & Athlete Defense Grou...

Colleen Tomko — Parent advocate, artist, and president of Kids Together , an all-volunteer nonprofit promoting inclusion. A Penn State graduate and Partners in Policymaking alum, Colleen has dedicated her life to ensuring that all children, including her son Shawn, have access to inclusive education and community life. In this episode, Tim Villegas talks with Colleen Tomko about her lifelong advoc...

Adam Walker and Sanjay Parekh are the co-founders of https://togetherletters.com , a platform designed to help people stay connected without relying on social media. Both are seasoned entrepreneurs and podcasters—Adam co-hosts Tech Talk Y’all , and Sanjay brings years of experience in tech and community building. Together, they’re passionate about creating tools that foster authentic, private conn...

Mirko Chardin is the Chief Equity & Inclusion Officer at Novak Education. He previously served as the founding Head of School at Putnam Avenue Upper School in Cambridge, Massachusetts. He co‑authored Equity by Design: The Power and Promise of UDL with Dr. Katie Novak and facilitates learning on topics such as implicit bias, microaggressions, Universal Design for Learning (UDL), restorative pra...

Dr. Kate de Bruin — inclusive education academic at Monash University (Melbourne, Australia). Her work focuses on evidence‑informed practices and policies that improve participation and learning for all students, with an emphasis on students with disabilities. She has taught in secondary and higher education, designs inclusive education coursework for Master’s programs, and serves on the academic...

AZ Chapman is a writer, athlete, and disability advocate from California. Diagnosed with cerebral palsy as a toddler, AZ has navigated life with determination and resilience. She earned her bachelor’s degree in Liberal Studies with a minor in Special Education from California State University East Bay. AZ is also a passionate Special Olympics competitor, having participated in events like swimming...

Tim Villegas from the Maryland Coalition for Inclusive Education connects with Simone Morris and Julie Kratz, hosts of the Inclusion School podcast, to explore the intersection of inclusive schools and the diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) space. They discuss the importance of DEI initiatives in schools, strategies for allyship with marginalized groups, and the significance of addressing raci...

Gage Robinson is a 19-year-old college student at Dakota County Technical College in Rosemount, Minnesota. He’s a passionate self-advocate who fought for his right to inclusive education and now shares his story to inspire others. Gage runs a nonprofit called Gage Gives Back , where he educates about traumatic brain injury and shaken baby syndrome, and supports organizations that helped him succee...

Carolyn Kiel is a corporate instructional designer and the host of Beyond 6 Seconds , a podcast that spotlights neurodivergent and disabled entrepreneurs, creators, and advocates. She’s a late‑identified autistic adult who uses her platform to share first‑person stories that challenge stereotypes and expand understanding. In this conversation, Tim talks with Carolyn about why she started Beyond 6...

Alma Zaragoza‑Petty (she/her) — Mexican American activist, scholar, and podcast host; author of Chingona: Owning Your Inner Badass for Healing and Justice . She advises and counsels first‑generation, low‑income students and teaches equity-focused coursework to working professionals at USC, with a personal and scholarly focus on intergenerational healing. Alma Zaragoza‑Petty shares how reclaiming t...

Hilda Bernier — Educator with a special education license and bilingual extension who has taught mostly integrated co‑teaching classes (and some self‑contained high‑school classes). As a parent, she describes how evaluation reports and an early IEP meeting pushed against inclusion for her son, Emilio, and how seeing the Henderson Inclusion School shifted her perspective on what’s possible. Olivier...

Ryan Wilson is the founder and director of Team Trust Productions, a disability‑led media company that partners with mission‑driven organizations to tell authentic stories of people with disabilities. He launched Team Trust after an early documentary project (“Seeing With Trust”) and now works with nonprofits and higher‑ed institutions to make marketing more accessible and inclusive. Ryan lives wi...

Mary Beth Moore — Author of Unwanted: Fighting to Belong and founder/executive director of The Advocacy Underground. She studied political science and criminal justice at UNC Charlotte, served in the U.S. Marine Corps, worked as a DoD intelligence analyst and later as a marketing leader. She uses storytelling to make special education law and research accessible to families and educators. She’s al...

Cheryl Green is an access artist who’s spent a decade creating creative, immersive captions and five years crafting audio description, drawing on lived experience with chronic illness and invisible disabilities. She’s collaborated with disability‑focused organizations including Superfest International Disability Film Festival, Disability Visibility Project, and Kinetic Light; she’s also produced d...

Katie Novak is an internationally recognized education consultant, author of 11 books, graduate instructor at the University of Pennsylvania, and former assistant superintendent in Massachusetts. With over 20 years of experience in teaching and administration and a doctorate in curriculum and teaching, Katie specializes in Universal Design for Learning (UDL), Multi-Tiered Systems of Support (MTSS)...

Michael Giangreco is a University Distinguished Professor Emeritus of Special Education at the University of Vermont and is affiliated with the UVM Center on Disability and Community Inclusion . He’s authored over 200 publications, presented across the U.S. and internationally, and is known for the “Absurdities and Realities of Special Education” cartoon collection, created to spark reflection and...

Melissa Defayette — Third‑year PhD student in Special Education at the University of Maryland; advanced to candidacy in Fall 2022. Her research focuses on designing and implementing math interventions for students with moderate to severe disabilities in general education settings aligned to grade‑level content. She previously taught special education in Maryland for about seven years and has co‑au...

Temple Grandin, PhD — Professor of Animal Science, Colorado State University Dr. Grandin is a renowned author and advocate whose work bridges animal welfare, education, and neurodiversity. She’s written multiple New York Times bestsellers—including Animals in Translation , Animals Make Us Human , The Autistic Brain , and Thinking in Pictures —and her life story was portrayed in the HBO film Temple...

Ashley Barlow — Special education attorney practicing in the Greater Cincinnati area (licensed in Kentucky and Ohio), parent and self‑advocate, former K–12 German teacher, and host of Special Education Advocacy with Ashley Barlow . She runs Ashley Barlow Company , which offers reasonably priced resources and digital courses for parents and advocates, and serves as Director of Education at the Nati...

Jay Ruderman is the President of the Ruderman Family Foundation, a philanthropic organization dedicated to inclusion, diversity, and social justice. A lifelong social justice activist, Jay has championed disability rights and worked to hold the entertainment industry accountable for authentic representation. He also hosts the podcast All About Change , which highlights stories of activism and resi...