I was fortunate to attend Canton Public Schools where there was a team of teachers, aides, speech therapists, special ed directors, and coordinators who supported me from a little kid to when I graduated. My success was their goal.
Today I attend a Massachusetts State University where there is an accommodations office that helps me organize my accommodations and it is on me to share with my professors and ensure that they deliver. The support is there and the idea of inclusion is there, but I feel the burden shift to me. Being a self advocate is hard, especially for someone who has communication gaps in the first place.
I am fortunate to have several work opportunities at some great companies including Target, Teladoc Health, and Boston Medical Center. They make efforts to include me and work with my differences and care about learning how to support me.
As I look for new work options, I see my experience so far with people who offer accommodations and take time to work with me is rare. Similar set ups are not only hard to find, they are extremely hard to find.
Here lies the opportunity. I made this video named "The Importance of Accommodations" for Teladoc Health as part of our a11y efforts to help people understand why accommodations in the workplace and accessible services and content is important from my personal perspective. I could write more, but watching it says it all.
