I'm a firm believer that inclusive education is the first step to an inclusive society and to an inclusive world. One of my favorite quotes is something that I think can be applied to so many different aspects of inclusion and not just in schools, but it's from Nicole Anderson who says we cannot close the educational gaps that we see in our schools. If we don't close the ones we see in our minds first.
That's Ali Tashi, the Vice President of National Programs at the Autism Society of America. I'm Tim Vegas. Welcome to think inclusive, a podcast that features conversations about inclusive education, and what inclusion looks like in the real world. This week, the last week of autism acceptance month, we are talking with Ally about how we can take what we know about how inclusion works in our schools, to our community. More after a quick break.
Hi, glad you are back. Here is a little bit about our guest. Allie Tashi holds a master's degree in leadership and organizational development and a bachelor's degree in exceptional education with certification in autism. She has served the disability community for over 17 years as an educator, advocate, learner and leader fueled by coffee and fierce passion for Disability Justice. Ally specializes in designing systems programs and practices that foster inclusion and belonging, create access and promotes long term systems change through principles of universal design, strategic change management, and community organization. Allie lives in Wisconsin with her nature loving family with her adventures and parenting paws. She loves reading live music, dark chocolate, in great conversations with friends around a campfire. Now we're not around a campfire today. But we do have a fantastic conversation with Ali. And this week's episode. And all our episodes this April are sponsored by the Autism Society. We're going to learn a lot about the Autism Society of America in this conversation, so I'm not going to read the full ad copy here. But what I'd love for you to do is after the episode or even while you're listening, find out if there is a local Autism Society affiliate in your area. And whether you're an educator, a family member, or artistic individual, see how you can get involved. And now my interview with Ali Tashi. Oh and stick around for free time. This week, I spoke with the co founder of a tech startup called Open Door code that is trying to make coding accessible for all learners. You're not going to want to miss it.
Ally Tashi, welcome to the thing conclusive podcast. Thank
you. It's a really full circle moment for me to be here as a, you know, listener first. So thank you for having me.
Oh, wow. Well, thank you for listening. It's like a longtime listener. First time guest.
Follower before listener, you know, like, oh, okay, so congrats on 11 years.
Yeah, it's been a long time. It's been a long time. So appreciate that. Well, we're here to talk about inclusive education. But let's get started talking about you, and why inclusive education is important to you.
Wow, um, that can get pretty deep. But because it's been so central to who I am. It's not often that I think about its origin. But I think that you know, that inclusive fire has kind of just been burning within me for at least the last 17 years, not since birth. I'm the daughter of an ELL teacher, and the granddaughter of a high school special education teacher. So I always had, like inclusive models in my life and I knew I wanted to be an editor. cater, never looked back. But inclusive education kind of found me. I was in high school and wanted to do the youth tutoring youth program that my school had was designed to pair up high school students that were interested in the field of education with elementary schools, or middle schools. But it took two class periods to be able to do it. And I only had one class period that was open in my schedule. So they're like, huh, we can put you in the basement? I'm like, What's in the basement? You know? Sure enough, that's where the the classrooms that, you know, they call the CDs room for cognitive disabilities severe at the time.
Okay, yes, students
that they call the CDs, kids, you know, even though half of them were older than me as a sophomore. And I just, I felt that fire of like, why have we not been connected before. And I think I've just kind of been fueled by Disability Justice really, ever since. I worked in summer camps and in group homes, and then in classrooms and schools and in districts. But I think it really started for me in that high school experience. And then as a camp counselor, you know, I served kids, teens and adults, really, older adults. And I felt this kind of simultaneous sadness and optimism. Because, you know, it gets sad hearing the stories of some of the 40 and older campers whose light had just been dim, just like knowing that they had had that lifetime of exclusion. And then knowing that optimism, knowing that the younger campers wouldn't have that same experience, and that things were getting better. But I think I've just always known and been driven by the better is not enough. So the injustice of it all.
You know, yeah, that that really resonates with me. I've been asked a lot about, you know, why I started in the work. And it's very similar. Like, I just, once you saw the injustice, like you couldn't unsee it, right. Yeah. And feeling
like I was working at a group home. And I had the pleasure of supporting a 50 year old who had never lived in a community setting before it was his first transition to a community setting. He became sick. And he was in the hospital, and I went to visit him. And he said, LD aid, which is how he referred to me, work on Tuesdays. And in that moment, I, you know, I said, Well, I'm not here to work, I'm here because I care about you, you know, I want to spend time with you. And he started crying. And it was just it hit me, that concept that he had that awareness that people were paid to be there for him. And that it was kind of the first time that you know, he had realized that somebody was there? Because they cared. Yeah, and that that was the reality. So people so so
are you familiar with the, I don't know what to call it, but it's called circle of friends. It's like a person. I'm gonna say it wrong. And there's, there's a circle of friends like the organization who, in who we've had on the think inclusive before, but this is something that I learned about, and I think it I don't know exactly where it originated, should know that. But it's kind of like a thing that you can do with a school community for an like an individual learner, right? And you, there's this activity where you have like, these concentric circles. And then you plot where the students relationships are in those circles, right? And it's meant to, like, illustrate for the class or the community that you are including the person with the disability to illustrate like, see for you for people who are typically developing or people who you know, are just naturally included, that they have a lot of people in the center, like a lot of really close friends, a lot of you know, people that they interact with, but for people who have been historically excluded, the vast majority of people are on the outside, which are the paid people you are paid to work with this person and have a relationship with this person. And it's like, way disproportionate?
Yeah, I was, I think we started using some of those in, I remember actually a student teaching placement, we were talking about charting across the life course. And I'm thinking about how this circle of relationships builds from there. But I actually think I've used the circles curriculum in in some of the, like, the health, middle school health classes that we've used to kind of articulate some of that. And, and seeing, seeing it up close, you know, is one part and I, my own circle shocked me, you know, I was kind of obsessively consuming everything about autism since I don't know 2007. And my, my mom was, was probably was already a special education teacher, she's like, do you think that maybe I have Asperger's? And, you know, I at the time was touted by others in my building as the autism specialist, right, like the autism expert, even though I knew how, like backwards that was, and I was like, No, you know, because because of all of these reasons. And, and now, now, I'm like, wow, she has the textbook like autistic. And she now identifies as on the spectrum, and it's gone through that process. And it's, it's a full circle moment for me too. So that's why I said, maybe since birth, because I've also kind of been incubated in autistic culture. And I was raised by, you know, my, my mom singularly. So it's interesting to me how those circles can not only be like a structural circle of support, but the the cultural circles of support around that and how the it's really like the personal connections that kind of help you to transcend from one level of, you know, the circle to the next.
Right, which is why inclusive schooling inclusive classrooms is so important, because if you don't have relationships or connections with people who are different than then you like, you, Well, you certainly miss out right on all those relationships. But when you encounter somebody that's different, it's yeah, it could be it could be scary. Right? Not because it should be, but because it is because it's different. Yeah, because of basements. Because of basements. Because of basements.
Do that, within special education. Like, I want to support the students with the most complex support needs. I've always been just, I don't know, if I was connected there. And, um, when I was going through a school placements, I would have professors telling me, you know, based on your interest profile, like you really want an autism unit, you know, you really want to find an autism unit. And, oh, you'll, you'll love this so much. And so I thought that's what I wanted for a while to, you know, because I was still learning about what inclusive Ed looks like. And by the time I graduated, it was clear to me like, No, I want to work in an inclusive district. So I had researched districts that were practicing inclusion. And I was really fortunate to start my career in a district where students went to their home schools. And you know, where I didn't have a special education classroom that I managed, I was a learning strategist, which was my title where, you know, we Copeland and CO served and when things got hard, I just always went back to that knowledge of what the alternative is. So, you know, knowledge of what is the alternative to doing the right thing, even when it is hard sometimes. And honestly, Tim, I listened to your podcast and into that inclusive educator community, and was just so lucky, like Katie Novak and Alison Posey and Joey Moore, and all of the mentors that, you know, that I've been able to have as well have just kind of given that like community validation, innovation, and just, that's what's kept the fire going, I guess.
Wow. So how long were you an educator?
I was in the classroom for about six years, and then I was in coaching and administrative leadership roles for about five years. I was so fortunate to be a part of early UDL pilots, you know, at the school, that was really putting its structure into educational equity for all and supporting the To the staff through that support that we know that we all need to get to that place of inclusion. But I don't think I've ever stopped. So that's a hard question. You know, when I think about how long have I been educating? It's been four. So
yeah, that's true. I think I probably didn't do a great job asking that question, because I would, I would consider myself still an educator. Right. In some ways, I just don't work for public schools, a public school district. But for
that, you know, I mean, the, so much of what I learned was from some of those direct service. And I've been serving the community since I was in braces.
There. Yes, there you go. There you go. And now, and now you're part of the the Autism Society. So what led you to that organization specifically, and then we can talk about kind of your role there. So
when I started moving into more of the coaching roles, and you know, my focus was always the center was always inclusion. But my focus changed from my classroom to a school and then to district wide inclusion. And I got really nerdily into systems level practices for educational equity. And the move into the Autism Society was a little slow for me, I started as a board member at my local Autism Society of greater Wisconsin, and I co chaired their programs Services Committee, and I was getting to exercise all of the things that got me really excited things that I was able to, to really just kind of feel fulfilled by the work that was happening at that time, as a member of the autism society's board, so when a position opened up at their national team, I really saw that as you know, the opportunity to then move to systems level practices at more of the community level as a whole. And I roll you know, it actually sounds it sounded to me when they were looking for, as the leader of national programs for affiliate network was a lot like the work I was already doing, I was identifying bright spots and practices across districts and state level, to develop the programming, to develop supports, and provide staff education and training. And, you know, develop resources that would really meet the needs to drive educator efficacy and kind of driving best practice driving inclusive practices, evidence based practices. And now, I work to identify bright spots in programming and across the country, within our affiliate network instead of within a district. And, you know, the resources, the education, the content has changed. But a lot of the the goal and the the way that we go about building capacity for inclusive practices, it's a lot of the same work. So it's see it seems like a natural evolution, with inclusion really, at the core, tell
us how the Autism Society is equipping communities to be, you know, more inclusive for people on the autism spectrum. But you know, just for everyone.
Well, inclusion has been the foundation of you know, the autism society's core goals. Since we launched in 1965. We are the largest and oldest grassroots organization, and our core services are really centered around advocacy and public policy, education, information and referral, and then community education and support programs. So as I mentioned, there's like the bright spots across the country, we have over 70 affiliates, and each of them have their own programs, their own, you know, resources that are making a really big difference in their local communities. And I have the privilege to learn from that and identify how we can utilize the the work that's been done at the grassroots level to create you know, national change, inclusion, spend that foundation and we you know, we practice autism acceptance, we promote autism acceptance, rather, moving away from awareness, which says, you know, I see you I see that you might have different needs and acceptance that says, I see that, you know, this world wasn't built to meet all of your needs, and there are things that I can be doing to help promote that inclusion and belonging. I lead our National Programs team, and we focus on Bill Then community connections that bridge gaps face across the autism community. We have core programs of safety on the spectrum, which includes law enforcement training, we have drowning prevention efforts, and an accessible Learn to Swim program. We have an employment initiative, and a health equity initiative, and a national helpline, which is our, our information and referral, you know, call center. But really, while each of those programs has different focus schools, across the team, we're working to bridge those gaps and fill, you know, fill the community gaps really by centering intersectionality inclusion all through connection,
what I really love about the autism society's messaging, and it's it comes across to, you know, to me as someone who works in communications, but just as someone who's getting to know more and more about the organization, is that y'all feature disabled autistic individuals and their voices and their stories, in, you know, in, in your communications and in in your programs. Specifically, like, I'm learning about your autistic, MSA, this wrong, your your board of autistic advocates, sounds love autistic advisors. There you go. That's it. So I'd love to know more about that, and why that is important to the work of the Autism Society.
One of the things that makes me feel really proud to work at the Autism Society is the fact that beyond featuring the voices within our community, we're amplifying those voices and amplifying, you know, the an honor, the diversity of needs diversity of wants goals, dreams, because central to the artistic experience is that no two experiences of autism will be the same. Same for parents and caregivers, you know, no two experiences within the community are going to be the same. And everyone deserves not only to have their voice to be heard, but you know, to be known to be supported, to be empowered and to be accepted. So that's been really core to our organization. Since you know, we've we opened our doors, I think it was actually out of kitchens, you know, where, at the time, it was parents who are getting together in their homes to, you know, talk about the their experiences, and to work together to advocate for improved support for their children. And then it was parents working with teachers, you know, working together to gain access to services and supports. And the, you know, the advocate community grew with a lot of professionals that were disability serving to, you know, people with disabilities and autistic advocates, sharing their own ideas, thoughts, needs feelings. And that that kind of paradigm shift or not really a paradigm shift, I guess. But that evolution of, you know, Disability Justice, and of history within the disability community, which we've, you know, has been mimics, then in the autism community. We've been there throughout each step. And we've remained committed to supporting everyone in the autism community, but doing it together and doing it in a way that honors and validates and amplifies the the wide range of lived experiences that that we have.
What about the rebranding? Because I know that the rebranding happen, it's happened with like, in the last couple of years, is that right? Yeah, we
launched in 2021, in November of 2021. And, you know, I wasn't a part of the organization during the the conception of the rebrand. So it was actually shortly after I joined the organization that we went through this, this process, but the brand itself was over 20 years old, and it no longer serve the needs of the community. So if you're familiar, you know, with the the ribbon of puzzle pieces, that's our old logo, but that lacked the, you know, the inclusive values and the connective values of the organization. It didn't center the autism community anymore. And we heard from People time and time again, not just at the Autism Society, but you know, within the, the disability community, you know, specifically talking about I'm not broken, you know, I'm not a puzzle that needs to be solved, I'm not a problem that needs to be fixed. I'm a human that needs to be supported. And that, in a nutshell, is a lot of what came out of the work that was done, where, you know, we had focus groups, we leaned into hundreds of, you know, personal experiences, and, and really went through the process of redesigning. So from the start, you know, we set out to create a space that was fully inclusive and accepting, and representative of everyone in the autism community. It was designed with the autism community, and it's an expression of the community. So when you look at the shift, the visual shift away from using the puzzle piece towards what we now have is interconnected threads. It's really a recognition of the diversity of experiences and the different connection points within the community. So we are continuing to to go back to that because some folks are like, Oh, are you a new organization? No, we're the same old Autism Society as we've been. But we have a new symbol of community and strength and, you know, connection.
Right. And some people may not realize how large y'all are. You have a national, you kind of have the your national. I don't know, the national organization, but you also have you called them affiliates, right? local affiliates.
So I call it the autism societies of you know, across the country.
Yes. Okay. Okay. Yeah. Yeah. And how many of how many of those affiliates are there across the country,
across the country, we have about 70 affiliates. And I say about because there's a different structure, even within some of the affiliates, where there might be three autism societies within one state. Whereas there might be a one affiliate at the state level, who has their own chapter network across different kinds of Metro hubs. So it's a large network, and it's an aligned network. And that, you know, we're all committed to the mission of creating connections that empower everyone with the resources that they need to live fully. And we learn from each other, we, you know, very much so remain a grassroots organization, driven by the, the different governance structures that we have. Nationally, we have a council of artistic advisors, we have a panel of professional advisors, you know, our board is, like many of the smaller affiliate boards, and those affiliates have their own groups that you know, some have AAC users groups, some have autistic adult groups that are focused on employment, some have, you know, LGBTQI plus peer support groups, there's so many different communities within the community. And that all, you know, creates that interconnected piece that that is central to who we are.
Yeah, yeah, the way you were describing it sounds almost like alive. Like, it's just, there's a lot, it's a lot going on. So and, you know, and I want to I want to turn to how this could benefit educators, because we have lots of people who listen, you know, a lot of different roles. But the majority of people are, you know, teachers in public schools, private schools, charter schools, administrators, you know, superintendents, so people in the education space wanting to move inclusive education forward. So what kinds of resources are available to educators that that they could possibly use to support families and individuals on the autism spectrum?
I think the connection through our community as a first step, you know, I mentioned when I was feeling like, exhausted by the prospect in front of me, I turned to the community that you've created here and other inclusive Ed communities, UDL communities. But turning to the autism community as an educator, whether autism is new to you and you have a student who is in your classroom for the first time or, you know, you're obsessively consuming all things autism in your spare time. One of the Two things that I think really is, is the the first place to start is identifying if you have a local community, a local affiliate within your community, and also recognizing that there are some virtual programs and opportunities, and just like we like to share resources and create resources, we love to hear about what what are the things that are most needed. So our national helpline is our information and referral, you know, hub, and we have a lot of educators that contact us looking for additional resources, looking for information, looking for guidance to share with families, some of our local affiliates have local next step resource guides that have been provided at the school level, and programs where we can come in some, some affiliates do IEP advocacy, and training within school buildings. And, you know, it's, it's something that the door's always open. And I'm really excited about what educators can can bring to the Autism Society just as much as I am about what the Autism Society can bring to, you know, to educators. This spring, we're actually going to be launching the autism society's Education and Training Center. And that's going to be an opportunity for us to provide training resources, you know, communities of practice, that support learning about autism in different communities. So whether it's in schools, or whether it's, you know, at the doctor or in, you know, in the grocery store, we're really working on improving access to additional learning and training, because that is what is necessary, not only in schools, but really in all of the communities that we're serving, you know, we're identifying that there is a desire, everyone wants, most people want to be inclusive practitioners. But just like, we know that, you know, educators need better training and support to implement all of the inclusive practices that they're taught, we need to give that same support to others in our community, as well. And I think educators are paving the way for that broader community inclusion in a big way.
I like what you said about educators paving the way to inclusive practices, because especially if you already have an inclusive mindset, and are implementing these practices in schools, it also means that you can implement them wherever you are, right? So like, how can we take what we know works in schools, and apply it to other aspects of our world and community?
I think that we just have to start, you know, the practices that that we know are working some of your talk about evidence based practices for autism instruction and intervention. Well, what what parts of those evidence based practices can open doors outside of school, we're using, you know, social narratives, visual schedules, visual supports, communication supports, those aren't just applicable to classroom settings. But because they're just mandated and trained within classroom settings, sometimes they get stuck there. And the the work that we're doing on our team is really helping other people to, to learn about these different practices that can make a big difference. But with anything, just like in schools, I think it does start with belief, you know, the belief factor. And from a theoretical standpoint, you know, I love Eric Carter has 10 dimensions of belonging, Shelly Morris, five P's and anti Muhammad's work about transforming culture. I love Paul Gorski it's fix injustice, not kids principle. And all of those really start with belief. And, you know, I think it's not just about presuming competence and believing in a person's ability, but it's also about believing in your own ability to, to support diverse needs. And that's the work that we're trying to do in you know, a lot of different settings. Because, really, what I've learned since making the jump from schools into community settings is that a lot of the same concepts that drive inclusion in schools can be applied. I mean, almost anywhere or take a take the L out of UDL, and this is a concept universal design in general, is something that is I'm hearing corporate leaders about, you know, who are dedicated to neurodiversity in the workplace, having conversations. And schools didn't just figure out how to implement UDL. There were the principles, there were the pillars, there's the guidance and the examples of how do you move through all of those pieces. So I think just like, teachers need coaching, so do employers and doctors and restaurant, you know, leaders, there's not a magic wand. But if there was a magic wand, schools would be the one to be holding it. And I think we have to figure out how to kind of pass that one baton.
What do you want teachers to walk away with from this conversation?
We can't do any of this without you. You know, as teachers, we so often struggle to give ourselves the same grace that we give to our students. And we build entire programs about self regulation to support other people around us, but we oftentimes struggle with prioritize our own personal care. And I just I think it's so important because I'm a firm believer that inclusive education is the first step to an inclusive society and to an inclusive world. And, you know, that's what I meant by there paving the way your foundational one of my favorite quotes to leave with is something that I think can be applied to so many different aspects of inclusion and not just in schools, but it's from Nicole Anderson who says we cannot close the educational gaps that we see in our schools if we don't close the ones we see in our minds first. And that's the work that I hope that we continue to do together.
And the connection is you right after a quick break the mystery question.
What is the artist job you ever took to earn a buck this is I'm just reading it verbatim. Okay.
I
got this job
has to be my first job. There was one job I had before I discovered Disability Service fields, and it was as a roller rink first snack bar attendant then floor guard and eventually worked my way up to children's birthday party DJ. oddest part of it was that I was one of the only ones on the team who could wear the Rufus the roller row costume which picture a very sweaty kangaroo character on rollerblades. And, and I was really good at doing the limbo and doing the chicken dance in this Rufus the roller row costume. And so that's my claim to fame.
That is that is really yeah, that's, that's great. That is great. I don't think I can beat that. I've had a lot of jobs. I don't know if they're really odd, though.
I'm curious.
One of the one of the strangest ones I had was, it was like a two parter. My I worked for my uncle, my aunt and uncle. They owned a security company like, like, people, they would hire their security guards to work in, like warehouses or like a strip mall or something like that. And so this was when I was in college, and I had blown I had blown up my car on the highway. I was driving my car, and it like it broke down. And yeah, not great. Not safe, either. Don't I wouldn't recommend that. But my aunt and uncle were like, Hey, listen, we'll give you this. This Ford Ranger. If you come work for us, like you just come work for us. And basically you'd be working to pay off the car. And so I'm like, hey, great, awesome. I need a car. It was this little Ford Ranger slash with a it was a stick shift. And that you know, so I worked in a US strip mall, driving around and I put like, it was like I had a uniform and this like security magnet on my car. And I basically was like, observing the report. Like I didn't have any sort of like power to do anything. I just, it just no power wash people. No, I did not feel powerful and people did not like, like, care that I was there. But I was there. And then I also did like, so I worked there and I also worked at this manufacturing warehouse that made like roofing tiles. I want to say I mean, it was a long time ago. So I'm pretty sure that's what it was. And I used to drive around in a golf cart. Like in the middle of the night. This is like I would work from like 10 o'clock till four o'clock in the morning. Like this was not an easy job. Okay. And I would listen to books on tape to keep myself awake and like literally cassette tapes. So there you go. That's my honest job. Is the roller RW. They see the connection
thing I ever did as Rufus the roller row. Yes, I was in a Brock Days Parade. I hail from Wisconsin. We make a lot of trees but also brats. And they're brought days celebration in my local hometown. And I was in the BRAC Days Parade as roof Vista Rolla, Rue rollerskating miles in 85 degree weather in this giant sweat suit of a kangaroo. So that I didn't want to do that job anymore. And thankfully, I found I found camp evergreen, you know, next summer serving the community I love so I never had to go back to the the brat Days Parade. But
there you go. Yes, yes, I hear you. And I never have put on security or form again. Le Tashi, thank you so much for being on the podcast. It was pleasure.
It was sincerely My pleasure.
That chime means it's free time. This week, an interview with the co founder of Open Door code, an introductory coding tool that empowers young, blind and low vision creators by making learning fun, interactive and accessible. By bringing the world of coding from the screen to their hands. Open Door code gives middle school students a tactile alternative to traditional beginner coding software. Here's the interview.
My name is Dr. Daniel Campo. I'm the Associate Dean of the Schultz School of entrepreneurship here at the University of St. Thomas.
And I'm Maria Johnson. I'm a student at the University of St. Thomas. And I am co founder of Open Door code. So the problem we're looking at is today, in a lot of schools, even starting as early as preschool, students are able to learn how to code thanks to visual programming languages where they start to use like puzzle piece like blocks to write code instead of writing lines of text. But that's just not accessible to their blind and low vision peers. Which is why with opendoor code, we're trying to make that a more tactile experience for them by making physical blocks that they can move around and write code with instead,
why is accessibility important to you?
I personally grew up loving design, I'm really interested in design. And this fall, I went to a conference about inclusion in science education. And I learned for the first time about the medical and social models of disability. The medical model of disability is kind of the way we've always looked at people with disabilities, just as a society. We see them as they have a problem, they can find accommodations to fix it. But with the social model of disability, which is what we should all move towards. We recognize that we just haven't designed a world that's vade for everyone. So as we're designing new products, it's really great to bring in accessible design and make sure that it works for everyone really well.
Dr. Combo. How is this project tied to St. Thomas?
Yeah, thanks for asking. At the University of St. Thomas. We're on a mission to engage students and thinking innovatively about how to advance the common good. We have a newly opened Institute for Social Innovation, and we really promote social impact through innovation and entrepreneurship. Maria and opendoor code is one example of the types of ideas that we really try to foster and support at our university. We actually started back in the fall with something called the Fowler business concept challenge. And specifically that has what we call a social innovation track. So we encourage students to think about leveraging innovation and entrepreneurship and understanding how they can have impact on the world. So we support businesses and ideas like Maria's through a series of competitions, it starts with an idea competition, we then go to a business plan competition, which also again, has a social track in it. And then it ends with our big national competition. What we're in right now is E fest, a national competition for all undergraduate students across the nation to apply into, it's very competitive. And so we're extremely proud of Maria and opendoor code for getting into this competition and really making an impact on the world.
Best case scenario, you receive funding and you're able to go forward with this project. What happens if you don't receive funding? Will the project continue? Will you continue to look at other avenues to get funding, I'd
love to just continue exploring the company right now is really a product development stage. We know our customers. So I'll definitely continue talking to more people about it. And I'm building a network recently and being here, so many people to talk to. So that's really the first step is getting to know what the students really need and designing the best product for them. So I'll definitely keep going with that for sure.
And then, as far as the actual product, right now, it's just in a development phase, is there anything tangible,
we have been able to 3d print some blocks already, and we got Braille on there, which is super exciting. And I had one of my fellow students who reads Braille, tests them out, and he was able to read them. And that made me really excited. Just that that one part was ready to go and nice. Talk to a bunch of computer science students to playing around with the blocks. And recently getting some feedback from teachers at the Metro Deaf School in St. Paul, Minnesota, one of them teach deaf blind students as well. So you're just testing it out with a lot of people. And we've gotten some feedback on what technology could help the blocks communicate with a computer robot or something like that. So very exciting.
What do you want educators to think about as far as creating accessible spaces and products for schools?
First of all, there's a lot of us students out here who are really excited about innovation, and would just love to help these teachers. For the teachers, I think, as someone who's neurodivergent, myself, there's just so many amazing, easy ways to make classrooms more inclusive and more welcoming to everyone. I think so many teachers are already doing a great job with that. And we're starting to see so much more combinations in schools and everything, but just keep up the good work and supporting their students
come to any final thoughts.
Yeah, please follow along on E fest dot biz, or find us on LinkedIn at E fest home of the Schultz Entrepreneurship Challenge. Fantastic.
Maria and your team. Good luck. Looking forward to hearing some good news and Dr. Kamala, thank you so much for your time. Thank you so much. Thank you. Open Door code did not receive funding during the competition, but we wish them luck as they continue with this product to make coding accessible.
That's it for this episode of thinking cluesive Did you like this episode? You can let us know by leaving us a review on Apple podcasts or rate us on Spotify. I think inclusive is written, edited, designed, mixed and mastered by me Tim Vegas is a production of the Maryland Coalition for Inclusive Education. Original Music by miles credit. Additional music from melody. Thanks again to our fabulous sponsor, the Autism Society. Learn more at autism society.org Thanks for your time and attention and remember, inclusion always works.
All right, mystery question time. You're ready. I'm ready. Okay. I'm not ready. I had to reach for my cards here. Let's just mix them up. I still have a ton of this is what I have left.
So exciting.
This is the best part is so exciting. I like it. I like it. MCIE
