Summer Institute for Educators

Location: MacFarlane STEM building

Please arrive early to check in at our registration desk on the second floor of the MacFarlane building. You will receive a packet, including a detailed scheduled. A light continental breakfast, coffee, and tea will be available on the first floor. 

Optional student lead campus tours available between 8:00 and 8:30. 

Note: if you're arriving on Wednesday or Thursday, please check in the lobby of the Lewis Academic Building. 

Location: Fine Arts Building (FAB), Greenhoe Auditorium 

Join us as we kick off the Summer Institute. In addition to a welcome and housekeeping notes we will lead you through a short welcome activity frame our learning over the course of the three day institute. 

Embracing Neurodiversity in an AI-Powered Future 

By: Maureen Dunne, Ph.D.

Location: Fine Arts Building (FAB), Greenhoe Auditorium 

Description: 

In this keynote, Dr. Maureen Dunne draws on her award-winning and bestselling book based on over two decades of research, The Neurodiversity Edge, to offer a transformative strength-based approach to neurodiversity. Dr. Dunne highlights the creative, analytical, empathic, and systems-level thinking strengths that so often go overlooked in traditional educational models. She shares stories of neurodivergent innovators, scientists, entrepreneurs, and creators whose success emerged not despite their differences, but because environments finally allowed their strengths to flourish.

The keynote also integrates Dr. Dunne’s deeply personal journey—navigating higher education systems that were not designed for her brain, ultimately becoming the first community college graduate to earn the prestigious Rhodes Scholarship to study at the University of Oxford. Her experience illustrates how educators’ choices, expectations, and flexibility can shape entire life trajectories.

Finally, she explores, based on her current research, why neurodiversity is essential in an age of rapid AI advancement. As artificial intelligence increasingly takes over linear and routine tasks, uniquely human forms of thinking—imaginative leaps, nonlinear reasoning, ethical judgment, pattern detection, and unconventional problem solving—become more valuable than ever. Neurodivergent minds often excel precisely in those areas. The future belongs to communities, schools and institutions that recognize, cultivate, and collaborate across different kinds of minds.

Hear from a panel of current Landmark College students as they share their personal stories. Students will provide insight into the unique situations they have faced, and overcome, as individuals with both learning and mental health or wellness challenges. Attendees will also have the opportunity to hear from students about the strategies that have helped them along the way. Come with questions you want answered! 

Location: Fine Arts Building (FAB), Greenhoe Auditorium 

Location: Alumni Dining Hall 

A Hands-On Intensive Workshop Designing Real Solutions for Your Own Classroom or Institution

By: Maureen Dunne, Ph.D. 
Location: Fine Arts Building (FAB), Greenhoe Auditorium 

This immersive workshop is designed for educators, learning specialists, and administrators who want to translate the ideas from the keynote into immediate, practical strategies for their classrooms, advising, and institutional systems.

This is a workshop in the truest sense: educators will co-create and prototype policies, advising models, assessment and support strategies, systems accessible to all, and team structures. The focus will be on creating micro-interventions that can be implemented immediately when they return home.

Participants Will Leave With: 

1) A strength-based student profile template grounded in The Neurodiversity Edge
2) A practical toolkit of AI-enabled personalization strategies for students with diverse learning profiles
3) A framework for neurodiverse team collaboration that enhances collective intelligence
4) Updated UDL-aligned course design ideas shaped by current neurodiversity and AI research
5) A roadmap for integrating assistive technology that enhances—not overwhelms—student autonomy
6) At least one implemented intervention or redesign (policy, practice, or assignment) ready to launch in their classroom
7) A renewed sense of purpose grounded in the recognition that diverse perspectives are essential to student success and to the future of education itself

Concurrent sessions are 75-minute presentations on a range of topics with relevance for educators working with students with LD, ADHD, and autism.

*Choose one presentation from the following during this session*:

C.1.1. Fanning the Neuro-Spark: Empowering the Neurodivergent Writer and Writing Tutor in an AI World
Dan Harrison, he/him, Writing Teacher / Writing Center Director, New Vistas School 
Location: Administration Building, Auditorium 
Audience level: Beginner; Intermediate; Advanced

Have you ever struggled with teaching writing to your neurodivergent  students? “Neuro-sparking” might be a helpful strategy. This approach refers to the leaning-in to a student’s neuro-uniqueness in order to find helpful ways to leverage AI (Grammarly) to support them in their writing process. This session will present simple yet ethical ways to incorporate AI along the neurodivergent student’s writing journey that ultimately nurtures them into producing effective text that doesn’t compromise their unique writing voice. Additionally, neurodivergent peer tutoring as an effective resource will be featured, including how to start a neurodiverse, in-house writing center especially for neurodivergent students in secondary and post-secondary academic settings, as well as how to utilize AI resources to help.

C.1.2. The Impact of Learning Objectives on Learning when Considering Attentional Differences
Alyssa Lawson, she/her, Visiting Assistant Professor, Colby College
Location: MacFarlane STEM building, Room 111
Audience level: Beginner; Intermediate 

This presentation will discuss a study investigating the impact of learning objectives (LOs) on learning, particularly considering individual differences in attention. In this study, students were randomly assigned to one of three conditions: 1) watch a lesson with LOs presented at the beginning of the lesson; 2) watch a lesson with LOs presented throughout the lesson; 3) watch a lesson without LOs. This research found that, particularly students who report more difficulty with attention in their daily lives, providing a lesson with LOs at the beginning is particularly useful for their learning. Along with the discussion of the research, this presentation will discuss the role that attention plays in learning more broadly and practical implications derived from this research for educators.

C.1.3. From Outreach to Internships: How Structured Experiences Empower and Propel Novice S-STEM Scholars
Rebecca Matte, she/her, Professor of Education, Landmark College
Location: MacFarlane STEM building, Room 104
Audience level: Beginner; Intermediate 

This session, presented by AIE-STEMPLOS scholars and faculty mentors, highlights how a scaffolded professional development model supports neurodivergent STEM students as they progress from low stakes outreach to viable internship opportunities. Novice scholars will share how structured experiential learning, tiered mentoring, and tools such as the Birkman® assessment helped them build confidence, clarify their strengths, and practice professional communication in predictable, supportive environments. Through shared reflections, attendees will see how extending the “runway” for early career development empowers scholars who may initially doubt their readiness for internships to ultimately pursue them with confidence and clarity.

C.1.4. Supporting the Complexities of ADHD
Lorri Comeau, she/her/hers, Learning Specialist, Springfield Technical Community College
Location: Lewis Academic Building, O'Brien Auditorium 
Audience level: Beginner; Intermediate; Advanced

ADHD is often misconstrued as a diagnosis where inattention and hyperactivity are predominant symptoms, when in reality, ADHD is much more complex than this. In this concurrent session, we will review how the ADHD brain works, focusing on its deficits in executive function (EF) skills along with its strengths.  We will also discuss the learning strategies and accommodations that tend to be most helpful to student success in and out of the classroom. 

C.1.5. “Just Be Quiet. Be Unobtrusive”: A Narrative Approach to Understanding Masking as a Response to Neurotypical Microaggressions.
Cole A. Denisen, he/they, Assistant Professor, Landmark College
Location: Lewis Academic Building, Room 102
Audience level: Intermediate; Advanced

This presentation draws on a narrative inquiry study with ten ND college students navigating a large, public, research-intensive university. Grounded in Critical Neurodiversity, the research centers ND students as expert knowers of their own experiences. Findings show how microaggressions—such as misattributing quietness to disengagement or expressiveness to pathology—operate as interpretive corrections that privilege neurotypical readings over ND self-knowledge. These interactions intensify masking, accelerate burnout, and produce ongoing epistemic invalidation. The presentation argues that microaggressions are central to maintaining institutional neutrality claims while also highlighting students’ resistant practices that reclaim neurodivergent epistemic authority.

Enjoy light hors d'oeuvres and alcoholic and non-alcoholic beverages while you mingle and get to know your fellow attendees, Landmark College faculty, staff, and students. 

Bring your copy (available for purchase) of Neurodiversity Edge by the author, and our 2026 Keynote Presenter, Maureen Dunne. 

Location: MacFarlane Science, Technology, and Innovation Building, First floor lobby 

Location: Lewis Academic Building, O'Brien Auditorium 

Hear from a panel of current Landmark College faculty and staff as they share their knowledge and experience working firsthand with neurodivergent students. They will share strategies on how they handle tech/devices in the classroom, support student executive function, manage flexible deadlines, manage student anxiety, general classroom management, and more! Come with your questions you would like to have answered.

Workshop sessions are 2-hour presentations that are more focused and go into more depth on a topic with relevance for educators working with students with LD, ADHD, and autism. These are intended to be more interactive in nature, which may include any or all of the following: hands-on activities, practice or application of taught strategies or skills, and rich discussion.

*Choose one presentation from the following during this session*:

W.1.1. Executive Function in Action: Practical Classroom Strategies for Diverse Learners
Elaina Schroeder, she/her, Head of Learning Strategies Program, Portledge School; Founder, Learning to Excel
Location: Administration Building, Auditorium 
Audience level: Beginner; Intermediate

Executive functioning skills—such as task initiation, organization, working memory, and self-regulation—are the "invisible" drivers of student success, often presenting significant barriers in middle and upper school. This interactive workshop explores bridging the gap between cognitive demand and student execution through a neurodiversity-affirming lens. Moving beyond theory, this session provides practical strategies and a full curriculum for immediate implementation in general and special education settings. Attendees will leave equipped with a comprehensive curriculum to transform executive function challenges into visible academic growth and long-term student confidence.

W.1.2. Beyond Behavior: Building Positive, Authentic Relationships with Your ADHD Students
Judith Bass, she/her, Certified Educational Planner, Bass Educational Services, LLC
Location: Lewis Academic Building, Room 102
Audience level: Beginner; Intermediate 

Teachers often struggle with the behaviors, attitudes, and emotional responses of students with ADHD, especially when they are expected to conform to a one-size-fits-all classroom. While educators may believe that warmth, consistency, or a friendly demeanor signals a positive relationship, ADHD students are highly perceptive and quickly sense when a teacher does not genuinely understand or support them. In this interactive workshop, participants will explore what truly builds trust and connection with ADHD students. Educators will examine common mistakes, learn practical strategies for fostering authentic relationships, and understand the long-term academic and emotional consequences for the ADHD student when these relationships are absent. 
 

W.1.3. TiLTing the Accommodations Process: Increasing Transparency and Building Student Autonomy   
Jacqueline Ahl, she/her, Outreach & Retention Coach, Accommodative Services, SUNY Dutchess Community College     
Location: MacFarlane STEM building, Room 104
Audience level: Beginner; Intermediate 

Transparency in Learning & Teaching (TiLT) is a framework designed to clarify the purpose (including knowledge and skills), tasks, and criteria for success associated with an assignment, process, or other academic endeavor. While its typical application is assignment design, the TiLT framework has valuable implications for disability services, especially as it aligns with 1.) the goals of UDL, 2.) support for executive function, and 3.) our understanding of cognitive load theory. Learn how to apply the TiLT framework to the accommodations process, in service of increased clarity and the student’s transition from passive recipient to active self-advocate. Leave with a clear blueprint for TiLTing your student-facing content and illuminating the "how" and "why" of the student-led process.        

W.1.4. The Classroom is also the Teacher: How Universal Design can Amplify Learning for Neurodivergent Students
Amanda N. Simons, them/theirs, Program Coordinator, University of North Carolina Asheville
Location: MacFarlane STEM building, Room 111
Audience level: Beginner; Intermediate

Over the last decade, this session’s presenter has been iterating the design of makerspaces in both k-12 and university contexts with the goal of reaching and retaining neurodivergent students, students with learning differences, and English Language Learners. In this session, we will explore the many ways accommodations can be easily woven into the design of a classroom, workshop, or makerspace using principals of Universal Design (UD) and Universal Design for Learning (UDL). Participants will reflect on their own classrooms and develop an action plan (with the help of co-participants) for increasing accessibility and student belonging through the application of UD and UDL in their own classrooms.

W.1.5. Designing a Culture of Accountability and Care for Neurodivergent Students
Allie Maxwell, she/her, Associate Head of School, Forman School
Location: Lewis Academic Building, O'Brien Auditorium 
Audience level: Beginner 

A highly interactive workshop for middle or high school educators and administrators seeking to uphold clear expectations while honoring diverse cognitive and executive functioning profiles. Participants explore why both punitive discipline and over-accommodation undermine student ownership, then examine accountability as a developmental skill rooted in clarity, consistency, reflection, and repair. The session is intentionally designed to model inclusive learning through case studies, role-play, small-group problem solving, and tool creation. Participants leave with practical frameworks and transferable strategies for building systems that promote responsibility, empowerment, and long-term independence across educational contexts.

Location: Alumni Dining Hall 

Concurrent sessions are 75 minute presentations on a range of topics with relevance for educators working with students with LD, ADHD, and autism.

*Choose one presentation from the following during this session*:

C.2.1. Acknowledging, Addressing, and Abating Math Anxiety in the Classroom
Lisha Hunter, she/her, Assistant Professor of Mathematics, Landmark College
Doug Lynch, he/him, Associate Professor of Mathematics, Landmark College
Evelyn Nitch-Griffin, she/her, Assistant Professor of Mathematics, Landmark College
Location: Administration Building, Auditorium 
Audience level: Beginner; Intermediate; Advanced

This interactive session will provide a brief history and overview of current research around math anxiety (including work being done here at Landmark to better understand math anxiety in neurodivergent learners), explore how it may manifest in the classroom, and invite participants to consider how they can support students who experience it.

C.2.2. Unmasking the Future: Life After College for Neurodivergent Graduates   
Marlee Bickford-Bushey, she/her, Career Counselor, Landmark College, Coordinator of the Transition at College (TAC) Program
Location: MacFarlane STEM building, Room 111
Audience level: Intermediate 

Transitioning out of college poses unique challenges for neurodivergent graduates, particularly autistic individuals navigating systems shaped by neurotypical expectations of independence, productivity, and social conformity. We will examine the lifelong process of masking and unmasking and its effects on identity development, burnout, and success. Grounded in neurodiversity-affirming and intersectional frameworks, we explore how race, gender, and socioeconomic status shape post-college transitions. Attention is given to the evolving role of family, highlighting ways parents can support autonomy without reinforcing dependence. 

C.2.3. The Untapped Role of Occupational Therapy Supporting Students with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder in Higher Education
Janell Yonkman, she/her, Occupational Therapist, ADHD Meets OT
Location: Lewis Academic Building, Room 102
Audience level: Beginner; Intermediate; Advanced

College students with ADHD face performance-based challenges. Transitioning to college with ADHD can create a “perfect storm” marked by the loss of structured support. These students are at heightened risk for poor outcomes. In a study of 443 first-year college students, nearly 55% of those with ADHD reported comorbid conditions such as depression or anxiety (Anastopoulos et al., 2016), indicating the need for interventions addressing ADHD symptoms and mental health. ADHD affects an estimated 16% of college students worldwide, yet occupational therapy research remains limited. This presentation highlights research and practical strategies demonstrating how occupational therapists can support college students with ADHD beyond executive function and academics.

C.2.4.Discover how Lansing Community College (LCC) is Transforming into an Autism-Friendly Campus—An Inclusive Space where Students and Employees on the Autism Spectrum Can Thrive
Toni Hughes Glasscoe, she/her, Associate Vice President External Affairs, Development & K-12 Operations, Lansing Community College
Michele Strasz, she/her, Director of Community Impact- Policy and Volunteerism, United Way of South Central Michigan
Location: MacFarlane STEM building, Room 104
Audience level: Beginner 

Partnering with experts from Landmark College, LCC launched a comprehensive initiative centered on listening, learning, and leading with empathy. The process began with one crucial question: What does it mean to be truly autism-friendly?
To answer that, LCC gathered insights from a wide range of voices—students, staff, faculty, and community members—placing particular emphasis on student experiences. With Landmark’s guidance, the college compiled this feedback into a strategic roadmap outlining the "what," "when," and "how" of creating a more supportive campus environment.
This thoughtful collaboration resulted in a set of actionable recommendations that are already shaping the future at LCC. 

C.2.5. Time Literacy: Reimagining Traditional Time Management Support 
Darrell Earnest, Ph.D., he/him, Associate Dean and Professor, University of Massachusetts, Amherst
Location: Lewis Academic Building, O'Brien Auditorium 
Audience level: Beginner; Intermediate 

The objective of this presentation is to share and reflect on a university student success effort to support undergraduates’ time literacy skills. Time literacy reimagines traditional time management such that it is inclusive of student needs while recognizing the importance of well-being. Building on research in disability studies, mathematics education, higher education, and time management, time literacy centralizes and elevates the individual and that individual’s needs in relation to college academics. In this presentation, participants will engage with case studies of student experiences developing time literacy skills and consider key aspects of this approach. 

Concurrent sessions are 1-hour presentations on a range of topics with relevance for educators working with students with LD, ADHD, and autism.

*Choose one presentation from the following during this session*:

C.3.1. Co-creating Online Spaces: UDL-Aligned Practices for Community and Connection 

Allison Yoo-Babbitt, she/they, Instructional Designer, Landmark College
Marc Thurman, he/him, Director of the Centers for Diversity and Inclusion, Landmark College
Location: MacFarlane STEM building, Room 111
Audience level: Beginner; Intermediate; Advanced

The feeling of belonging is foundational to learning, but how can we create community spaces that support this human need? Our session invites educators to engage with the process of co-creating an online community that centers belonging, identity, and care with neurodivergent students. Through the lens of UDL, participants will experience facilitation strategies that emphasize choice, low-pressure participation, and representation shaped by student voice. Rather than focusing on formal curriculum, the session centers relational practices that help students feel connected to one another and more secure within the larger academic community. Participants will leave with adaptable strategies for cultivating inclusive spaces that sustain well-being and engagement. 

C.3.2. Beyond the Degree: Employment for Neurodivergent Students
Ryan Palm, he/his, Executive Director of Brad McGarry Center for Neurodiversity, Mercyhurst University
Location: MacFarlane STEM building, Room 104
Audience level: Beginner; Intermediate; Advanced

Mercyhurst University has created NeuroLaunch – a program featuring hands-on employment opportunities for students participating in the Autism Intiative at Mercyhurst (AIM). The program includes both on-campus and external internship and employment opportunities, and receives support from Center staff through job coaching and other measures.  We will provide an overview of the program, lessons learned from the first couple cohorts, and how we look to offer opportunities for even more students. We will also plan to cover some best practices for employers interested in creating a more neuroinclusive workforce. Presenters will include testimonials from students and employers, and provide examples of ways in which students and employers alike benefit from this innovative experience.

C.3.3. NeuroVivid: Lessons Learned from a STEM Maker Camp for Neurodivergent Youth
Tara Robillard, Senior Researcher and Developer, TERC
Ibrahim Dahlstrom-Hakki, Research Scientist, TERC
Location: Lewis Academic Building, Room 102
Audience level: Beginner; Intermediate; Advanced

NeuroVivid is a National Science Foundation (NSF)-funded ITEST grant focused on creating and testing a weeklong Brain-Computer Interface (BCI) maker camp for neurodivergent middle schoolers. The project has created a series of activities and guides in collaboration with a team of neurodivergent youth and the New York Hall of Science (NYSCI). The project ran several camps at NYSCI and was very well received by campers and their parents. Participants in this session will run through one of the activities from the camp to get firsthand experience with the activities. The session will also include an overview of the design and how it was created to meet the needs of the broadest range of learners possible. We will conclude with an opportunity for Q&A.

C.3.4. Many Minds, Many Paths: From Barriers to Bridges

Kimberly Rubenstein, she/her, Learning Specialist, Solebury School
Alison Jones, she/her, Learning Specialist, Solebury School
Amy Ciafrei, she/her, Learning Specialist, Solebury School
Location: Lewis Academic Building, O'Brien Auditorium 
Audience level: Beginner; Intermediate 

This presentation will deepen participants’ understanding of how EF and diagnoses like ASD present and can impact student learning. After the presenters offer practical, classroom-based strategies to support diverse learners, participants will assemble a Make and Take Teacher Toolbox filled with concrete in-the-moment resources, apps, strategy sheets, and tools that can be implemented across a variety of educational settings. These resources are designed to supplement and complement the strong instructional work teachers are already doing. The presenters will discuss accommodations versus modifications, highlighting how each approach, when thoughtfully applied, can benefit all students. The session will conclude with an opportunity to brainstorm how to build bridges with your own caseload.

C.3.5. Take Charge of your College Success
Jackie Brousseau-Pereira, she/her, Assistant Dean, College of Social and Behavioral Sciences, University of Massachusetts Amherst
Location: Administration Building, Auditorium 
Audience level: Beginner 

In this session participants will learn about a 1-credit class taught at UMass Amherst for students who need support in developing college-readiness skills. Many of the students who take this class have ADHD, ASD, LDs or other challenges that make the college transition challenging. In the class, we use weekly workshops, presentations and assignments to focus on study and time management skills, understanding our own values and goals, building academic and self-care habits, and learning more about available campus resources. As the instructor, I've continued to build in more UDL practices to better support students' learning. I’m often reminded that the supports for neurodivergent learners benefit all learners. 

NEW this year! In these sessions, LCIRT staff present an interactive session focused on topics related to best serving neurodivergent students. Presentations will combine grounding in research and theory with an emphasis on concrete strategies, with practice, participants can walk away with. 

*Choose one presentation from the following during this session*:

L.1.1. The Metacognitive Edge: Why Effective Metacognition is the Key to Professional and Academic Success
Emily Helft, Assistant Director of Professional Development, Landmark College 
Audience level: Beginner; Intermediate 

Effective metacognition is much more than a fancy term in a textbook or just “thinking about thinking.” It’s one of the most powerful (yet underutilized) aspects of executive functioning for both personal growth and academic success. This session will explore what metacognition is, why it matters, and how it’s the key to shaping daily life for both educators and the students they serve. Through discussion, self-reflection, and some hands-on practice, attendees will learn how to develop their own metacognitive skills and discover powerful ways to help their students do the same

L.1.2. Hot Topics in Neurodiversity 
Facilitated by Adam Lalor, Vice President for Neurodiversity Research and Innovation, Landmark College
Location: Administration Building, Auditorium 
Audience level: Beginner; Intermediate

In recent years, the landscape of education has witnessed significant change as related to learning disabilities, ADHD, autism, and neurodiversity. As such, new issues are arising at a rapid pace. Some of these issues are particularly complex, resulting in a wide variety of opinions.  Join Dr. Lalor for a facilitated conversation about some of these hot topics. Come prepared to discuss!

Workshop sessions are 2-hour presentations that are more focused and go into more depth on a topic with relevance for educators working with students with LD, ADHD, and autism. These are intended to be more interactive in nature, which may include any or all of the following: hands-on activities, practice or application of taught strategies or skills, and rich discussion.

*Choose one presentation from the following during this session*:

W.2.2. Research Showcase: Current, Recent, and Future Neurodivergence and Education Research 
Rick Bryck, Senior Director, LCIRT, Landmark College 
Gabrielle Ewall, Research Scholar, LCIRT/STRIVE, Landmark College
Zachary Glowacki, Research Scholar, LCIRT/STRIVE, Landmark College
Adam Lalor, Vice President, Vice President for Neurodiversity Research and Innovation, Landmark College
Location: MacFarlane STEM building, Room 104
Audience level: Beginner; Intermediate; Advanced

Join us for a showcase of the latest research and outreach coming out of the Landmark College Institute for Research and Training (LCIRT). This dynamic session features a series of "flash talks" from multiple presenters, offering a sampling of some of our cutting-edge neurodivergence and education projects. We will explore a diverse range of topics, including: 

• K-12 educational trauma
• Metacognition training for reading and writing
• Nonverbal signals of learning (e.g. facial expressions, vocal cues, body behavior)
• K-12 workshop on neuroscience and neurodivergence
• Outcomes from an executive function supported mathematic problems solving platform
• Imposter phenomenon, neurodivergent students, and college adjustment
• Disability resource professional perceptions of AI by students with disabilities

Presentations will give a brief overview of the project, including methods, results and potential implications of this work for supporting neurodivergent students. Come for the insights, stay for the inspiration, and join the conversation—we want to hear your ideas, reflections, and future plans, too!

W.2.3. Scaffolding Towards Success: Supporting Student Executive Function Development for Academic Independence 
Carla Anderson, she/her, Associate Director - Institute for Student Success, Ursinus College
Kara Derstine, she/her, Associate Director, Office of Disability and Access, Ursinus College
Location: Lewis Academic Building, O'Brien Auditorium 
Audience level: Beginner; Intermediate; Advanced

This workshop will provide practical tips and an interactive application exercise focused on holistically supporting students with executive dysfunction in the classroom. The workshop will focus on three specific UDL strategies: Clarity of instructions and boundaries, chunking of assignments, and choice. We will introduce each concept and explain how they support executive function development in our students. Participants from both secondary education and higher ed are welcome!

W.2.4. Beyond Formulas: Fostering Wonder and Engagement in the Entry-Level Math Classroom
Charles Wibiralske, He, Him, His, Senior Lecturer, University of Massachusetts Boston
Location: Lewis Academic Building, Room 102
Audience level: Intermediate 

Many non-STEM students enter 100-level courses with deep-seated skepticism or "math anxiety." They often perceive the subject as a rigid collection of abstractions disconnected from their lived experiences. This session explores high-impact strategies designed to shift this mindset by fostering curiosity and a sense of wonder.

W.2.5. Recognizing and Supporting Students with OCD and Anxiety in Academic Settings: Essential Knowledge and Strategies
Belinda Seiger, PhD, LCSW, She/Her, Founder/Director, Anxiety and OCD Treatment of Princeton, LLC
Location: Administration Building Auditorium 
Audience level: Beginner; Intermediate; Advanced

Anxiety and OCD can affect students’ focus, frustration tolerance, executive functioning, academic performance, and social interactions with peers and teachers. This workshop provides an overview of how anxiety and OCD may present in classrooms and learning environments, impacting engagement with learning tasks, materials, food, schedules, and time. Through lecture, case examples, and role play, participants will learn to recognize and support students, guide families to resources, and facilitate learning across educational settings.

W.2.6. Embodied Understanding: Accessing Our Creativity and Somatic Wisdom to Foster Neuro-Inclusive Spaces         
Cara Spilsbury, she/her, Licensed Clinical Mental Health Counselor and Registered Dance/Movement Therapist, Aloft Integrated Wellness       
Location: MacFarlane STEM building, Room 111   
Audience level: Beginner; Intermediate; Advanced

Participants will learn embodied approaches to deepening understanding, empathy and connection with their students, their environments and themselves in order to foster more neuro-inclusivity for others and themselves. Participants will tap into the innate power of their mind-body connection to increase groundedness and reduce cycles of burnout. Participants will explore how elements of somatic awareness, creative arts and trauma-informed concepts can enhance neurodiversity-affirming frameworks, while exploring applications and adaptations for their specific professional scope.

Effective Intervention and Support for High School and College Students with ADHD

Presenter: George J. DuPaul, Ph.D., Professor of School Psychology and Associate Director of the Center for Community-Driven Assistive Technologies, Lehigh University. Bethlehem, PA

Location: Lewis Academic Building, O'Brien Auditorium 

Description: Following a brief overview of ADHD symptom presentation and academic challenges in the high school and college student population, this presentation will describe effective interventions for promoting organizational skills, academic performance, and social functioning in youth and emerging adults with ADHD. Two examples of empirically supported programs will be discussed in detail. The Challenging Horizons Program (CHP) is a multicomponent high school-based intervention program that includes individual coaching in organization skills, materials management, planning, interpersonal functioning, and homework management. Accessing Campus Connections and Empowering Student Success (ACCESS) is a group cognitive behavior therapy program for college students with ADHD with a focus on organization, planning, study, and social skills. The presentation will conclude with a discussion of how educational and mental health professionals can support youth with ADHD as they transition from high school to college. Opportunities for interaction (e.g., think-pair-share) will be integrated throughout the presentation.

We hope you can join us for the fourth annual Manju Banerjee Neurodiversity Plenary Presentation!

Location: Alumni Dining Hall 

NEW this year! In these sessions, LCIRT staff present an interactive session focused on topics related to best serving neurodivergent students. Presentations will combine grounding in research and theory with an emphasis on concrete strategies, with practice, participants can walk away with. 

*Choose one presentation from the following during this session*:

L.2.1. Putting Working Memory to Work in Support of Student Learning
Rick Bryck, Senior Director - Landmark College Institute for Research and Training, Landmark College 
Location: Lewis Academic Building, O'Brien Auditorium 
Audience level: Beginner; Intermediate 

Working Memory (WM) serves as a gatekeeper to knowledge acquisition, i.e., learning. This session will review fundamental attributes of WM, including its limitations, connections to learning, and the related concept of “cognitive load” (i.e., how we fill WM). Differentiating between positive and negative contributions of cognitive load will be demonstrated through content delivery, interactive simulation, and participant reflection and participation. Strategies students can use—in and out of the classroom—to scaffold WM will be both demonstrated and practiced. A focus will be given to working with neurodivergent students, but these empirically backed strategies can be useful for any learner. Understanding how we make use of this crucial, but limited capacity, system to improve learning outcomes for all will be central to this session. Doing so can help remove unnecessary barriers and help educators come together towards the common goal of reaching the widest array or learners possible.

L.2.2. Are we Really in the same BOAT?: Neurodivergence and the College Student Transition
Marie Saddlemire, Associate Director of Professional Development, Landmark College 
Location: Administration Building, Auditorium 
Audience level: Beginner; Intermediate; Advance 

The transition to college can be challenging for all students, and one of the phrases that well-meaning people may use to soothe fears is, “Hey, you’re all in the same boat, so don’t worry.”  But are they? During this LCIRT Presents workshop, we will examine current research on the first-year experiences of neurotypical and neurodivergent students. We will also learn and discuss how scaffolded support, beginning in their senior year of high school, can enhance Belonging, Opportunity, Authenticity, and Tenacity (BOAT) to ferry them from convocation to commencement.