April is Autism Acceptance Month
By Tracy Clarke, LPC, NCC, Licensed Mental Health ClinicianApril is Autism Acceptance Month! This is a time dedicated to raise awareness, promote acceptance, inclusivity & connectedness, and celebrate individual differences and neurodiversity. Neurodivergent and...
March is Essential Tremor Awareness Month
By Maggy Schoonover, Program ManagerOnce it was known as familiar tremor, benign essential tremor, or hereditary tremor. It’s not just shaking or anxiety, it’s a neurological condition. It’s also not Parkinson’s. Seven to ten million Americans have this condition. I...
A Love Letter to My HBCU
By Willette Walker, Chief Human Capital OfficerA college or university is an institution of higher learning that provides educational enlightenment and social experiences to help prepare its students for life. Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) are...
Reflections on My First Five Years at Mainstay
By Kim Sonafelt, Chief Executive OfficerDuring the past five years, I have had the privilege of serving as the Chief Executive Officer of Mainstay Life Services where every day we support people with intellectual disabilities and autism (ID/A) as they live their best...
Life Sharing at Mainstay
By Nora Soule, Associate Director - Community ServicesLife Sharing is a type of residential program that enables a person with an intellectual disability to join a provider family, in their private home, as a fully participating member of the family. This long-term...
They call it the school-to-couch pipeline… let’s partner to end it
By Braden ScheibWhen I heard the words “school-to-couch pipeline,” I chose to leave the classroom and work with adults with Intellectual Disabilities and Autism (ID/A) in the community. Job seekers with ID/A are some of the most underemployed people in our society....