David and Isabelle continue their conversation with David’s dear and incredible friend, LeDerick Horne—a poet, speaker, and activist for people with disabilities. From vision boarding your IEP, to the importance of near-peer mentors and role models who have walked a little further down the LD/ADHD road, to accommodations and frustrations in LeDerick’s multiple roles (as businessperson, activist, poet, writer, tree farmer, etc.). Go deeper into recognizing an inclusive view of success, and what success can look like for each of us individually. (Part II in a series)
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David describes how in education, it might be helpful to facilitate extra resources and have other eyes on schools and supporting the staff and professional development, just as therapists need supervision, eyes on their work. LeDerick points out that nobody builds a building or a car or anything by themselves, most problems get solved in teams professionally, so when it comes to building up and supporting a child, it takes a village, too. When we say we want to educate all students, it takes a team effort to actually create the diversity needed to honor the students. Inclusion is a richer experience for most educators, too—the first two or three years for teachers is burnout city for teachers, and it’s important to come to their support and help create this environment. LeDerick got his start being a motivational, assembly-style speaker in college, when he was part of a group of a support program for tutoring and accommodations to have community to celebrate surviving another week of college together. Someone suggested going back to their high schools—and it was great PR for the program he was a part of, but it also had a lasting impact on him and these young people.  When we think about this work from a civil rights, from an activitist point of view—young people should be the ones leading the work and informing and forming the voices of it. Training people to be better self-advocates, to run their own IEP meetings, to understand their rights under the law, to use their voice as an agent of change. Its important to give a voice to those who are overlooked, or being used—how important it is to make sure you’re listening, not just directing. David names how LeDerick’s experience is shattering expectations; we’re taught to mask, to hide our LD’s, to not talk about how hard the road is, to not talk about what to avoid, everything is good enough or not good enough — but we needs what’s an inclusive view of success? What can success look like, because it’s not going to look the same all the time. What’s a model people can go to? Isabelle references Lawrence of Arabia—the potential of youth (see full quote below). There’s something so important about people seeing someone who has actually walked the path be able to talk about the things we’re not supposed to talk about. LeDerick wrote a book with his colleague, Dr. Margo Izzo (who also has ADHD -- see link below), and the use of narratives as well best practices for kids transitioning from high school into their next steps. The importance of near-peer mentors—the people who have recently been where you’ve been, the need for that. LeDerick talks about how the State of Nevada hired young adult facilitators going back into their high schools, and they make a vision-board/dream-board that speak directly to the IEP sections, and they teach cohorts of students how to capture the IEP sections in this board and present it in a visual way. Once the pandemic hit, the vision boards became PowerPoints and using social media images to help tell the story. One school created a club for people who are feeling marginalized, some students want to do teacher education, or getting on the loudspeaker at school and sharing a new disability diagnosis, to raise awareness. There’s a video LeDerick mentions showcasing this: HERE IT IS (VIDEO OF VISION BOARD/STATE OF NEVADA).  What if we could make dream boards for work? How could we break some of the neurotypical molds we’re caught in, sometimes without even realizing it. What it might mean to not have to constantly translate yourself to be understood by this neurotypical world. Being seen by somebody like you is so key. David appears to be paying attention but he is totally not—and the moment somebody gets that, they understand each other on a new level. He quotes Ruth Bader Ginsberg (see quote below) and describes how it may not be their fault, but the world carries a neurotypical gaze and it dictates what transitions should look like, what IEPs should look like.  We want kids in schools who are on IEPs to advocate and know what’s on their IEP—because when they know what’s on their IEP and how it works, they do better in school and more importantly, feel less shame around that. When IEP’s were rolled out, parents were not given this instruction—kids were told to not come to the meeting, seen as something to be embarrassed by. It can mean a lot of have differences seen and validated—and more importantly, shared—it starts normalizing people’s experiences and makes vulnerabilities understandable. It’s like getting punched in the back of the kneecap, you don’t have to make that part strong, you just have to acknowledge that it hurts. David’s first exposure to not having to be perfect, it was through LeDerick’s work—and they’re still carrying the torch. Isabelle wonders what is nourishing LeDerick in this mission and what are some of the hard parts—LeDerick describes how sometimes he goes into a school and it feels like a prison. LeDerick and his co-host, Winifred Winston, on the Black and Dyslexic podcast (see link below), they interviewed Dr. Julie Washington, this researcher and expert on literacy, and she said how dyslexia and ADHD is a label of privilege—black and brown folks are labeled with emotional or behavioral disabilities, that leads to more restrictive environments our schools or society has, as opposed to the academic supports. Once in a while, LeDerick gets into one of those environments and has to really care for himself within those environments. Another hard part can be all the emails he has to write, and bookkeeping—and his wife Samyukta is incredibly supportive—she handles a lot of supports as far as business management, and he has hired other people with other professional supports. LeDerick is still trying to hack how to stay on top of email, and he’s got a lot of stuff around his LD, but to break down emails into small and actionable steps instead of being overwhelmed—and how to ask for help! That is so important but also so challenging. LeDerick’s work has pivoted in 2020, at home and seeing the murder of George Floyd, the lynching of Ahmaud Arbery—and people started coming out to LeDerick to come and do Diversity and Inclusion work. He said no a lot, because people weren’t necessarily prepared for the work—like not giving their Diversity and Inclusion board any power or say. He wanted to make sure his work was really making a difference for people of color, particularly black folks. His work on the Black and Dyslexic podcast—it’s really an intersection of pain points—Winifred came up with Black and Dyslexic parents (BADass parents!). He received a grant to increase access with folks with developmental and intellectual disabilities in New Jersey’s black communities to the resources—that work has been so rewarding, but also carries so much administrative work. It’s about how we show up in spaces, how to be your authentic self,  the head of a project, and someone with LD—and how to leverage technology, accommodations. Sometimes he needs the first three lines/bullets to get started.

(here's a brief bio)

(here's his amazing link tree)

LeDerick and Dr. Margo Izzo’s book, Empowering Students with Hidden Disabilities: A Path to Pride and Success 

Black and Dyslexic Podcast (hosted by Winifred Winston and LeDerick Horne)

Lawrence of Arabia 

(here is the quote, by Prince Faizel, played by Alec Guinness)— "Young men make wars, and the virtues of war are the virtues of young men. Courage and hope for the future. Then old men make the peace. And the vices of peace are the vices of old men. Mistrust and caution.”

Ruth Bader Ginsberg quote: “not their fault they’re male?” -- the real quote is attributed to film theorist Laura Mulvey’s concept of the “male gaze” -- for a thorough article on the legal ramifications of this concept, check out Nicholas Mignanelli's 2019 article in the Journal of Race, Gender, & Justice

Disproportionality: the racial or ethnic differences that exist in how students with learning differences are identified, placed, and disciplined—for example, how black and brown students with ADHD might be labeled as having Oppositional Defiant Disorder or “behavioral issues” while white students are identified as having ADHD and thus treated very differently.

Learning Difference (LD): Because learning disability is a crummy, inaccurate term. For example, David does not have a learning disability, he has a sitting still disability.

Inclusion/Inclusive Education: This refers to the idea that all students should have an equal opportunity to learn, and relates to parts of the law and education system that attempt to achieve this by acknowledging it is more effective and socially beneficial for all students (as research and endless evidence shows) to be in classrooms and experiences together, rather than segregated into different tracks or programs.  For a much more thorough description of all of the nuances around this, check out:

Individualized Education Plan (IEP): is for someone with learning or emotional needs in a classroom. An IEP is a legal contract with a school, that specifies the accommodations and modifications available for a student. IEPs are tailored for each individual student who qualifies. While it is similar to a 504 plan, or another type of plan that has recommendations that schools can follow, an IEP is more formal and structured, and increases the amount of supports a school can provide. IEPs are provided in public schools in the United States. To get an IEP, a child has to demonstrate the need for an IEP over a 504 plan, and be assessed by the school. For a big guide to IEPs, check this out. 

Resiliency: you’re not going to shatter, whatever happens, it’s not going to destroy you.