"Something smells different this year." Before heading into the summer break, Dr. Destiny Huff and Lisa Wright sit down for a raw reflection on why this school year felt fundamentally different for parents, advocates, and neurodivergent learners.

In this episode, they pull back the curtain on the "whiplash" of navigating school districts that seem to be throwing out the rulebook. From the political nature of disability rights to the rise of "team extremism" and legal ambushes in IEP meetings, Destiny and Lisa discuss how they’ve had to change the way they show up to protect their own capacity and regulation.

Key moments in this episode:

• The Systemic Shift: Why the energy in schools felt "off" this year and the rise of administrative gatekeeping.

• Disability is Political: Understanding how political climates and administration changes directly impact 504 protections and funding.

• Protecting the Advocate: Personal reflections on managing high-stress workloads and why "spacing out" meetings is a survival necessity.

• Ballast in the Storm: Finding stability when the needle stops moving and the importance of documenting systemic failures.

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