The overwhelming majority of states’ budgets are spent on health care, incarceration, and education. In state legislatures and in Congress, it’s budget season. With deep cuts to Medicaid and education programs like Head Start on the table, understanding how states plan to pick up the slack is crucial. In this conversation we sit down with Ohio State Legislator from OH District 24, Dani Isaacsohn. 

Rep. Isaacsohn sees his role as an elected leader in the state as one of making people’s lives better above anything else. He is committed to fighting for a world-class public education for every student, better childcare for parents, smarter housing policy to bring down prices and increase supply, and making sure that seniors have what they need to age with dignity. He is also committed to creating a more just and equitable criminal justice system in Ohio. A through line in his legislative work is Rep. Isaacsohn’s understanding that we must tackle racial and income inequality head-on to make lasting progress. 

As the ranking member of the House Finance Subcommittee on Elementary and Secondary Education, Rep. Isaacsohn teaches us all about the dollars and cents of education in Ohio. We pay special attention to how decisions are made and resources are allocated to support our most vulnerable students, those with disabilities, English language learners, and those coming from economically disadvantaged urban and rural communities across the state. Rep. Isaacsohn, a skilled community organizer, also gives us some tips on how families can come together to build and strategically utilize people power to ensure that our exceptional kiddos get all of the support and services they need to attain a high quality and equitable education.

The Power of the people is real! Take a listen to this conversation and take notes. Families are powerful and we want to use our collective power strategically. Let’s learn how to play chess and win for our exceptional students.  

The journey of advocating for a child on the autism spectrum can feel like a roller coaster—soaring highs, unexpected twists, and stomach-dropping lows. From the challenge of obtaining a proper diagnosis to the ongoing fight for essential supports and services, the work often feels never-ending. Yet, there is immense encouragement and joy in sharing the stories of families navigating this advocacy journey.

Join us for a conversation with the Woods family as they share their experience advocating for their son—from his diagnosis at age two to his current achievement, just one week shy of graduating from Northern Kentucky University with a Bachelor’s degree in Geology.

This conversation is filled with valuable insights, but one message stands out: "When you let go of preconceived notions about what your child will do or who they will become, the new hopes and dreams that emerge will exceed anything you ever imagined."

Today, both parents are aligned in their vision for their exceptional son—but that wasn’t always the case. Listen and learn as the Woods family candidly shares their journey, offering a powerful testimony of persistence, trust, and unwavering advocacy. Through every high, sharp turn, and low moment, they have remained steadfast. For this family, one thing is clear: Autism doesn’t stop anything!

In this episode Erika Watson sits down with Nadirah Mubarak, a mother to an exceptional student. Nadirah shares with us the arc of her advocacy journey and how she built her confidence with the special education advocacy process over time. Our conversation covers the benefit of engaging a peer-mentor, handling our own inner child with care while advocating for our children when we share an ADHD diagnosis, and the big question to medicate or not to medicate?

The truth is the educational advocacy journey is isolating and can at times feel intimidating. Family caregivers often struggle with guilt, worry, and doubt. This conversation will go a long way to helping you build your confidence, let go of guilt, and stop doubting that you are exactly the advocate your exceptional student needs to thrive. 

Erika Watson is the Founder & CEO of Intersection Collective. An experienced executive with a demonstrated history of transformational leadership in both the corporate and nonprofit sectors, Erika L. Watson is the Founder & CEO of the Intersection Collective. In this role, Ms. Watson leads the Intersection Collective and its focus on impacting the lives of children of color with intellectual and/or developmental disabilities, their families, and communities and supporting the evolution of executives on a journey to become more intentionally inclusive in their leadership. 

Her leadership, expertise, and oversight continue to inform the organization’s commitment and strategy to deliver exemplary, outcomes-based learning, coaching, advocacy, and community engagement.

Ms. Watson is recognized as a national DEI&A expert, with a career as an equity advocate that spans two decades. Prior to launching the Intersection Collective, Ms. Watson held national equity leadership roles with Easterseals, iMentor, and Leadership for Educational Equity.

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Erika Watson and Kim Knacksted, Ph.D., Principal Consultant at Unlock Access, discuss the shared history of the Civil Rights Movement and the Disability Rights Movement and policy advances ensuring access to a free and appropriate education for students with disabilities. Dr. Knacksted has a long career as a Capital Hill and White House policy advisor focusing on disability and education. Based on her experiences as a fellow in the Senate during the first Trump administration, Kim offers valuable insight on how families can organize and stay on the offensive to ensure that we continue to make advances in civil rights for students with disabilities. Families have power, it’s up to us to decide how to leverage our collective power to bring about the world as it could be regardless of who is in the White House!

Intersection Collective is committed to amplifying, learning from, and valuing the lived experiences of children and families at the intersection of race and disability. We believe in the mantra, “Nothing about us without us!” We respect that the BIPOC disability community holds the ideas and solutions that will help close the education and opportunity gap that unjustly impact us. We will work alongside the BIPOC disability community and equity allies to achieve full acceptance, belonging, and access to educational opportunities as equal participants in society.
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Unlock Access, LLC is an accessibility and disability policy consulting firm led by Kimberly Knackstedt, Ph.D. Unlock Access is here to support you on your path to equitable access and inclusion for disabled employees, customers, and partners. Whether accessibility is new to you or you are ready to become a national leader, Unlock Access is here to support your journey and success. 
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