Join this CollabCast where we talk with a former colleague from New Delhi, India, Kanwal Singh. Kanwal will be talking about the book she published in 2020, Hanging On: A Special Educator's Journey into Inclusive Education. This book even though written in the Indian context, is relevant across any context and as we talk today, you will see why. The book presents a compelling argument for transformation within the realm of special education. Bold and unabashedly forthright, the book confronts typically skirted topics, including the tensions between inclusive theory and practice, the stronghold of traditional 'expertise', the creeping in of commercial interests, and educator burnout.

This CollabCasts theme is Collaboration and more specifically the importance of collaborative planning. Join us as we speak to Dr. Bill Henderson and Danielle Merdin as they share their experiences in developing collaborative practices and systems. As a principal Dr. Bill Henderson was able to set up systems in his school that supported collaboration between multiple stakeholders. Danielle was one such stakeholder, a teacher and instructional coach in the same school, she will share what these systems allowed her as an educator to accomplish and also how she continues to use and build on those lessons learned.

Join us as we talk with Dr. Shelley Moore and explore with her, her own journey as an educator with a deep commitment to inclusion and together learn about her five guiding conditions for how to build inclusive communities, both inside and outside of classrooms and schools.

Based in British Columbia, Canada, Dr. Shelley Moore is a highly sought-after inclusive education researcher, teacher, consultant and storyteller. She has worked with school districts and community organizations around the world. Her research explores how to support teachers to design for all learners in grade level academic classrooms that include students with intellectual disabilities using strength based and responsive approaches.

Dr. Alfredo J. Artiles introduces the concept of "defect craft" to explore how ideologies about disability intersect with racial disparities in education, particularly in the overrepresentation of students of color in special education. He argues that disability has a dual role: while it can offer protection, it has historically been used to marginalize and stratify certain groups, especially racial minorities. Defect craft challenges the view that these disparities are solely due to individual deficits, instead highlighting how cultural assumptions, institutional practices, and historical factors contribute to systemic inequalities. By examining how "othering" practices deny marginalized groups their full humanity, Artiles urges a more nuanced, intersectional approach that incorporates race, socio-economic status, and historical context. His research in a suburban school district shows how oversimplified explanations of racial disparities overlook the complex ways that policies, space, and resources are distributed, reinforcing cycles of disadvantage for socioeconomically deprived and racialized groups.

Stacey Schultz, President of EducateLLC, a New York City-based company providing innovation and transformation coaching to educators and co-host of the podcast "Educate U.S.," and her son Lucas will both share their experiences navigating K-12 education and accommodations.

In this episode of CollabCast, we will have a special book reading and talk By Dr. Jennifer Spencer-Iiams who has co- authored the book Leading for All. She will be joined by her colleague Lauren Brigsby, Director of Student Services at West Linn-Wilsonville School District who will share the book’s impact on her work. The focus of the book and our talk will be developing inclusive and equitable school communities where all learners thrive.

Join us for a conversation with Dave Kiyvyra as he talks about the process of assessment, evaluation, identification, and then determining services and supports that occurred for his son in response to his Learning Disability. Dave highlights the link between his son's Learning Disability and the importance of recognizing that behavior is sometimes a response to frustration. He discusses as educators, if the focus is always responding to behavior, the root of the issue isn't being address.

Join us as we talk with Olivier and Hilda Bernier, who share a very personal story about their child Emilio. They talk about their struggles to have Emilio be a part of a general education class and how it impacted them as a family. They have documented their fight and struggle to have Emilio, who was born with Down syndrome, to be included in an inclusive classroom in a thought-provoking documentary "Forget Me Not: Inclusion in the Classroom," that looks into the continued segregation of students with intellectual disabilities and examines an alternative approach where every learner is included.

Olivier Bernier, is the producer and director of this award winning feature-length documentary and his wife, Hilda Bernier, is also a producer on the film and a former special education teacher in the NYC public school system.

We hope that as you listen to them, as district leaders, school leaders, advocates, in whatever role you might currently hold, that you are able to gain insight into what needs to be our continued work, how we might impact our systems such that these struggles that Emilio faced and we know that many children like Emilio face all over the country are eliminated and the assumption for every child is that they are able to attend the school that they would have if they did not have a disability.