Ella Kahn

At the beginning of 6th grade I could barely read. I had been to seven schools, and I had heard pretty much everything under the sun. Finally, I attended a school designed for children with special needs. Once I learned to work with my learning differences, I skipped 8th grade, and later started collage at 16. Learning about the science behind my neurodiversity changed my life. I believe that everyone should learn about how amazing neurodiversity is, especially children feeling like their differences make them stupid. 

Elena Shim

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Julia

I fell into autistic burnout several times during eighth grade, and then got diagnosed near the end of that year. The diagnosis explained why I was struggling in certain areas, and I went to therapy to learn ways to help myself. I also learned that I have more strengths than I thought, and I want to show other neurodiverse individuals to be proud of the way their brains work too.

Logan Ebreo

Logan Ebreo is a freshman at Cathedral Catholic High School in San Diego, California. He first learned about neurodiversity through his older brother who struggled throughout early childhood and was officially diagnosed with autism at the age of 10. Seeing his brother and neurodivergent friends struggle with the negative attitudes/treatment they received from his peers, Logan with his brother founded the Friendly and Neurodiverse (FAN) club to spread awareness about neurodiversity; this has created a safe space for everyone once a week, and encourages compassion. Logan has presented to students at the local elementary school to help the fight against prejudice plaguing the neurodiversity movement and to also promote the FAN club at Pacific Beach Middle School. Seeing others with neurodivergencies succeed despite
obstacles inspires him. Logan is passionate about neurodiversity and is interested in learning about it more so that he can grow and make more of an impact in the neurodiversity movement. During his spare time, Logan enjoys playing the piano, guitar, video games, chess, rowing, making beats, learning Mandarin, and working out.

Jay Pang

I grew up having several friends who were neurodiverse. I wanted to learn more about it, and started building online projects. I joined the team after attending the SNP Reach program, and I work on the art and animations.

Elisa

My journey to designing educational tools for neurodiverse individuals began with my friendship with someone who has ADHD. Seeing her face daily challenges, from struggling with exams to managing simple plans, deeply affected me. Her experiences opened my eyes to the difficulties neurodiverse individuals often endure, which can lead to feeling inadequacy and shame. This inspired me to develop a solution that builds their confidence and helps them see their value. I aim to foster an environment where neurodiversity is accepted and celebrated.

Katherine

My journey to understanding neurodiversity began when I noticed the environment at my school. I saw how neurodiversity was often misunderstood or even used as an insult, how our Ethnic Studies classes barely touched on the subject, and how counselors would gossip about their neurodiverse students. These experiences motivated me to learn more about neurodiversity and work towards creating a more supportive and inclusive environment in my school and community.

Maxwell Palance

My name is Maxwell Palance. My connection to Neurodiversity is having a personal diagnosis of High Functioning Autism. I have always had an over responsive sensory system.  As a child when I was exposed to overstimulation of most kinds I fell apart.  I hugged my dad for the first time when I was seven years old. When I went to preschool my differences became very apparent. My low threshold for frustration and overreactions to crowds, sounds, light, and touch were often misunderstood as behavioral issues.  Due to my primary immune deficiency disease, my parents had no choice but to homeschool me. Working one-on-one with a private teacher and participating in early intervention therapies in those early years allowed me to stop fighting all the stimuli that were so hard for me and use that energy instead to learn. In 7th grade, I was accepted to Stanford University's HS program. I am also a USA Computer Olympiad Gold Division Competitive Programmer. I am thankful to all the teachers, doctors, and therapists who believed in me, and in turn, made me believe in myself. My goal (and a huge part of our project) is increasing awareness and understanding so other kids like me can feel accepted and empowered.

Hymn

I volunteered at a neurodiverse school and I was really impressed by the talents and unique qualities of the kids there. Unfortunately, there’s not much understanding of neurodiversity in Hong Kong. So, I would like to design a game with my groupmates to help spread awareness so we can better appreciate and support the amazing abilities of neurodiverse individuals.