Chestnut Hill College's Laura Sibbald on neurodiversity and inclusion at the Philadelphia college

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In This Episode
Until May 2024, Laura Sibbald served as the Executive Director of the Neurodiversity Initiative at Chestnut Hill College in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. In this episode, Laura discusses the small liberal arts college celebrating its 100th anniversary in 2024.
The school sits on a quaint campus in western Philadelphia directly adjacent to a major park and nature area. Laura compares the campus setting to Hogwarts!
The school has a supportive neurodiversity program but also has a larger club called the NeuroSpicy Network that won the club of the year at the school for the 2023-2024 school year!
In May 2024, Laura took a new role helping neurodiverse find meaningful career opportunities as the Executive Director of the Neurodiversity Employment Network in Philadelphia.
Run of Show
0:04 - Laura's introduction
0:17 - Overview of Chestnut Hill and surrounding neighborhood
1:27 - Overview of Chestnut Hill College
2:57 - Size of the neurodiversity program and the NeuroSpicy Network club at Chestnut Hill
4:17 - Foundational principles for the neurodiversity program
6:23 - Helping students set and achieve goals
9:05 - CHC's unique approach to peer mentoring
10:57 - Housing options at CHC
12:46 - Neurodiversity program fees
13:36 - The NeuroSpicy Network at CHC
16:14 - Communicating with parents
19:39 - Student success stories
Link to Chestnut Hill College's website: www.chc.edu/
Contact Matt: [e-mail]
@collegeautismnetwork2095 ‪@75acresofawesome‬