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Thursday, March 13, 2025 @ 5:00 pm - 6:00 pm EDT
Presented by Lucas Harrington, Psy.D., Clinical Psychologist and SEL Consultant, Social Cipher; and Dr. Nathalie Henderson, District Partnerships Advisor, Social Cipher
Moderated by Vanessa Castañeda Gill, CEO and Founder, Social Cipher
Sponsored by Social Cipher
Learn more about viewing the live presentation and the recording, earning your CE certificate, and using our new accessibility features.
The goal of this edWebinar is to share neurodiversity-affirming MTSS strategies that school leaders and educators can use for neurodivergent students.
Attendees will learn:
- What “neurodiversity affirming” means
- The importance of neurodiversity-affirming interventions and why they work
- Common challenges students with autism face and why traditional behavior-based interventions (like token economies) don’t address them
- Interventions that support students with autism in each MTSS tier
This edWebinar will be of interest to middle school teachers, school leaders, and district leaders. There will be time for questions at the end of the presentation.
About the Presenters
Lucas Harrington, Psy.D. is an accomplished clinical psychologist, published author, and autism specialist. His academic background along with his personal experience as an autistic person with ADHD allows him to support autistic youth and their families from a place of deep understanding. His clinical areas of expertise include disruptive behavior, emotional regulation, and school avoidance. Dr. Harrington leverages his expertise to enhance Social Cipher’s SEL curriculum and ensure their resources are engaging, effective, and neurodiversity affirming.
Aside from serving as an advisor for Social Cipher, Dr. Nathalie Henderson is the Executive Vice President, Corps Member and Alumni Leadership for Teach For America. She has served as a Chief Schools’ Officer in Indianapolis Public Schools, Area Superintendent of the Central Learning Community in Fulton County Schools in Atlanta, Georgia, and Instructional Leadership Director for the Oklahoma City Public Schools. She also spent 12 years in St. Louis Public Schools as a special education teacher and school administrator. She’s currently participating in the Pahara Fellowship and Council of Great City Schools Michael Casserly Urban Executive Leadership Institute.
About the Moderator
Vanessa Castañeda Gill is the Co-founder and CEO of Social Cipher, an EdTech company that makes social and emotional learning curricula and video games for neurodiverse youth and the professionals who work with them. Inspired by her own journey as an autistic/ADHD individual and her time as a neuroscience researcher, Vanessa decided that social skills were a cipher worth solving and assembled a neurodiverse team of researchers, game developers, educators, and artists to form Social Cipher. Vanessa and her team have earned recognition as Forbes 30 Under 30s, MIT Solvers, and, most recently, LEGO Foundation Partners.
Learn more about viewing the live presentation and the recording, earning your CE certificate, and using our new accessibility features.
Join the Teaching Students with Autism community to network with educators, participate in online discussions, receive invitations to upcoming edWebinars, and view recordings of previous programs to earn CE certificates.
Social Cipher creates social and emotional (SEL) online games and curricula for students of all neurotypes between ages 10 and 15. Social Cipher’s game, Ava, and the accompanying curriculum can be used as an MTSS Tier 1, 2, or 3 intervention or as a tool to support students in progressing toward their social and emotional IEP goals. Each lesson and game module is designed using the latest research in social and emotional learning, neurodivergence, and education.
As students play the game, they learn essential skills to help them navigate challenging situations, often leading to improved behavior, academic performance, and overall well-being. With a team that is 40% neurodivergent and led by an autistic founder, autistic and ADHD perspectives shape the game and curricula to ensure they are engaging, educational, inclusive, and empowering for students of all neurotypes.
