Welcome to the 2020 TASH Conference - Virtual Edition website! We’re so glad you are here!
Each year, the TASH Conference brings together individuals with significant disabilities and their allies to share resources and success stories, learn about field-driven best practices, and network within a community engaged in shared values. The conference is attended by passionate advocates, leaders, and subject matter experts from every corner of the disability community. Conference attendees play an important role in supporting individuals with significant disabilities to overcome various barriers in order to live their best lives. Central to this work is the premise that individuals reach their optimal potential only when they are given the opportunity to live, work and thrive across the lifespan in the same communities we are all members of. The conference is intentionally designed to support the interests of professors and researchers from leading institutions; those involved in local, state, and federal governments and public policy; special and general educators, and school administrators; home and community-based service providers; students, family members, and most importantly, self-advocates with lived experience.
This year, while we are taking the conference virtually due to the COVID-19 pandemic, we believe that our unique approach to providing exceptional first-rate content and building strong community ties and connections across various stakeholders will yield an extraordinary event! We have taken extra steps to bring people closer together during these times, as well as to create an amazing virtual environment that expands our knowledge, spurs our creative thinking, and focuses on healthy living and having fun! Our conference theme, Feel the Power of Inclusion, reinforces the importance of our continued commitment to promoting a world of equity and opportunity for all, and is predicated on the value of bringing together diverse perspectives and experiences in an effort to build strong human connectivity and spur collective action.
Need technical assistance during the conference? Please email our support staff at helpdesk@tash.org.
The recording for this session is located under the title, "About TASH Talks (Part 1). NOTE: TASH Talks are a take off the popular “Ted Talks” - short 8- to 10-minute presentations on critically important topics facing the disability rights movement followed by a brief Q & A session during the one-hour session.
Growing up with an older brother with autism, I have a unique perspective of the challenges, victories, and tests that those with autism face daily. My brother is such an important part of my life and he inspires me everyday. Because of him, I am committed to advocating on his behalf and educating others about the misconceptions of those with disabilities. As I've gotten older I have also realized how important and meaningful it is to find a space and community to share my own experiences. In this talk, I plan to highlight a few of the many lessons that I have learned from sharing a childhood with my non-speaking brother.
