Our Executive Director, Sam Drazin, was recently quoted in an article about Pennsylvania’s new disability awareness program!
Dive Brief:
- Pennsylvania recently launched a grant program to seed curriculum programs across the state that highlight people with disabilities who have made political, economic and social differences. The three-year grants of up to $30,000 are expected to be available starting in the 2023-24 school year.
- Sam Drazin, executive director of the curriculum nonprofit Changing Perspectives, who describes himself as a person with a disability, said what stands out about the disability curriculum program in Pennsylvania is that it is designed for all levels of K-12 and not just older students. Educators, he said, should talk with students about disabilities and differences at the start of their education.
- “A lot of times, I find schools will use disability awareness as a reactive approach to exclusion and bullying,” Drazin said. “We need to look at disability awareness as a proactive approach for young people.”