Taking Authority Over Autism

Sheletta chats with her friend Dee Torgerson from the Vocational Rehabilitation Office at Minnesota's Department of Employment and Economic Development about how the program helps people with autism prepare for, find and keep a job. https://mn.gov/deed/job-seekers/disabilities/

As Sheletta's oldest autistic son, Brandon, gets to the age where he can find a job, her biggest challenge is getting him there. She called her friend Barbara Bursack, a mobility manager at GoWashingtonMN.com, to explore safe transportation options and training for him.

Sheletta is so excited that her autistic kids are getting active in after school programs like theater and debate team. She's encouraging other parents to take a leap of faith and sign up their high functioning children on the spectrum for extra curricular activities. Up first: The Civics Bee!
www.ymcanorth.org/locations/center_for_youth_voice/programs/national_civics_bee

There are billboards popping up all over town that say Mississippi students have better reading test scores than children in Minnesota. What in the world? If Mississippi, known for being dead last in education every year, is better than us, what is that saying about our schools? Sheletta's talking to the brilliant brain behind these viral billboards and what conversation he hopes parents will spark with their schools and teachers, especially moms and dads of autistic kiddos. 

Sheletta chats with her friends at Dakota County Technical College and Inver Hills about the two college communities and their upcoming merger, and how it's a win-win situation for neurodivergent students on the latest episode of her autism podcast .**Please note** The merge between the colleges is still pending approval by the Higher Learning Commission and the Minnesota State Board of Trustees.

Start the new year right by breaking some bad habits that you picked up during COVID like smoking. On this week's episode of Taking Authority over Autism, Sheletta shows you how to put down the cigarette and pick up the phone to call  Quit Partner at 1-800-QUIT-NOW. They have programs, medication and one-on-one coaching to help you break free from your nicotine addiction.  https://www.quitpartnermn.com/

Sheletta is trying to figure out how to get her 7th grader to theater camp and her 8th grader to debate practice while picking up her 5th grader from school all at the same time. Being a divorced parent of three kids with autism, she's got to be careful about how they get to their appointments and after-school activities. She was excited to find out about HopSkipDrive, a supplemental student transportation service that uses vetted CareDrivers to provide rides with just six hours notice.

Sheletta introduces her listeners to the Minnesota Autism Center Midwest, a trusted autism therapy center that serves children on the spectrum. She chats with MAC Midwest's CEO Christine Bent who has been a leader in healthcare for three decades.

 Holiday stress is hard, but you don't have to struggle alone. Sheletta chats with Jihan Ali from Hennepin County who shares information about a vital resource that offers help for you to COPE if you're in crisis mode so you can get back to living your best and healthiest life.

Black moms share their experience of fighting for fairness for their autistic children both inside and outside of their homes. Sheletta chats with Vinyarie, a fellow African American autism mom who says a library story time with her son crushed her spirit then made her a crusader for equity for neurodiverse children.