What Comes Next?
As of the posting of this installment, January 25th, 2024, it has been exactly five years since I started this blog! So much has happened since then; I mean, for starters, this isn't just a blog anymore; it's also a podcast. Since the beginning of this series, I have traveled a lot, been to a handful of weddings, become a published author twice, got my driver's license, quit my job at Kroger, and gotten my job at New Story. I've dealt with more changes than I thought I could handle six years ago. I started dating a wonderful human named Paige, moved out of my parent's house, and did a lot of public speaking, not to mention that we went through a global pandemic! In honor of this momentous anniversary, I wanted to answer the question: what comes next for me?
To answer that, we must go back to the first time I spoke at OCALICONLINE, in November 2022. As a refresher, OCALI stands for the Ohio Center for Autism and Low Incidence Disabilities. It's a non-profit local to Columbus, and they have an annual conference that went virtual and has stayed that way since the pandemic. My public speaking mentor and family friend, Dr. Brooks, and Noah's soccer coach, Katie, and I were doing a presentation called "Using Contact-Based Interventions to Create Inclusive Learning Spaces."
Dr. Brooks is a professor at The Ohio State University, and Katie did a lot of work with her at the time. Dr. Brooks has an inclusion class in which she teaches incoming teachers about inclusion. When I started this series, Dr. Brooks asked me to start speaking in that class to tell these future teachers about my experiences as a student with autism.
For our OCALICONLINE presentation, Dr. Brooks and Katie ran a research study. Each time before I spoke in Dr. Brooks's class, the students would fill out a survey, and they would fill out the same one afterward. What they found (in extremely dumbed-down terms) was having someone on the spectrum explain their story, put a face to Autism, and positively impacted these incoming teachers' understanding of why inclusion is critical to their role as teachers.
I took the entire week off work when I spoke at the conference. This was the first conference I had ever spoken at, and I wanted to enjoy the whole thing. I spent the entire week listening to other presenters who were autism advocates, and I'm not going to lie; I came out of it feeling defeated. Most of these other advocates had done so much more than I had! As I said, I'm always writing and telling my story as an adult with Autism. But most of these advocates spent a lot of their time lobbying for change, and a lot of them had spoken at multiple conferences. I just realized how much farther I had to go!
The presentation for OCALICONLINE 2022 led directly to me becoming the Keynote speaker at the Council for Exceptional Children (CEC) state conference in June of 2023. Dr. Brooks is the current president of the Ohio chapter of CEC. That conference led to two more things. 1. I was offered a position on the CEC of Ohio Board, and I accepted. 2. I met Jo Hannah. Jo Hannah is the Director of the Office for Exceptional Children at the Ohio Department of Education, and it just so happens that she went to high school with my mom. She and her coworker, Joe offered me a chance to speak at OCALICONLINE 2023 with my parents during the leadership session!
The CEC conference was at Malone University, which is about two hours away from Columbus. I explained some of my insecurities to Dr. Brooks on the drive back. "I know I'm doing a lot,” I said, “but I still feel like I haven't hit my stride with my advocacy."
After a moment of contemplation, Dr. Brooks suggested, "What if you started a non-profit?"
I thought it was a great idea. For one thing, it would give me my own platform for both this series and my books, so I don't have to rely on the Instagram overlords as much. I'll still have to use social media, but I won't be solely dependent on it. For another, it gives me the ability to grow as an advocate. As soon as I decided to start a non-profit, I knew the first person I had to tell.
As you probably know, growing up, my best friend was a girl named Samantha McCarthy, but I called her S.M. She passed away in 2009. Her mom, Nikki, started a non-profit called Sam's Fans that supports music and art therapy in Ohio hospitals. As I explained in my second book, Once In A Lifetime: A Song For Sam, Nikki's best friend, Mandy, works for a company that helps non-profits get started, and so naturally, she helped Nikki get Sam's Fans off the ground. So, at a Sam's Fans event last October called Thread of Hope, I told Mandy that I needed to meet up with her soon.
I went through a lot of ideas for what my non-profit could be. Paige and I came up with one on a date we had when we went to Cincinnati to visit Arden, Aspen, and Marshall last summer. While it was good, it felt a little too big. Like we were planning on starting small, but it did feel like we were doing too much. Even without Paige, when I was trying to think of ideas on my own, I felt like I was biting off a little more than I could chew.
The Sunday before OCALICONLINE 2023, I ran into Dr. Brooks after Mass. I explained to her that I was meeting with Mandy that Tuesday after my OCALICONLINE session, but I still didn't have a sustainable idea for a non-profit. After sitting there for a second, Dr. Brooks said, "What if you just build it around your public speaking?" She explained that I could create space for other autistic individuals (and other special needs groups) to tell their stories. On top of that, the fundraising would go to me hosting teacher workshops to help them better serve the special needs community.
I thought this was a good idea because it's not anything new. I'm already an author, a blogger, a podcaster, and a public speaker; starting a completely new non-profit just adds more work. But if it's an evolution of something I'm already doing, it won't be as overwhelming. On top of that, having an actual business model will help me stay structured with my advocacy as a whole.
Right after my OCALICONLINE 2023 Session, I drove to Crimson Cup to meet with Mandy. I explained everything to her, and she said she thinks it's a good idea. We talked for a little bit, and she gave me a few ideas on how I should start getting this ready. I need to think about who I want on the board, and I need to write a business plan. I got a little sidetracked because the week after OCALICONLINE 2023 was Thanksgiving. Then I had my ear surgery and got busy for Christmas and New Year's. On top of that, I've been preparing to release the ebook version of Once In A Lifetime: A Song For Sam and the hardcover version of The Greattastic Adventures: Miracle Child. More news on that soon.
While I haven't completely thought of who I want on my board, I know at least one person. Last July, I released an installment called "13 Years Of Autism Special: Meanwhile In Another Timeline." The idea was that the only reason my parents pursued an autism diagnosis was that when they initially took me on a tour of New Story (formerly known as Haugland Learning Center) to see if it would be a good fit for me as a student, the woman who was giving us the tour, Kathy, told them, "he's one of us!" As I showed in that installment, if Kathy had not been working at Haugland, I would not have been diagnosed, and I would not be where I am today! Since she was an integral part of my Autism journey when I was first diagnosed and in recent years, I offered her a spot on my board, and she has accepted!
Finally, before I end this installment, I need to say that there is something else I have to do before I even start building this non-profit. I can't talk about it right now; I promise we'll get to it. I wanted to release this installment now because even though it's going to take me a second to actualize everything that I want to, from this point on, there has been a shift in my life. I am now Moving toward becoming the advocate that I want to be!
Have a Greattastic day and be safe!
J. Mitchie Ulibarri
Rules for a Greattastic Life will return with Season 7 soon!
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