Nora Talks Panelist Presentations: Trisha Kulkarni
At this year’s Training Camp, The Nora Project welcomed a panel of esteemed disabled adults to share their thoughts and perspective about what inclusion should look like in schools. Each panelist provided a presentation with their own personal story, and later came together for a discussion facilitated by Torrie Dunlap of Kids Included Together. On the blog this month, we’ll be highlighting each of these presentations.
Our first panelist is Trisha Kulkarni.
Trisha is a student at Stanford University where she studies Computer Science. She is also an author for the Stanford Daily (check out her work here), and a member of the Board of Directors for the National Association of Blind Students.
Trisha’s talk really resonated with our educators this summer as she shared about her experiences growing up, and how her teachers and school community reacted after she lost her sight. Trisha explains that sometimes, in attempting to accommodate students with disabilities, we can be “inclusive to the point of being exclusive.” She encourages educators to utilize Universal Design to ensure that all students can participate meaningfully in activities without drawing extra attention to their differences. Trisha’s comments about how to be an ally and advocate to people with disabilities are important for everyone, not just teachers.
We hope you enjoy Trisha’s presentation as much as we have, and we’d love to see your reactions in the comments.