Home / News /
30th Annual UW LEND Leadership and Research Symposium
On June 2, 2025, UW LEND hosted the annual UW LEND Leadership and Research Symposium.
This event marks the culmination of the 9-month LEND program year and gives long-term trainees the opportunity to present the outcomes of their leadership projects. As part of the program, each trainee completes a year-long project that may involve original research, collaboration with faculty, or the development of a practical resource— such as a video, guide, or website—to support individuals with developmental disabilities and their families.
Trainees receive guidance from faculty mentors, input from community partners, and support from their peers. Some projects were developed in collaboration with organizations, such as Seattle Children’s Autism Center and the Alyssa Burnett Center.
At this year’s symposium, 37 trainees presented their innovative leadership projects to an audience of over 60 attendees who included LEND faculty and trainees, LEND alumni and future LEND trainees, community partners, and family members of some of our trainees. The projects addressed a wide range of issues impacting individuals living with developmental disability, intellectual disability, and autism, and across the lifespan of young children to adults. Interdisciplinary collaboration was exemplified as some trainees completed a project paired with a peer of a different discipline or with a self-advocate, and some solo presenters worked with a mentor of a discipline other than their own.View the UW LEND Symposium brochure.
The day was a grand celebration of the impressive accomplishments of our UW LEND clinical, family, and self-advocate trainees. Their research and passion are already making a difference in the developmental disability community and the systems that support these individuals. Our 2025 LEND Graduates are well-poised leaders, advocates, and allies prepared to advance a more inclusive and affirming world for those living with developmental disability and their families.
Learn more about the LEND program.
