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30th Annual UW LEND Leadership and Research Symposium
The 30th Annual UW LEND Leadership and Research Symposium brought together trainees, faculty, alumni, community partners, and families on June 2 for a full day of presentations and connection. Thirty-seven trainees shared leadership projects developed over the nine-month program, many created in collaboration with faculty mentors, self-advocates, and partners such as Seattle Children’s Autism Center and the Alyssa Burnett Center. More than 60 attendees joined this year’s event.
This cohort’s work reflected interdisciplinary practice, strong community engagement, and a commitment to meaningful impact across the lifespan. Examples from the 2025 projects included:
- Promoting sports participation for Deaf and hard of hearing athletes by improving communication access
- Expanding active learning strategies to support learners with multiple disabilities and visual impairments
- Creating a rehabilitation roadmap for families whose children undergo selective dorsal rhizotomy
- Co-developing a therapy toolkit with trans and autistic adults
- Strengthening ESIT feeding support through a 1:1 mentoring trial that identified system-level needs
- Supporting post-secondary transition planning for neurodiverse emerging adults
- Developing a program evaluation framework tailored to UW LEND
The poster forum highlighted additional work on inclusive education, cultural responsiveness, statewide nutrition and feeding networks, mental health needs assessments, diabetes self-management tools for people with developmental disabilities, and supports for families navigating early diagnoses.
The symposium offered a meaningful look at the commitment and creativity of this year’s clinical, family, and self-advocate trainees and the ways they are advancing leadership within systems of care.
View the LEND Symposium Brochure
