This year's Empowering Perceptions Conference created a space for a community of inclusion.
"I think it was an amazing experience, and it was really nice to get to see all the different groups perform and to see all the different vendors, the student vendors, and just to see all the different resources that there are within the community.", says Emily Garcia, special education teacher at Clint High School, Clint ISD.
The Empowering Perceptions conference had over 200 educators, parents, and students in attendance at the ESC19 Head Start Multi-Purpose Center all seeking to obtain new tools and celebrate a culture of inclusion in schools and our communities.
Claudia Perez, Project Manager at ESC Region 19 for Autism and Complex Access Needs, and organizer of the Empowering Perceptions Conference notes, "A lot of the parents have come up to me and teacher saying 'hey, this is wonderful because now we have a place to really look for information and to anchor ourselves in as far as including our students and how this is, this is a right. This is a right for them. You know, and the sooner we start with giving them the opportunities, and the strategies to be successful around all of their peers, the better they will be later on once they graduate."
Perez continues by saying, "Our ultimate goal is for all of our students to have employment to be happy, to have their lives, to be married, to make their life whatever they want it to be."
Stay tuned for next year's conference dates and more updates coming soon!
Click to Visit Conference Webpage
Click to visit the Conference Gallery
