The Fellowship for Western New York BRAINS¹ (aka F4WB) is a subsidiary of the NNWNY devoted to empowering disAbled students trasnitioning in and out of, or who are already enrolled at, postsecondary institutions by eradicating the silos that Ableist systems rely upon.

That is, disAbled students are most vulnerable when they are disconnected from their communities in general and other disAbled students in particular. The F4WB will remedy this by providing disAbled students with:

1) a framework for launching and maintaining student-led disAbility | neurodivergent groups,

2) access to resources and support including connections with other WNY postsecondary disAbility | neurodivergent groups, and

3) professional development opportunities such as serving as ambassadors for fellow disAbled | neurodivergent students in WNY on our board, mentoring, and (sometime soon) internships.

The F4WB is all about the transformative power of fellowship—the power of coming together as comrades, learning from our shared disAbility and neurodiversity community experiences, inspiring and challenging one another to help reimagine a better world for our neurotribes and disAbled communities, and accepting each other for the beautiful different learners we are.

We advocate for students in higher education by:

1) conducting the data collection groundwork of all parties involved in higher education disAbility services, including the disAbled students themselves, in a fair, electronically secure, and transparent way that fosters growth and accountability,

2) disseminating our findings to higher education institutions to advocate for systemic change and more compassionate pedagogies for disAbled | neurodivergent students, and

3) provide opportunities for students to share their triumphs and tribulations through constructive and fair storytelling published on our case studies/profiles blog.

We will, as the F4WB grows and we have more funding, eventually offer internships, scholarships, and other funding opportunities for student-led disAbility | neurodiversity campus groups.

A note to disAbled students who did not identify or have a diagnosis falling under the neurodiversity umbrella.

The F4WNYBRAINS, as with our parent the NNWNY, is forever an ally for ALL disAbled persons. As such, we encourage all disAbled students to consider our work.

Given the focus of the nonprofit on neurodiversity, we prioritize efforts especially for raising awareness and advocating for change in higher education for invisible disAbilies.

However, if you are disAbled (or live with a disAbility), please know you’ll receive the same level of opportunity as neuroDivergent students. We subscribe to the Disability Justice principle of Cross-Disability Solidarity. In other words, we’re all in this together.

Notes