0:00:00.000,0:00:03.000 [MUSIC PLAYING] 0:00:21.977,0:00:23.060 SHERYL BURGSTAHLER: Hello. 0:00:23.060,0:00:24.260 I'm Sheryl Burgstahler. 0:00:24.260,0:00:26.780 I direct the DO-IT[br]Center at the University 0:00:26.780,0:00:31.250 of Washington -- Disabilities,[br]Opportunities, Internetworking 0:00:31.250,0:00:32.549 and Technology. 0:00:32.549,0:00:35.780 And part of that program,[br]we have the DO-IT Scholars 0:00:35.780,0:00:39.350 program, which is[br]for teenagers later 0:00:39.350,0:00:44.240 in high school that are[br]working to transition 0:00:44.240,0:00:45.933 to college and on to careers. 0:00:45.933,0:00:47.600 SCOTT BELLMAN: My[br]name is Scott Bellman. 0:00:47.600,0:00:50.480 I'm the program manager[br]at the DO-IT Center. 0:00:50.480,0:00:52.580 Our Scholars program[br]offers a variety 0:00:52.580,0:00:54.050 of college[br]preparation activities 0:00:54.050,0:00:55.250 throughout the school year. 0:00:55.250,0:00:58.280 The most exciting time being[br]during our summer camp, which 0:00:58.280,0:01:00.110 we call DO-IT Summer Study. 0:01:00.110,0:01:03.630 That's where students visit[br]campus to live in dorms, 0:01:03.630,0:01:06.770 and learn how to navigate the[br]campus and eat in cafeterias, 0:01:06.770,0:01:09.230 and take college[br]classes as they learn 0:01:09.230,0:01:13.370 about how to get ready for[br]school after high school. 0:01:13.370,0:01:15.650 NAOMI: My name is Naomi. 0:01:15.650,0:01:19.700 I've been a DO-IT[br]Scholar since 2016. 0:01:19.700,0:01:24.530 And it's been a[br]really fun journey, 0:01:24.530,0:01:27.980 full of great[br]opportunities from DO-IT 0:01:27.980,0:01:32.823 and connecting with DO-IT[br]throughout the years. 0:01:32.823,0:01:33.740 FINN: My name is Finn. 0:01:33.740,0:01:36.320 When we did DO-IT[br]in person, there 0:01:36.320,0:01:45.200 was a focus on disability[br]advocacy and also on STEM, STEM 0:01:45.200,0:01:49.400 things, like we had[br]daily workshops. 0:01:49.400,0:01:51.830 We would go to[br]the facility where 0:01:51.830,0:01:54.200 they monitor seismic activity. 0:01:54.200,0:01:55.790 That like the STEM element. 0:01:55.790,0:01:59.660 And then, we would also have[br]the disability element where 0:01:59.660,0:02:02.900 we would learn, OK, here's[br]how to get accommodations 0:02:02.900,0:02:04.400 at college. 0:02:04.400,0:02:09.490 ALEXIS: My name is Alexis, and[br]I was a DO-IT 2019 Scholar. 0:02:09.490,0:02:11.920 While being there[br]physically I was 0:02:11.920,0:02:16.870 able to learn the ropes of[br]how a college functions, 0:02:16.870,0:02:21.520 traveling all over the campus,[br]eating at the different places, 0:02:21.520,0:02:23.950 sitting through[br]several hours of class, 0:02:23.950,0:02:27.700 and I also learned to[br]advocate for myself. 0:02:27.700,0:02:31.720 A while ago, I had to[br]do a meeting with, well, 0:02:31.720,0:02:35.230 I arranged a meeting with the[br]disability services at DigiPen. 0:02:35.230,0:02:37.150 I was able to get[br]through it myself. 0:02:37.150,0:02:44.410 SHERYL BURGSTAHLER: So when 2020[br]hit us all with the pandemic, 0:02:44.410,0:02:46.815 we were stunned, like[br]the rest of the world. 0:02:46.815,0:02:48.940 But we thought, well, this[br]will last a week or two. 0:02:48.940,0:02:50.950 And we'll have our[br]program, because we 0:02:50.950,0:02:54.160 were planning a program[br]in 2020 to be on-site, 0:02:54.160,0:02:55.150 like the other ones. 0:02:55.150,0:02:57.490 But very quickly, we[br]realized this wasn't 0:02:57.490,0:02:59.350 going to be over that fast. 0:02:59.350,0:03:02.680 We had to convert[br]totally online. 0:03:02.680,0:03:04.210 It was clear the[br]students weren't 0:03:04.210,0:03:06.340 going to be safe in[br]an on-site program. 0:03:06.340,0:03:07.710 And so we got to work. 0:03:07.710,0:03:09.750 What I said to my[br]staff is, well, 0:03:09.750,0:03:12.320 who better than this[br]team for going online? 0:03:12.320,0:03:13.982 We're always about technology. 0:03:13.982,0:03:16.190 TAMI TIDWELL: I'm Tami[br]Tidwell, a program coordinator 0:03:16.190,0:03:16.880 with DO-IT. 0:03:16.880,0:03:20.300 And I've worked with Summer[br]Study for almost two decades. 0:03:20.300,0:03:23.900 The decision to move online,[br]like most youth programs, 0:03:23.900,0:03:27.770 was something that we knew[br]was not going to be easy. 0:03:27.770,0:03:29.270 KAYLA BROWN: My name is Kayla. 0:03:29.270,0:03:34.370 And I am a program coordinator[br]at the DO-IT program. 0:03:34.370,0:03:36.740 I'm also a past Scholar. 0:03:36.740,0:03:39.980 I was a Scholar in 2005. 0:03:39.980,0:03:44.990 And right now, I work[br]with students who 0:03:44.990,0:03:47.090 are in our Scholars program. 0:03:47.090,0:03:51.260 And so we use Zoom[br]as our primary way 0:03:51.260,0:03:54.260 of communication[br]and facilitation 0:03:54.260,0:03:56.120 of all of our programming. 0:03:56.120,0:03:59.750 And students who felt[br]comfortable talking 0:03:59.750,0:04:03.290 outloud and answering[br]questions, they could do that. 0:04:03.290,0:04:07.400 Students who were more[br]comfortable with text, 0:04:07.400,0:04:09.140 they would write in the chat. 0:04:09.140,0:04:13.370 And so we were able to[br]accommodate different learning 0:04:13.370,0:04:16.490 styles and communication styles. 0:04:16.490,0:04:21.079 And in a lot of ways, it[br]made it more inclusive. 0:04:21.079,0:04:23.540 And we were able to[br]keep people safe, 0:04:23.540,0:04:28.747 which, of course, was our[br]primary concern at the time. 0:04:28.747,0:04:31.080 TAMI TIDWELL: We wanted to[br]make sure that students still 0:04:31.080,0:04:33.300 had some of those[br]interactive pieces, 0:04:33.300,0:04:37.200 like mock interviews or[br]meeting with faculty. 0:04:37.200,0:04:40.380 And what we found was those[br]interactions were actually 0:04:40.380,0:04:42.300 more focused,[br]because students were 0:04:42.300,0:04:44.820 in a breakout room[br]with the faculty 0:04:44.820,0:04:46.890 or the mock interviewers[br]and could really 0:04:46.890,0:04:48.600 focus on what they were doing. 0:04:48.600,0:04:51.000 And they got to be[br]in the spotlight 0:04:51.000,0:04:53.700 and really say what[br]they wanted to say. 0:04:53.700,0:04:56.250 Whereas, in a[br]normal situation, we 0:04:56.250,0:04:58.230 would have an entire[br]room of interviews 0:04:58.230,0:05:00.270 happening at the same[br]time, which is very loud 0:05:00.270,0:05:01.380 and distracting. 0:05:01.380,0:05:05.340 FINN: It was the same deal[br]as the previous two years, 0:05:05.340,0:05:06.270 but just online. 0:05:06.270,0:05:09.150 So you'd have the[br]different sessions 0:05:09.150,0:05:12.150 and instead of going[br]somewhere, you'd just log on, 0:05:12.150,0:05:14.820 and your classroom[br]would be the Zoom room. 0:05:14.820,0:05:17.640 I think what I enjoyed most[br]about the virtual program 0:05:17.640,0:05:21.240 is in the lecture setting and[br]the group discussion setting, 0:05:21.240,0:05:23.790 I felt like it was a[br]lot easier for people-- 0:05:23.790,0:05:26.640 for everyone to be able[br]to get their ideas across. 0:05:26.640,0:05:29.200 I felt like it was a[br]lot easier for people 0:05:29.200,0:05:33.400 to share ideas in that way. 0:05:33.400,0:05:38.652 I felt like it was a lot[br]easier for people to-- 0:05:38.652,0:05:40.110 if they didn't[br]understand something 0:05:40.110,0:05:42.080 or wanted[br]clarification, you could 0:05:42.080,0:05:45.200 raise your hand,[br]the virtual hand, 0:05:45.200,0:05:46.880 or you could type[br]something in the chat. 0:05:46.880,0:05:49.610 I felt like the chat[br]was helpful in terms of, 0:05:49.610,0:05:52.550 hey, I didn't understand[br]this, or what does this mean? 0:05:52.550,0:05:54.380 Ask for clarification. 0:05:54.380,0:05:56.750 NAOMI: You get[br]more participation 0:05:56.750,0:06:00.950 in classes and in[br]activities if you 0:06:00.950,0:06:09.080 turn on that chat feature, which[br]made the virtual Summer Study 0:06:09.080,0:06:12.023 exponentially more engaging. 0:06:12.023,0:06:13.940 TAMI TIDWELL: One of the[br]most important things 0:06:13.940,0:06:16.700 about Summer Study, whether[br]it's in person or online, 0:06:16.700,0:06:19.130 is building[br]community, making sure 0:06:19.130,0:06:22.280 that students with disabilities[br]that are headed to college 0:06:22.280,0:06:24.620 feel like they[br]belong, feel like they 0:06:24.620,0:06:27.530 have other people[br]like them out there. 0:06:27.530,0:06:31.370 And that is definitely something[br]we still saw happening online. 0:06:31.370,0:06:35.450 We see that students find out[br]more about disability history. 0:06:35.450,0:06:37.520 They find out more[br]about their roots. 0:06:37.520,0:06:40.730 They find out more about[br]this entire community 0:06:40.730,0:06:45.590 around the world of people who[br]have experiences like they do. 0:06:45.590,0:06:46.550 MERRITT: Hi. 0:06:46.550,0:06:47.690 My name is Merritt. 0:06:47.690,0:06:50.990 I'm a 19-year-old[br]autistic student 0:06:50.990,0:06:54.950 who is a Scholar at DO-IT. 0:06:54.950,0:07:00.530 In the virtual program,[br]we did share videos 0:07:00.530,0:07:04.970 about our disabilities and[br]how important it is to us. 0:07:04.970,0:07:09.120 It was interesting to hear[br]about how many of my friends 0:07:09.120,0:07:14.740 have persevered through their[br]lives with a disability. 0:07:14.740,0:07:16.830 SCOTT BELLMAN: We had[br]to get pretty creative. 0:07:16.830,0:07:20.400 We included activities, such as[br]game nights, and movie nights, 0:07:20.400,0:07:23.370 and opportunities for students[br]to talk about their hobbies 0:07:23.370,0:07:26.070 and pets and share a meal,[br]so that we could still 0:07:26.070,0:07:28.580 have that sense of community. 0:07:28.580,0:07:30.560 ANDREA MANO: My[br]name is Andrea Mano, 0:07:30.560,0:07:33.350 and I'm an assistive[br]technologist 0:07:33.350,0:07:35.300 with the DO-IT program. 0:07:35.300,0:07:39.890 We wanted to build a community,[br]even before Summer Study. 0:07:39.890,0:07:43.760 We had the Scholars meet with[br]us in small groups over Zoom 0:07:43.760,0:07:45.290 before Summer Study. 0:07:45.290,0:07:49.310 The groups were chosen based on[br]the shared assistive technology 0:07:49.310,0:07:53.480 and what we thought the[br]Scholars had in common. 0:07:53.480,0:07:56.900 Allowing the students[br]to attend virtually 0:07:56.900,0:08:00.930 enabled them to experiment with[br]technology in their own homes. 0:08:00.930,0:08:04.070 And if the students[br]wanted, they could 0:08:04.070,0:08:07.340 have their parents involved too,[br]which is always really helpful 0:08:07.340,0:08:10.252 to have another set of eyes when[br]you're learning something new. 0:08:10.252,0:08:11.960 TAMI TIDWELL: We also[br]realized that there 0:08:11.960,0:08:15.230 was an essential piece of[br]what we do in person that we 0:08:15.230,0:08:16.520 couldn't let go of. 0:08:16.520,0:08:20.420 And that was making sure we[br]had evening activities and fun 0:08:20.420,0:08:22.520 things interspersed throughout. 0:08:22.520,0:08:25.340 So during the day, we[br]would take museum tours, 0:08:25.340,0:08:28.770 and go online, and visit some[br]museums around the country. 0:08:28.770,0:08:32.232 And at night, we made sure[br]we had movie nights and game 0:08:32.232,0:08:33.690 nights, where[br]students could really 0:08:33.690,0:08:37.110 participate and get to know[br]each other and their senses 0:08:37.110,0:08:37.950 of humor. 0:08:37.950,0:08:41.200 And what we found was the[br]movie night was actually, 0:08:41.200,0:08:45.090 in my opinion, more fun[br]online, because normally, 0:08:45.090,0:08:47.010 people are shushing[br]each other if you're 0:08:47.010,0:08:48.720 in person watching a movie. 0:08:48.720,0:08:51.180 But we watched[br]movies, and they could 0:08:51.180,0:08:53.910 talk about the[br]disability-related content 0:08:53.910,0:08:55.860 that they may be[br]really-- didn't really 0:08:55.860,0:08:58.935 realize was there[br]before, or talk 0:08:58.935,0:09:01.560 about their favorite characters,[br]or talk about what they didn't 0:09:01.560,0:09:04.620 like about a scene or what they[br]really loved about that movie. 0:09:04.620,0:09:06.120 SHERYL BURGSTAHLER:[br]So on pet night, 0:09:06.120,0:09:10.050 you can bring your pet,[br]ideally in costume, by the way, 0:09:10.050,0:09:13.470 and perhaps in a matching[br]costume to yours. 0:09:13.470,0:09:15.270 That's not something[br]we would have done-- 0:09:15.270,0:09:18.670 ever do in an on-site program,[br]have their pets come along. 0:09:18.670,0:09:22.890 And so that translated really[br]funny, funny, funny, funny 0:09:22.890,0:09:23.710 activity. 0:09:23.710,0:09:26.580 And as usual, the evening[br]activities were optional. 0:09:26.580,0:09:29.820 So some students that were[br]experiencing some Zoom fatigue, 0:09:29.820,0:09:32.280 or just needed a break, or[br]weren't interested in pets, 0:09:32.280,0:09:36.070 well, they could easily plan[br]their whole evening without us. 0:09:36.070,0:09:39.900 SOPHIA: My name is Sophia, and I[br]became a DO-IT Scholar in 2021. 0:09:39.900,0:09:44.010 I was able to meet people[br]throughout the community. 0:09:44.010,0:09:47.220 But mostly, I felt like[br]I connected with them 0:09:47.220,0:09:50.700 more throughout the[br]optional evening 0:09:50.700,0:09:53.610 activities, where[br]I had more time 0:09:53.610,0:09:55.290 to engage with the community. 0:09:55.290,0:09:56.790 I was in the-- 0:09:56.790,0:09:58.650 I think it was a talent show. 0:09:58.650,0:10:01.590 I just showcased my origami. 0:10:01.590,0:10:04.320 And that was just[br]pretty fun, because I 0:10:04.320,0:10:08.310 got to see people's[br]reaction to my crafts 0:10:08.310,0:10:10.470 that I've worked on[br]during the pandemic. 0:10:10.470,0:10:12.090 MERRITT: It made us[br]feel like we were 0:10:12.090,0:10:17.070 all one class or one family. 0:10:20.070,0:10:26.790 It was very nice to[br]see so many new faces. 0:10:26.790,0:10:29.940 I think we were able to[br]make plenty of friends, 0:10:29.940,0:10:32.820 even though it wasn't in person. 0:10:32.820,0:10:35.670 FINN: Well, DO-IT, I[br]think, was able to build 0:10:35.670,0:10:41.610 a sense of community just[br]in virtue of how welcoming 0:10:41.610,0:10:43.800 and open the program is. 0:10:43.800,0:10:46.470 NAOMI: What I enjoyed[br]most about virtual 0:10:46.470,0:10:49.890 was probably the fact[br]that it felt like DO-IT. 0:10:49.890,0:10:55.650 So even if we're not together,[br]we're still together. 0:10:55.650,0:10:59.100 And it was like coming[br]back home, honestly. 0:10:59.100,0:11:04.500 I just felt like, I'm back home. 0:11:04.500,0:11:05.610 SPEAKER: Lessons learned. 0:11:08.650,0:11:10.360 SHERYL BURGSTAHLER:[br]Well, we learned 0:11:10.360,0:11:13.280 that you can pull this off. 0:11:13.280,0:11:15.610 We've learned some[br]things that we 0:11:15.610,0:11:18.370 share with others who are[br]in a similar situation that 0:11:18.370,0:11:21.070 are moving an on-site program[br]online or maybe even starting 0:11:21.070,0:11:22.480 an online. 0:11:22.480,0:11:25.600 One thing that we did the[br]first year and continue to do 0:11:25.600,0:11:27.800 is made our program[br]a little bit longer. 0:11:27.800,0:11:30.670 And so it's going three[br]weeks rather than two. 0:11:30.670,0:11:33.190 Because we wanted to[br]avoid Zoom fatigue, 0:11:33.190,0:11:35.080 we hear a lot about that. 0:11:35.080,0:11:37.600 We thought it was[br]important that we 0:11:37.600,0:11:40.150 keep the screen time a[br]little shorter than maybe we 0:11:40.150,0:11:41.710 would want to. 0:11:41.710,0:11:44.380 ANDREA MANO: DO-IT staff was[br]very thoughtful about moving 0:11:44.380,0:11:46.740 Summer Study online. 0:11:46.740,0:11:52.260 And in being thoughtful in that[br]way, they had a lot of staff 0:11:52.260,0:11:55.860 in the online sessions. 0:11:55.860,0:11:59.670 One staff could monitor[br]the faces on the screen. 0:11:59.670,0:12:01.950 One staff could[br]monitor the chat. 0:12:01.950,0:12:05.040 One staff could be[br]monitoring email 0:12:05.040,0:12:09.450 when a Scholar couldn't[br]get into the session. 0:12:09.450,0:12:11.520 I think that's really helpful. 0:12:11.520,0:12:14.190 And it seems like[br]that's a lot of people, 0:12:14.190,0:12:17.610 but you do need a lot of[br]people in case something 0:12:17.610,0:12:19.350 unexpectedly happens. 0:12:19.350,0:12:20.850 KAYLA BROWN: Some[br]of the things that 0:12:20.850,0:12:25.860 were particularly successful[br]that we hadn't thought 0:12:25.860,0:12:29.610 about before was we were[br]able to engage people 0:12:29.610,0:12:32.110 from all over the state. 0:12:32.110,0:12:33.900 And so it wasn't[br]just the students 0:12:33.900,0:12:40.020 that we were engaged with[br]but also their families. 0:12:40.020,0:12:44.430 We do involve the[br]parents with the process 0:12:44.430,0:12:47.320 of working with the Scholars. 0:12:47.320,0:12:51.610 And so we felt like we[br]made a deep connection 0:12:51.610,0:12:55.060 with that aspect of[br]the student's life. 0:12:55.060,0:12:57.310 So we could know[br]what the support 0:12:57.310,0:13:01.930 system looks like and maybe[br]how we could help them. 0:13:01.930,0:13:05.540 But we also got to know the[br]students in a different way 0:13:05.540,0:13:06.040 as well. 0:13:06.040,0:13:07.930 They were in their[br]own environments, 0:13:07.930,0:13:13.122 and some of our students[br]felt more comfortable. 0:13:13.122,0:13:14.830 TAMI TIDWELL: For[br]other programs thinking 0:13:14.830,0:13:18.580 about going to an online program[br]or even a hybrid program, 0:13:18.580,0:13:20.440 some of the positives[br]are that you 0:13:20.440,0:13:22.990 can get mentors, people who've[br]been through your program 0:13:22.990,0:13:23.800 in the past. 0:13:23.800,0:13:25.670 They can come from[br]wherever they are. 0:13:25.670,0:13:28.870 So if they're away at[br]school or they're not 0:13:28.870,0:13:31.090 able to get to campus[br]on a certain day, 0:13:31.090,0:13:32.680 they can still be engaged. 0:13:32.680,0:13:35.960 It engages a bigger[br]and wider community. 0:13:35.960,0:13:40.510 We also had end-of-the-day team[br]meetings, which were essential. 0:13:40.510,0:13:43.690 When we were in person, we can't[br]pull all those staff together, 0:13:43.690,0:13:46.450 because there are staff[br]working with the students 0:13:46.450,0:13:47.530 and supervising. 0:13:47.530,0:13:51.430 But online, we were able to[br]stay in touch with each other 0:13:51.430,0:13:54.450 every single day. 0:13:54.450,0:13:57.838 SPEAKER: Unexpected benefits. 0:13:57.838,0:14:00.380 TAMI TIDWELL: What I realize is[br]that the students who've only 0:14:00.380,0:14:02.930 participated in DO-IT[br]Summer Study online 0:14:02.930,0:14:04.880 have gotten a lot out[br]of the experience. 0:14:04.880,0:14:07.610 I see their growth[br]in their IEP or 504 0:14:07.610,0:14:11.180 meetings, during reunions[br]and also in the emails 0:14:11.180,0:14:12.230 that they send us. 0:14:12.230,0:14:13.310 They've gotten a lot. 0:14:13.310,0:14:14.420 They've grown a lot. 0:14:14.420,0:14:17.480 And the program has still[br]made a really big impact. 0:14:17.480,0:14:19.070 SOPHIA: I had a[br]lot of flexibility, 0:14:19.070,0:14:21.140 because I was also[br]balancing another summer 0:14:21.140,0:14:24.380 program I was doing along[br]with the Summer Study session. 0:14:24.380,0:14:28.970 So I met with Tami[br]just to talk over 0:14:28.970,0:14:34.010 a meeting about how I can[br]balance those two programs. 0:14:34.010,0:14:36.080 SHERYL BURGSTAHLER:[br]If anyone asks me 0:14:36.080,0:14:38.300 for some advice[br]when they're forced 0:14:38.300,0:14:41.060 into turning an on-site[br]program into online 0:14:41.060,0:14:45.920 or maybe even optionally doing[br]it on-- doing that transition, 0:14:45.920,0:14:48.140 the first thing I'd[br]like to say is just 0:14:48.140,0:14:53.210 from the get-go embrace and help[br]your staff embrace the problem 0:14:53.210,0:14:56.760 to solve, that this is[br]really kind of exciting. 0:14:56.760,0:14:58.590 It's stressful too. 0:14:58.590,0:15:00.750 But we've shown[br]that it can be done. 0:15:00.750,0:15:03.420 And you just need to do[br]things one step at a time. 0:15:03.420,0:15:05.299 [MUSIC PLAYING] 0:15:05.299,0:15:08.734 For more resources about supporting students with disabilities, 0:15:08.734,0:15:14.339 consult: uw.edu/doit 0:15:14.339,0:15:18.597 Copyright 2023 University of Washington 0:15:18.597,0:15:22.911 Permission is granted to copy this material for non-commercial purposes 0:15:22.911,0:15:26.400 provided the source is acknowledged.