Podcast appearances and mentions of genia stephen

What does it take to create a more inclusive world for people with disabilities? What is its significance to everyone? In this episode of the Superpower Mommas, host Tatiana Berindei and guest Genia Stephen talk about creating an equitable and accessible world for people with disabilities. Genia is a disability advocate and the host of the Good Things in Life For Kids with Disabilities Podcast. She believes that marginalizing the person with disabilities can take our world nowhere. Tune in and discover how you can contribute to uplifting the lives of persons with disabilities and creating an impact and difference in the world.

We've heard a lot about inclusion recently as it pertains to race and ethnicity. But what about disabilities? What happens when we have kids with disabilities? Genia Stephen is a mom, an advocate, and she has a son with disabilities. Genia joins Mighty Parenting podcast host Sandy Fowler to talk about community, school, home, expectations for our disabled kids and what it means for the families without a disabled child. Our Guest: Genia Stephen Detailed Show Notes and Support at MightyParenting.com episode 203 From Sandy:  You can't teach your child how to lower their stress if you're stressed. Grab Sandy Fowler's complimentary lesson at http://sandyfowler.com/notime to find out how to lower your stress without adding anything else to your plate! How to Talk to Your Teen—free email series at https://MightyParenting.com.

The education system's sole purpose is to help students reach their maximum potential and strive to give them the knowledge they need to succeed. Although, they don't always have the resources on hand needed to help with each student's individual needs. In this situation, it can feel difficult for parents to speak up on behalf of their children. After all, not all parents are experts on education, and speaking up can feel like they're being burdensome. However, it can't be stressed enough that when faced with this, parents should do the exact opposite. It's important that parents voice their concerns and ask that other alternatives be presented to help their children. Alpacino Beauchamp joins Genia Stephen to discuss the power of parental advocacy in the educational system.

Genia Stephen helps kids with intellectual disabilities build inclusive lives at home, at school and in the community. She is the founder and host of the Good Things In Life For Kids With Disabilities Podcast and manages a community of parents of children with disabilities. Having a younger sister and son with disabilities and medical complexities led her to a lifetime of training in the disability field under premier thought leaders and mentors. With more than 20,000 downloads, her podcast now gives other parents access to her world-class disability parenting education, complete with courses and membership. She is a practicing midwife and medical advocate currently completing her MSc. in Evidence-Based Health Care at the University of Oxford. Featured in Travel Without Limits Magazine and Community Living Ontario, as well as multiple top-rated podcasts, Genia speaks about creating a positive vision for kids with disabilities, getting the good things in life through valued social roles and social capital, and medical safeguarding. Blog and Transcript:www.mychildwillthrive.com/evidence-based-pathways-to-the-good-things-in-life

Today on the podcast, we interview Genia Stephen, host of the Good Things in Life podcast. We talk about why she started the podcast, what some of the differences and similarities are with the educational systems in the United States and Canada, and if there is such a thing as perfect inclusion. This episode's transcript can be found here. Download our new resource, The Best Inclusive Education Links: 100 links to the best inclusion-related articles, videos, and media on the web. Visit Think Inclusive for more information about inclusive education. Have questions or comments? Reach us at podcast@thinkinclusive.us Follow us on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter. Credits This podcast is a production of MCIE. Support the podcast and become a patron of the Think Inclusive Podcast!

When it comes to social progress, the “edge” of possibility expands over time. The Centre for Welfare Reform's John O'Brien John wants to find the edge of what is possible for all people in their communities so that what seems like just a dream today could be an achievable goal tomorrow. He joined Genia Stephen on the podcast this week to talk about his ideas about how to widen this edge, which starts with understanding what the main dimensions of inclusive communities are, and where the edge sits in most communities today (hint: it's about control and freedom). This was a great conclusion to a two-part series with John O'Brien!

Why is it so important to include kids with disabilities in the general education classroom? To Diane Richler, an international disability advocate with fifty years of experience, it boils down to human rights. All people have the right to a quality education, and for kids with intellectual disabilities, inclusive programs are the highest quality programs. Diane's work with the international disability community is trying to help promote the essential human rights of people with intellectual disabilities, including the right to high-quality inclusive education. Listen now to her chat with Genia Stephen about inclusion, human rights, and advocacy. Listen now!

The research is clear: inclusion works. But too many programs are still segregating students based on ability. Educator and academic Jacqueline Specht is researching the best ways to implement inclusion into the classroom, and she has identified educator training as a critical period in establishing the individual pedagogical values and self-confidence needed to not just accommodate students with disabilities, but embrace them as worthy participants in the classroom. Listen now to her chat with Genia Stephen about how training teachers early on to expect, accommodate, and embrace students with disabilities is an important first step.

When activists and advocates focus their efforts regionally, but have access to resources and allies that spread across the globe, it's a potent formula for empowering members of a community and really democratizing the advocacy process. The Citizen Network Coop's Simon Duffy and Markus Vähälä know that rebellion is at the heart of this empowerment and that cooperation is key to really challenging the status quo. Listen now to their talk with Genia Stephen about the rebelliousness of social progress and the importance of cooperation, both regionally and internationally, in disability advocacy.

Catherine Whitcher's IEP creation methods have helped thousands of parents and schools work together to prepare students for further education, employment, and independent living. Through her Master IEP Coach Mentorship + Network, Catherine teaches parents how to demystify and assume their rights as members of the IEP team and how to ensure their child’s best interests are truly reflected in their IEP. She joined Genia Stephen for a conversation about IEP strategy and making sure parent input is foregrounded in the development and implementation of IEPs.

Special education should not be synonymous with separate education. That’s the position of the MCIE’s Tim Villegas. The MCIE works with educators and school districts to help integrate meaningful inclusive education into the classroom. Moving from full segregation to authentic inclusion is not going to happen overnight. But although the pace of change can be slow, incremental progress still counts as progress. And when children with disabilities don’t have access to inclusive education programs, there is still a lot that advocates, parents, and teachers can do to help support their goals and dreams. Tim joined Genia Stephen for this week’s podcast to talk about the MCIE’s mission and their approach to inclusive education advocacy and curriculum support. 

There’s a term too often neglected in conversations about disability: citizen. This is a core guiding principle of the Citizen-Centered Leadership Development (CCLD) Community of Practice, Carol Blessing’s innovative 15-week course for service providers that work with people with disabilities. In this episode, Genia Stephen talks to Carol about her CCLD program and her concept of radicalized citizenship. Carol explains how the social model of disability, which is often held up as the gold standard for disability service delivery, is insufficient because it doesn’t recognize the notion of participatory citizenship for people with disabilities. Systemic change won’t make any difference until service providers start thinking about people with disabilities as social citizens and working to build real relationships with them. 

Addie Loerzel is a 15-year-old girl with a disability who has raised nearly $80,000 for the Sunshine Foundation. She’s also the current crown-holder of the Princess of America Miss Minnesota pageant and a regular public speaker and advocate for kids with disabilities. In this week’s episode Genia Stephen welcomes Addie to the podcast to talk about how she has accomplished so much for someone so young, and where she’s looking to take her fundraising efforts next. She’s an inspiring youth leader worth following!

Genia Stephen turns hosting duties over to Pamela Mansell, who interviews Dr. Hanns Meissner, author of Creating Blue Space: Fostering Innovative Support Practices for People with Developmental Disabilities. Hanns talks to Pamela about his innovative concept of “blue space,” the peaceful centre of a storm, and how blue space can be an important factor in achieving real independence and community participation for people with disabilities. By understanding how blue space works and how to wield it, people with disabilities and their advocates can break the boxes they’ve been placed in and assert their right to a meaningful place in their communities.

Dr. Leyton Schnellert is a lifelong inclusive education teacher who believes it doesn’t have to be difficult for teachers to tailor their curriculum to the students taking the course. In fact, Leyton says that students are the curriculum, and that when teachers recognize this, inclusive education becomes a lot easier to attain. He stresses open-ended pedagogy and collaboration as important to inclusivity, as well as decolonizing and indigenizing education. Listen now to his chat with Genia Stephen about how teachers can pull this off. 

What if the problem was not with our children? What if the problem had everything to do with the devaluation of life that society projects on us? In today's episode, I am talking with the founder of the Good Things in Life, Genia Stephen. Genia comes to us with a unique perspective, as she has both a sister and a son with a disability.    Genia reminds us that while grieving is a part of any one of our journeys, there really is so much to celebrate. But who you're connected to really matters. If you're ready to start unlearning what it means to have a disability, this is a perfect place to start.    Check out the full show notes at findinghappythepodcast.com/episodes/geniastephen Registration is open for Stronger Together!  https://sineadquinn.lpages.co/stronger-together/

What can the Canadian province of New Brunswick teach us about inclusive education? Gordon Porter and David Towell, two internationally renowned inclusive education advocates, teamed up to write Advancing Inclusive Education, using the New Brunswick system as a case study for how ministries of education can implement progressive policies that meet the needs of all students. For this episode, the first in a two-part series, they talked with Good Things in Life host Genia Stephen about the ten steps education agencies can take to rebuild truly inclusive schools from the ground up.

What can the Canadian province of New Brunswick teach us about inclusive education? Gordon Porter and David Towell, two internationally renowned inclusive education advocates, teamed up to write Advancing Inclusive Education, using the New Brunswick system as a case study for how ministries of education can implement progressive policies that meet the needs of all students. For this episode, the first in a two-part series, they talked with Good Things in Life host Genia Stephen about the ten steps education agencies can take to rebuild truly inclusive schools from the ground up.

When you’re a parent of a child with a disability, it can be hard to recognize when it’s time to really step back and let your kid take more control of their own life. For this episode, Genia Stephen turned things over to guest host Carrie Ahrens, a member of Inclusion Academy. Carrie interviewed Hope House Foundation executive director Lynne Seagle about the ways that caregivers and professionals in the social service system can empower young adults with disabilities to take control of their own lives and transition away from group home living.

When you’re a parent of a child with a disability, it can be hard to recognize when it’s time to really step back and let your kid take more control of their own life. For this episode, Genia Stephen turned things over to guest host Carrie Ahrens, a member of Inclusion Academy. Carrie interviewed Hope House Foundation executive director Lynne Seagle about the ways that caregivers and professionals in the social service system can empower young adults with disabilities to take control of their own lives and transition away from group home living.

Good Things in Life host Genia Stephen and storyteller Katie Bachmeyer wrap up their three-part discussion on medical safeguarding by identifying the ways that the right mindset really makes a difference in patient advocacy, both on the part of the health care worker and the patient advocate. Genia, who’s been providing medical safeguarding services for her sister in intensive care since November 2020, talks about how any health care worker, regardless of their personality, can truly change the patient experience for the better, and how advocates can recognize that medical staff need understanding too. This was a fascinating wrap-up to a three-part series that’s all about empathy, support, and positivity. If you’ve missed the last three episodes, you may want to listen to those first. 

Good Things in Life host Genia Stephen and storyteller Katie Bachmeyer wrap up their three-part discussion on medical safeguarding by identifying the ways that the right mindset really makes a difference in patient advocacy, both on the part of the health care worker and the patient advocate. Genia, who’s been providing medical safeguarding services for her sister in intensive care since November 2020, talks about how any health care worker, regardless of their personality, can truly change the patient experience for the better, and how advocates can recognize that medical staff need understanding too. This was a fascinating wrap-up to a three-part series that’s all about empathy, support, and positivity. If you’ve missed the last three episodes, you may want to listen to those first. 

In Part 2 of this special interview series, storyteller Katie Bachmeyer asks Good Things host Genia Stephen about what it’s like when a hospital becomes your home. Genia notes that the some rules and systems in place around the hospital are designed primarily to protect and empower service providers, not patients. When patients in long-term inpatient care get no respite from the system—because they can’t go home, after all—there is a negative impact on the patient.

In Part 2 of this special interview series, storyteller Katie Bachmeyer asks Good Things host Genia Stephen about what it’s like when a hospital becomes your home. Genia notes that the some rules and systems in place around the hospital are designed primarily to protect and empower service providers, not patients. When patients in long-term inpatient care get no respite from the system—because they can’t go home, after all—there is a negative impact on the patient.

For this special 100th episode of the podcast, Good Things host Genia Stephen flips the script a bit: this time, someone else is interviewing her! Filmmaker and storyteller Katie Bachmeyer asks Genia about what medical safeguarding really means. Safeguards provide support for their loved ones with disabilities, but they also act as advocates and interpreters for vulnerable people that are too often devalued by the medical system. Sometimes safeguards even make the difference between life and death. This is the first of several episodes in which Katie is going to help Genia tell her powerful story.

For this special 100th episode of the podcast, Good Things host Genia Stephen flips the script a bit: this time, someone else is interviewing her! Filmmaker and storyteller Katie Bachmeyer asks Genia about what medical safeguarding really means. Safeguards provide support for their loved ones with disabilities, but they also act as advocates and interpreters for vulnerable people that are too often devalued by the medical system. Sometimes safeguards even make the difference between life and death. This is the first of several episodes in which Katie is going to help Genia tell her powerful story.

Genia Stephen helps kids with intellectual disabilities build inclusive lives at home, at school and in the community. She is the founder and host of the Good Things In Life For Kids With Disabilities Podcast and manages a community of parents of children with disabilities. Having a younger sister and son with disabilities and medical complexities led her to a lifetime of training in the disability field under premier thought leaders and mentors. With more than 20,000 downloads, her podcast now gives other parents access to her world-class disability parenting education, complete with courses and membership. In This Episode You'll Learn Your flawed self is an asset Simple processes including repurposing copy Batching is your friend, but friendship develops over time Links Mentioned Pat Flynn's Power-Up Podcasting Otter.ai Libsyn BuzzSprout Subscribe today so you don't miss another episode! Learn more about the FamilyPreneur Business Accelerator and join today at »familypreneur.co« I'm committed to building an inclusive and anti-racist business. I support LGBTQIA+ rights and the rights of all intersectional identities. I believe that business should be a force for dismantling systems of oppression and actively invest in my own learning to fulfill this role. »Read My Full DEI Statement HERE« Would you like to deliver your own private podcast feed to your audience? Sign up for a free trial today at Hello Audio.

Genia Stephen helps kids with intellectual disabilities build inclusive lives at home, at school and in the community. She is the founder and host of the Good Things In Life For Kids With Disabilities Podcast and manages a community of parents of children with disabilities. Having a younger sister and son with disabilities and medical complexities led her to a lifetime of training in the disability field under premier thought leaders and mentors. With more than 20,000 downloads, her podcast now gives other parents access to her world-class disability parenting education, complete with courses and membership. In This Episode You'll Learn Your flawed self is an asset Simple processes including repurposing copy Batching is your friend, but friendship develops over time Links Mentioned Pat Flynn's Power-Up Podcasting Otter.ai Libsyn BuzzSprout Subscribe today so you don't miss another episode!

Genia Stephen talks about her reflections on her sister’s experience of being an intensive care patient with a disability who needs support to be safe. Medical safeguarding of vulnerable hospital patients can make the difference between life and death.  In Inclusion Academy, Good Things In Life’s monthly membership, we’ll be covering how to be an effective medical advocate. For more information and to join go to goodthingsinlife.org/join. 

Genia Stephen talks about her reflections on her sister’s experience of being an intensive care patient with a disability who needs support to be safe. Medical safeguarding of vulnerable hospital patients can make the difference between life and death.  In Inclusion Academy, Good Things In Life’s monthly membership, we’ll be covering how to be an effective medical advocate. For more information and to join go to goodthingsinlife.org/join. 

A sneak peak into the tragedy and grief, joys, wins, contributions, successes and massive strains of 2020 for host Genia Stephen and Good Things In Life. Plus, a "where we are headed" look into the future.  Join Inclusion Academy here.  Email support@goodthingsinlife.org if you have an idea for a podcast episode or want to be a guest host. 

A sneak peak into the tragedy and grief, joys, wins, contributions, successes and massive strains of 2020 for host Genia Stephen and Good Things In Life. Plus, a "where we are headed" look into the future.  Join Inclusion Academy here.  Email support@goodthingsinlife.org if you have an idea for a podcast episode or want to be a guest host. 

I first heard of Genia Stephen when she had landed a 5-figure contract with an organization that wanted to not only purchase her digital course, but roll it out across their org. When I dug further to see what she was up to, I learned that her business 'Good Things in Life' was completely centered on supporting parents with kids that have disabilities. Some of you may be aware, but this tugged on my heartstrings as my parents (after having 8 of us biologically) adopted 12 children from varying backgrounds and hardships.Genia is a prime example of someone that had knowledge in a certain area, saw a hole that needed to be filled, and figured out a way to build a service that filled that need. Growing up, Genia was surrounded with leaders in the disability world as her mom became a powerful advocate alongside her younger sister's diagnosis. Cut to 14 years ago, Genia's own son was born with disabilities and medical complexities. Conversation Highlights: Identifying a Business NeedMidwife background highlighted a gaping holeParents with kids of disabilities start their journey onlineCreated ongoing instruction and support for this communityLaunched Good Things in Life: podcast, free monthly webinars, digital courses and a membership The Power of Digital CoursesStarted from scratch with no entrepreneurial experienceBegan with Marie Forleo's B-School online courseThen took Amy Porterfield's Digital Course Academy Leveraging Collaborations & Personal KnowledgeCo-created the course, 'Belonging in School: The What, Why, and How of Inclusive Education'Moved on to launch 'Inclusion Academy' as a membership for parents with ongoing support and communityAccelerates progress by making high quality information, resources, ideas, and support more available to parents across the board Top Tools & Processes for SuccessDigital Course Academy - created by Amy Porterfield as a comprehensive program to create, launch, and sell digital coursesTribe - created by Stu McLaren as a course that teaches how to launch a successful and profitable membership siteFull Focus Planner - created by Michael Hyatt, this planner helps to cut down on overwhelm by helping you focus on what matters and ditching the never-ending-to-do-listDigital courses speed up your progress by delivering the info you need in an accelerated pace Selling Your Digital Course to Other OrganizationsBuilding relationships, credibility, and authorityThe power of the 'ask'Getting over the money mindset of making money = burning yourself outRe-using one digital course for multiple income streamsMoving Forward - Goals and VisionsImproving her membership, growing that audienceContinuing to build her email listBuild and scale her podcastReassess late 2020/early 2021 - re-evaluate, tweak, set goals, move forwardMuscle Creative Wrap-UpIf you could listen to only one music artist for the rest of your life, who would it be? Bob Marley, The Dixie Chicks depending upon her moodWhere can people find you online?Good Things in LifeThe What, Why, and How of Inclusive EducationFacebook GroupInstagram

Al interviews Genia Stephen. Genia Stephen is a speaker, host of the Good Things In Life podcast, and founder of Good Things in Life which helps parents support their kids with intellectual disabilities to build good inclusive lives at home, at school and in the community.    Genia has a sister with an intellectual disability and a son with an intellectual disability. Her mother introduced her to important ideas and thought leaders early in her life. She is a Registered Midwife, International Board Certified Lactation Consultant and is currently completing her MSc in Evidence-Based Health Care at the University of Oxford.   For more interviews subscribe to the Call Me Podcast on itunes: https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/call-me-al/id1441852995 Season 3 of the Call Me Podcast is brought to you by CONNECT Communities. CONNECT’s mission is to Make Lives Better. We achieve this by providing complex and specialized services for people living with brain injury and stroke in a nurturing and innovative community environment. Through our Life Redesign Model™, we empower people by applying our knowledge and experience to coach, challenge and motivate each person to reach their unique personal goals and build a fulfilling life for themselves. CONNECT is one of few organizations accredited through Accreditation Canada using the Acquired Brain Injury standards. For more information visit their website: https://connectcommunities.ca/

BECOME A PATRON at https://www.patreon.com/allaboutaudiology Welcome back to the All About Audiology podcast. I’m your host, Dr. Lilach Saperstein. Today, I’d like to talk about how we as parents can look at our child’s life and look at our parenting with the goal of helping to maintain and create beautiful, inclusive, full and wonderful lives […] The post All About Creating A Vision For Your Child’s Life -Episode 43 with Genia Stephen appeared first on All About Audiology.

Episode 41: Benefits of Inclusion in The Community With Guest Genia Stephen   In this episode, we discuss what it was like growing up in a with a great community that had a positive vision for people with disabilities and their families and how that helped our guest when her son was born with significant disabilities. Guest Genia Stephen's younger sister was born with a disability, so Genia was exposed to differences at a young age. Her mom, although never exposed to individuals with disabilities in the past, was a huge advocate and supporter of her daughter. Her mother took to the yellow pages to search for treatments for her daughter, and was very lucky that those who she chose were on the cutting edge of their professions and worked hard to make sure that inclusion was a huge focus for children. Genia's mom and the leaders at her daughter's preschool were working very hard to increase inclusion in schools. Later in life, Genia gave birth to a son who has an intellectual disability. Due to her prior experiences and her health care background, she found that she was more prepared to raise her son with disabilities than she otherwise would have been. She found it was helpful to already have connections with people who understood disabilities and were supportive. She found that in close to 40 years, very little has changed in the disability world. She met numerous people who hadn't ever had a positive experience with someone with a disability. Having grown up with her sister, she knew ways to maximize the good life for her son, such as inclusion in school and in the community. She knew from the beginning that her son would be in an inclusive classroom in school. She was very preemptive about schooling for her son and interviewed schools to make sure they would be inclusive. She made sure that when he was very young, her son went to school as often as he could (although it was for a minimal about of time), which prepared him for when he started Kindergarten. Another plus was that his classmates and teachers already knew him. Genia noted that there is lots of evidence that the self-contained classrooms do not work and may be negative experiences for the children. Being in a self-contained classroom may also reduce your child's chance of being hired for a job after high school. Role-modeling in inclusive classrooms, however, has been shown to be very effective. She made sure her son engaged in the community and is on several community sports teams. She made sure she found out what her son's interests were, what the social roles were for children of that age, and found where those activities were happening that her son wanted to engage in. She made sure that he was included in these activities, but also that the accommodations were reasonable, so he was able to maximally participate without minimizing the activity to him or others. Her website came about because she wanted to meet parents where they were early in their journey and to provide them the opportunity to be introduced to a disability-inclusive community and have the opportunities for thinking and learning that she had growing up, since not every community has in-person opportunities to learn. She offers paid courses and memberships to help with the "how-to" over time and offers free monthly expert presentations by world thought-leaders.   Links: Website Facebook Group Podcast Instagram Theory of Social Role Valorization Email us if you have any questions or ideas! We are now on instagram! Check out updates on our website. Follow Thriving on Twitter. Check us out on Facebook and join our parent group! Please subscribe to our podcast in the iTunes store, or wherever you find your podcasts, Leave us a 5 star review, to help us know what you like and what you don't like, and to make sure other like-minded people find support through this podcast. Show Music: Intro Outro: Intro Outro 2 by Mattias Lahoud under CC-BY 3.0 License (www.freesound.org) Theme Song: 90s rock style by monkeyman535 under CC-BY 3.0 License (www.freesound.org) Self Care Song: Green and Orange No Water by Duncan Alex under CC-BY 3.0 License (www.freesound.org) Hosted by: Jessica Temple and Lewis Temple Disclaimer: Our show is not designed to provide listeners with specific or personal legal, medical, or professional services or advice. Parents of children with health issues should always consult their health care provider for medical advice, medication, or treatment. Copyright 2020 Jessica and Lewis Temple

On today’s show, Genia Stephen joins Amanda and Vickie in a conversation about what the coming school year might hold and the reasons that remote schooling might not be working for everyone.  Genia Stephen helps kids with intellectual disabilities build inclusive lives at home, at school, and in the community. She is the founder and host of the Good Things In Life For Kids With Disabilities Podcast with more than 11,000 downloads and manages a community of parents of children with disabilities.  Having a younger sister and son with disabilities and medical complexities led her to a lifetime of training in the disability field under premier thought leaders and mentors. Her podcast, courses, and membership now give other parents access to the world-class disability parenting education that she has enjoyed. She is a practicing midwife, medical advocate, and currently completing her MSc. in Evidence-Based Health Care at the University of Oxford.  Featured in Travel Without Limits Magazine and Community Living Ontario publications, Genia speaks about creating a positive vision for kids with disabilities, getting the good things in life through valued social roles and social capital, and medical safeguarding.  Show Highlights: Even under the best of conditions, sometimes school just isn’t going to be successful for many kids. Genia covers a number of reasons why remote education might not work. There is an overwhelming amount of pressure on parents to get it all done. Some students have never even logged in to Zoom for lessons. There needs to be a better level of understanding on all sides. Relationships and the social capital that a child has with others can make all the difference in learning. Parents must figure out for their own kids what their biggest priorities are. Genia’s work focuses on some of the ways that kids can make a difference in the lives of other people. Families are better positioned to be working on connectedness in relationships than they are to be working on curriculum, particularly within the context of pandemic restrictions. Kids can still serve academic goals, and Genia offers some ideas. There are many differently-abled kids who do not have connections outside their family circle, and this pandemic experience presents a unique opportunity to develop connections. Links/Resources: Thank you for listening! Don’t forget to SUBSCRIBE to the show to receive every new episode delivered straight to your podcast player every Tuesday. If you enjoyed this episode and believe in our message, then please help us get the word out about this podcast. Rate and Review this show in Apple Podcasts, Stitcher Radio, or Google Play. It helps other listeners find this show. Be sure to connect with us and reach out with any questions/concerns: Facebook Instagram Twitter IEP website This podcast is for informational and educational purposes only. It is not to be construed as legal advice specific to your circumstances. If you need help with any legal matters, be sure to consult with an attorney regarding your specific needs. Connect with Genia! Good Things in Life Stay Connected - Free Resources Facebook Group - Good Things in Life For Kids WithDisabilities Podcast 

Genia Stephen is a speaker, host of the Good Things In Life podcast, andfounder of Good Things in Life which offers resources, courses and aneducational and supportive membership for a community of parents who arecommitted to building a good, inclusive life for their children with disabilities.Genia has a sister with an intellectual disability and a son with an intellectualdisability. Her mother introduced her to important ideas and thought leadersearly in her life. She is a Registered Midwife, International Board CertifiedLactation Consultant and is currently completing her MSc in Evidence-BasedHealth Care at the University of Oxford.We talk about how companies and emerging leaders can raise their awareness level towards the real life complexities of disabilities and potential to become the change agent for a better world.

Join me as I chat with Genia from GoodThingsInLife.org. We're talking about our kids' social roles, ableism, inclusion, tokenism, inspiration porn, chronic grief and so much more.Please note: This is much longer than most of my podcast episodes. I decided to leave it as one for those who are able to listen in one sitting. Here is the Power of Roles event she mentions in the podcast.Genia Stephen is a speaker, host of the Good Things In Life podcast, and founder of Good Things in Life which helps parents support their kids with intellectual disabilities to build good inclusive lives at home, at school, and in the community. Genia has a sister with an intellectual disability and a son with an intellectual disability. Her mother introduced her to important ideas and thought leaders early in her life. She is a Registered Midwife, International Board Certified Lactation Consultant and is currently completing her MSc in Evidence-Based Health Care at the University of Oxford.Support the show (https://paypal.me/ADayInOurShoes)

Selena Blake and Genia Stephen discuss why it is important that we are clear about our principles and values and discuss bold principles 6 to 10 that Selena's organization, Durham Family Resources and Support, uses to guide their work supporting people with disabilities and their families.

Selena Blake and Genia Stephen discuss why it is important that we are clear about our principles and values and discuss bold principles 6 to 10 that Selena's organization, Durham Family Resources and Support, uses to guide their work supporting people with disabilities and their families.

Selena Blake and Genia Stephen discuss why it is important that we are clear about our principles and values and discuss the first four of ten bold principles that Selena’s organization, Durham Family Resources and Support, uses to guide their work supporting people with disabilities and their families.

Selena Blake and Genia Stephen discuss why it is important that we are clear about our principles and values and discuss the first four of ten bold principles that Selena’s organization, Durham Family Resources and Support, uses to guide their work supporting people with disabilities and their families.

MEET THE GUEST: Genia started young with amazing mentors and a strong mother with a vision. Now, she’s a mother to two sons, a midwife to many, and an activist with a mission to band together with families to joyfully pursue the good things in life. Genia’s a registered midwife, International Board Certified Lactation Consultant, MSc in Evidence-Based Health Care (student), Speaker, Presenter, Podcast host, and founder of Good Things in Life which offers resources, courses and networking opportunities for a community of parents with a shared vision of the good things in life for their children with disabilities.   In this episode, we cover: Genia’s introduction into special needs advocacy + social role valorization Setting expectations and raising the bar for our differently-abled children Creating a vision for ourselves and our children, and redefining what’s possible Starting her organization to reach families of children with disabilities Dealing with grief and moving past the sadness to learn to embrace the good things in life   When asked for one piece of advice they’d give moms going through the grieving process of a new diagnosis, Genia says:   “Everything wonderful in life happens on the other side of that cry. So you’ve got to get past the grief. Cause there are great, wonderful things on the other side of grief. Everything great is on the other side of special, so it’s worth it to go there.” Where To Connect with Genia Stephen Online: https://goodthingsinlife.org https://goodthingsinlife.org/podcast https://www.facebook.com/thegoodthingsinlife/ https://www.facebook.com/groups/351362831977895 (The Good Things In Life Facebook Group) Connect with Mia Francis-Poulin! Find out how you can work with Mia at www.racreative.co Catch up with Mia on Instagram. Join the Mama, Build Your Empire Group on Facebook.

Here is the secret.... it is to start with developing valued roles. What is a valued role? A valued roles is the answer you give to the question 'What do you do?' when you meet someone new. [more on valued roles below] Guest Genia Sthphen also shares her story as a sibling, a mother to two sons, and how she has helped to create the good life for her son Will.   Professionally, Genia is a midwife to many, and an activist with a mission to band together with families to joyfully pursue the good things in life. She recently launched the Good Things in Life, which is an online community for young families who share a vision of the good life for their kids with disabilities.      You can listen to this conversation in its entirety by clicking play on the player below, OR by clicking one of the following links to listen on your favourite podcast player; iTunes, Spotify, and Google Play.   Growing Up With a Sibling that has a Developmental Disability (DD)   Genia is the 3rd of 4 daughters, and her younger sister Kate has a DD. Genia’s two older sisters are a fair amount older, and it was really just the two of them (Kate & Genia) when they were growing up.   Genia remembers going to appointments with Kate where they had Kate do silly things, like hold onto the pencil, and they would pull on it until she let it go. Kate didn’t care much for holding onto the pencil and as a result, was diagnosed with having poor muscle tone. But, Genia and Kate thought it was funny because Kate would drag Genia around the house on her back by her toes.    Genia recalls, “At 5 mom sat me down on her lap and told me that Kate had a disability. Mom was serious, it was an occasion, She explained Kate would learn more slowly than other kids. I responded by crying. I was trying to figure out what was expected in this situation, and it was clear to her that the appropriate response was to be sad.”   It was a big deal for Genia’s mom. She had never experienced someone with a disability, Her mom was terrified, intimidated, and overwhelmed. It was something worth crying about for her.   Genia’s mom reached out and started to connect with other parents and other people that knew more than she did. She surrounded herself with this community and exploded into a powerful advocate. She stopped delivering the information in a way that elicited sadness and started having really high expectations. She had connected with some people that had worked with Dr. Wolf Wolfensberger, who developed the social theory of Social Role Valorization (SRV).   Genia attended her first SRV workshop at 15. It taught her language, and how the world works for people that are devalued.   Key Insight: Connecting with other families is important. Not just getting connected, but who you get connected with. What are their beliefs and mindsets? How you deal with grief and fear is guided by your mindsets and fear for a person with a disability.     When Genia’s second son Will was born he was very very sick. Genia recalls, "we weren’t sure he was going to make it. They were telling the family that he would have significant disabilities." Genia’s response was “Well yeah yeah yeah, but is he going to make it, let's focus on what matters here. And he did [make it!].”     What is Social Role Valorization (SRV)?   GS: “SRV is the universal ways that people are devalued in society. Devalued people are not able to access the good things in life the way that valued people are. For example, devalued people do not have the same opportunities for personal growth, education, meaningful work, freely given relationships, pursuing their interests. People access the good things in life through the roles we play in society. It is also how we connect and understand each other. One of the first questions we ask someone is “what do you do?”. It helps us understand and relate to each other through roles.”     There is No Risk-Free Path   GS: “If your major fear is that someone is going to be hurt or rejected, and the way that you prevent that is by keeping people protected and isolated from the people that might hurt them, then that leads you down a vision that likely includes a lot of services and people paid to keep the person safe.   Alternatively, if your mindsets and beliefs are that safety for vulnerable people comes through relationships, this leads you down a path of life in the community.   There is no risk-free path.”     What Does The Good Life Look Like for Will?   Listen to the podcast to hear how Genia’s family has thought about the role of student for Will. Genia and her family thought through the things that were likely to increase people’s high expectation and positive image of Will in the role of student, starting from the age of 2!   GS: “Will is now 12, and we think about for his peer group what are the typical valued social roles that a person holds? And, what are the kinds of opportunities that those roles bring? Then we pursue those things.”   Want proof!?! Watch the video below.     Video: Will Enjoying The Good Things In Life   Key Insight: Look to what is typical for people that don’t have a disability at that stage of life and focus on the roles the individual could hold to create your vision. Additionally, the person supporting needs to understand the social role and also have the social currency to help them get there.     In this podcast, Genia and I also cover topics including raising the consciousness of devaluation in our society, the experience of being a mother with a child that has a disability, and what the experience of having a sibling with a disability.    Tweet-able Moments from the conversation with Genia Stephen:   "Devalued people are not able to access the good things in life the way that valued people are. For example, devalued people do not have the same opportunities for personal growth, education, meaningful work, freely given relationships, pursuing their interests."   "...if your mindsets and beliefs are that safety for vulnerable people comes through relationships, this leads you down a path of life in the community."   "Look to what is typical for people that don’t have a disability at that stage of life and focus on the roles the individual could hold to create your vision."         If you received value from reading this blog or listening to this podcast episode I encourage you to share it with someone else you feel would benefit.   The Empowering Ability Podcast and Blog are made possible entirely by you, the support of listeners and readers. Thank you for considering a contribution to this work with a subscription!     Love & Respect, Eric Goll         Resources:   Will Social Media: Theadventuresofwill.ca     The Good Things in Life --> For Parents of young children with IDDs. Goodthingsinlife.org.   Contact Genia by email: Genia@goodthingsinlife.org   Creating Valued Roles with Janet Klees: Click Here           Too Busy to listen to the podcast now? Listen on the GO!   The Empowering Ability Podcast is available on iTunes and all other major podcast apps so that you can listen while on the go from your smartphone!