10/01 Staff Knowledge and Attitudes Toward Neurodivergent Students

The biggest obstacle for many neurodivergent students isn’t the coursework — it’s the people in charge of it.

Join the Duke Neurodiversity Advocates (DNA) for a deep dive into the power dynamics that shape neurodivergent experiences in higher education. Drawing from a recent study published in MDPI, we’ll discuss how faculty knowledge, attitudes, and classroom practices can either empower or marginalize neurodivergent students — and what real allyship in academia looks like.

We’ll talk about:

• How “ability” is often confused with compliance or communication style

• The harm caused by disbelief, inflexibility, or lack of understanding among professors

• How power dynamics affect disclosure, self-advocacy, and accommodations

• Strategies to educate faculty and normalize accessibility in every course

• The role students can play in changing campus culture from within