I’ve been working in the educational advocacy space for 15 years, and I’m also the parent of two neurodivergent young adults – so I have many years of experience working through the murky waters of ability and disability.
In terms of professional background, I’ve spent the past ten years as a “family navigator” at Jewish Family & Children’s Services, where I served families who had a child with some form of challenge. I’m trained as an educational advocate, and that is a large part of my work. My strength though is that I look more broadly at a family’s situation and also help them navigate the health care system, early intervention, various evaluations (neuropsychological, social, psychological, technology, occupational/physical therapy, and on and on), transitions from hospital or therapeutic placements back to public school or from K-12 offerings to transition programs or to adult services.
In addition to working with families, I also work with a local special education attorney to read and summarize files and help her prepare for trial – identifying key questions, gaps in information, and prepping families to appear in court.
Prior to working with JF&CS, I was self employed for five years, and during that time I worked with many families across towns, diagnoses, and ages.
Other pertinent background:
- Italian Home for Children – Advisory Board Member to the Neurodevelopmental Unit
- Federation for Children with Special Needs – member
- Massachusetts Advocates for Children — member
- Association for Autism and Neurodiversity (AANE) – member
- Perkins School for the Blind – member
- ARC of Massachusetts – member
Joan Munnelly Educational Advocacy & Coaching 