In August 2022, ADEC is kicking off a new podcast, “Expert Tips from ADEC Self-Advocates.” It’s about living your best life with a disability, featuring advice or experiences directly from some of our ADEC Self-Advocates, and hosted by Emily, the current President of ADEC’s Self-Advocates group. Available on most streaming platforms, the first episode is already up, and is just a quick introductory conversation between Emily and one of her producers, discussing Emily’s job as host and what you’ll be able to expect from upcoming episodes. Episode 1: Meet Your Host!

The official release day is Wednesday, August 24th, and we’ll be celebrating with a lunchtime listening/release party in the Gaining Grounds Conference Center on ADEC’s Bristol Campus. You’ll be able to hear Episodes 1 & 2, plus a sneak peek from Episode 3, and meet our host Emily. Emily is the current President of ADEC’s Self-Advocate group, as well as an attendee of ADEC’s Skills & Training Program at The Hub, a pre-vocational program where individuals can learn practical knowledge to help them in future positions. She also maintains her own blog talking about her day-to-day life, challenges, and musings AND has a part-time job at a shop called The Soapy Gnome in Goshen, IN. You can read about her job here: Emily at the Soapy Gnome.

You’ll be able to listen to future episodes via streaming, but you’ll also be able to find new episodes on the podcast’s ADEC webpage as well as find YouTube videos of each episode with Closed Captioning for anyone with hearing issues, as well as published transcripts. We are so excited to be able to not only help Emily take steps toward one of her future goals, “Media Personality & Influencer”, but also to create yet another bridge between those living with Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities (IDD) and their communities.

Emily says it best at the end of her intro episode: “I just can’t wait to get started!” Neither can we!