Settani Presents on Making Inclusion Meaningful
Apr. 17, 2026
Please join us on Wednesday, April at 7 p.m. for a webinar with Elise Settanni, iteaching assistant professor in the COE's Special Education program. Settanni will present Making Inclusion Meaningful: Strategies To Shift from "Location" to "Culture."
Autistic students often experience social isolation and low social standing among non-autistic peers even when placed in inclusive environments such as the general education classroom. Over the years, educators have seen changes and refinement to what is considered inclusive practice, moving from a place-based concept of inclusion to what has been termed meaningful inclusion.
Gresham (1981) argued that placing students with disabilities into a general education setting without providing them with the skills to interact could lead to increased social isolation and result in the setting actually being a “more restrictive setting.” Thus, autistic students often participate in interventions designed to teach them the skills they need to navigate these environments that are often still unwelcoming to their own unique needs. To expand on and shift away from mere place-based inclusion, researchers have moved toward applying an anti-stigma framework for inclusion.
In this webinar, Settanni, will provide an overview of the research on anti-stigma interventions as well as some practical steps for educators seeking to create a culture of inclusion in their classrooms.
Register at https://bit.ly/4er0iN8
