I am a 30-year-old, autistic-ADHD (with co-occurring childhood developmental delay) college student pursuing a master's degree in social work following prior educational experiences in psychology. My primary interest, informed by my lived experiences, is working clinically with neurodivergent persons. Toward this end I am a passionate advocate for neuroaffirming psychotherapy and the de-pathologization of neurodivergence. Following a childhood in which I overcame significant challenges to become the first in my family to graduate college, I have faced a great deal of ableism in my education. My early experiences with peers and professors in psychology were mostly negative as one point of ostracism for me was the shifting of my thinking from medical to social models of autism and neurodivergence. Classmates, in general, rarely interacted with me except in the course of group assignments. More recently, over the last two years in my social work program, I have contended regularly–sometimes week-to-week, during certain classes–with ableism and microaggressions perpetrated by those classmates. For being curious, asking questions, and attempting to foster classroom discussion I have been labeled a narcissist and know-it-all, and classmates have frequently made cutting remarks and tried to subtly manipulate me into carrying small-group assignments and the emotional labor of class conversation. With respect to peer-to-peer relationships, in our online learning environments I have consistently been the least interacted with in discussion posts and other contexts, and even ignored by peers with whom I have carried out group assignments. Professors have been disinterested in my personal-professional development and silence me regularly in class discussions. To my work I bring deep empathy alongside a heightened sensitivity for injustice. I strive to counter ableism, foster self-determination, and conduct myself with professionalism, attention to detail, and ethical behavior. I possess a strong ability to integrate and understand the relationships between client problems and systemic structures which may or may not be oppressive and have a demonstrated ability to advocate against and address those systemic injustices. I further bring to my work a nuanced comprehension for and awareness of issues pertinent to neurodivergent persons. To date I have had the opportunity to publish 3 scholarly articles and several blog posts relating to the development of neuroaffirming psychotherapy (or at least my manner of practicing, which is all I can accurately speak on). A core tenet of my developing practice is that neurodivergent persons can be successfully engaged through and in many cases, prefer, relational therapy; the reliance on and near exclusive offering to them of therapies which are authoritarian and not autonomy-prioritizing is a detriment to their mental healthcare. I also, relatedly, am passionate about cultivating neurodivergent community spaces. At present, I facilitate a weekly peer group for neurodivergent therapists and in the future am highly interested in facilitating support groups for neurodivergent people generally and in fostering cross-neurotype communication groups to further mutual and reciprocal understanding and empathy between neurodivergent and neurotypical persons. I am also conducting clinically relevant research into neurodivergent experiences of psychotherapy and trauma. This scholarship, in covering some of my tuition over the remaining year of my program, would go a long way in empowering me to continue the aforementioned pursuits via its freeing of me from some financial obligation and burden. This will decrease the time I must spend at employed work and increase the time I have available for study, advocacy, and the community-building in which I have thus far engaged. Thank you for considering my application.