Who we are

Emma is a clinical genetics doctor at Sydney Children’s Hospital and researcher at UNSW.  

She tries to make pottery but they are very wobbly.  

Find out more about Emma’s work.

Iva works as Professor of Special Education and Disability Studies at the School of Education at UNSW Sydney. She teaches current and future teachers how to best support students with disability in their classes. She also works on many research projects. 

Iva loves lace-making, walks in nature and ironing. 

Find out more about Iva’s work.

Julie is an Adjunct Lecturer at the School of Education at UNSW Sydney. She is a co-researcher working with Iva on many research projects. Julie is also a Board member of the Self Advocacy Sydney. 

Julie likes doing craft activities and swimming. 

Find out more about Julie’s work.

Jackie researches the ethics of medicine, and is Director of the Disability Innovation Institute at UNSW. 

She likes reading crime stories and loves dogs, especially bull terriers. 

Find out more about Jackie’s work.

Skie is a Team Leader for the Leadership and Peer Support program at Self Advocacy Sydney. She is also an Ambassador for Kindship supporting other parents and carers of children with disabilities. 

Skie has a passion for helping people improve their English. Skie loves spending time with her family and puppy, and creative writing.

Jackie is a genetic counsellor with the NSW Genetics of Learning Disability Service. She helps people understand what they want to know about genetics and feel comfortable to talk about it and make their own decisions. She loves time with her grandchildren. 

Bronwyn works as a teacher and writer at Australian Genomics, UNSW and the Garvan Institute. She thinks about different ways to talk with people about how bodies work, genetics and DNA.  

She loves to travel and spend time with her children who dance and draw.  

Find out more about Bronwyn’s work.

Michelle recently completed her PhD at UNSW Sydney. Her thesis was about understanding the peer interactions of high school girls on the autism spectrum. She is interested in supporting students on the autism spectrum to feel safe, supported, and cared for at school.  

Michelle loves spicy food, board games, and napping with her dog.  

Find out more about Michelle’s work.  

Manjekah is a paediatric trainee who is currently completing a higher research degree in intellectual disability and genomic medicine. She is passionate about patient equity, medical education, and ensuring genomic medicine is accessible and inclusive to all patients.  

Manjekah is always eager to learn and try new things, and in her spare time enjoys photography, spending time with her birds, and amateur figure-skating!  

Find out more about Manjekah’s work.

Joanne is currently a lecturer in Special Education at the School of Education at UNSW Sydney and used to be a primary school teacher.  

She loves dogs, reading, and taking walks at the beach.  

Find out more about Joanne’s work.

Sierra is a primary school teacher with a masters degree in special and inclusive education. Whenever possible, she gets involved in education and disability studies research ventures.  

She loves the excitement of learning new things, including her latest learning adventure: learning to be a mum!  

Find out more about Sierra’s work.

Karen-Maia was a high school teacher for over 20 years. She now works in the Department of Education’s Disability Strategy team creating resources to help NSW teachers support students with disability in their classes.  She is also a student at the University of NSW. 

Karen-Maia likes cats, cooking and making people smile.  

Find out more about Karen-Maia’s work.

Jennifer is a Learning Support Coordinator at a secondary school and a Master of Special Education student at UNSW. She has worked as a teacher in early childhood and primary school settings in Sydney and London. Jennifer is passionate about and dedicated to removing barriers to learning, engagement and success for students with disabilities.  

In her spare free, Jennifer enjoys beach walks, coffee catch-ups with friends, and stand-up paddling.  

Find out more about Jennifer’s work.

Chloe is a medical student at UNSW and she is interested in making healthcare more accessible and inclusive. In her spare time Chloe loves reading, baking, and spending time outdoors!

Sarah is a neurodivergent special and inclusive education teacher. She works at UNSW. Sarah has a passion for equality in education, with a particular interest in sex and relationships education for people with intellectual disability.

Sarah loves learning from other people’s experiences, she enjoys arts and craft projects, reading memoirs and books on gender studies, and all things to do with her dog, Humphrey Bear.

Tiffany is a Master of Genetic Counselling student at UTS. She is interested in making genetic healthcare information more accessible for everyone.

In her free time, she loves exploring new food places with her friends.

Sam is a non-binary young autistic adult with an intellectual disability. They are employed as a research assistant at School of Education, University of New South Wales Sydney. Sam is starting a small craft business. Sam likes Supernatural, playing board games and Dungeons and Dragons (DnD). They love frogs and turtles.

Yasmin is a genetic counselling student at the University of Technology Sydney. She aims to have open and honest discussions about genetic health with every type of person from A to Z. When off duty she can be found snuggling her cats in her oodie with a handicraft or video game holding her attention.

Caroline is a research associate, a post-doctoral fellow and a casual academic at UNSW Sydney. She is also a primary school learning enrichment teacher. In this role she works closely with teachers in supporting students with additional needs and/ or disability in mainstream classrooms using inclusive strategies and evidence-based practices. 

Caroline loves spending time with family and friends, travelling and reading.

Chia is a secondary school teacher with a master’s degree in special and inclusive education. She works at a School for Specific Purposes and is also employed as a research assistant at UNSW Sydney. Chia has a passion for supporting the engagement and involvement of students with disabilities in learning and success in life.”

As a plant lover, Chia is particularly interested in the species of ‘Alocasia.’ Beyond nurturing her leafy companions, she also enjoys painting, drawing, and taking photos in her free time.”As a plant lover, Chia is particularly interested in the species of ‘Alocasia.’ Beyond nurturing her leafy companions, she also enjoys painting, drawing, and taking photos in her free time.

Erica is a paediatric trainee who is currently completing a research project with Gene Equal. She is passionate about the outdoors, loves hiking and kayaking and a good book!

Kaitlyn is a high school History teacher living in Canberra. She is currently studying her Master of Education (Special & Inclusive Education) and is passionate about including diverse student voices.

Kaitlyn enjoys trying different types of coffee, dancing, and reading romance novels.

Katy works in schools across Sydney helping teachers to teach students with a disability.

She is also studying. She wants to learn how children with intellectual disability understand God and what they think about Religious Education at school. 

She loves her dog Toffee, the smell of the ocean and driving her car.

Claudia studied psychology in Chile and is currently studying at the School of Education at UNSW.

She is passionate about making information accessible to everyone. Her native language is Spanish, and sometimes, she creates funny words in English.

Claudia loves the show Modern Family and indoor climbing.