Lightnews — Scholar-powered news

Jennifer Macko @sagewell.bsky.social · Aug 15

I'm getting ready for the new semester and trying time blocking to manage teaching two courses, a research assistantship, a project coordinator role, and my dissertation. For those who've done it, how many hours a week did you typically spend writing your dissertation? #phdlife #AcademicSky

5 4

Jennifer Macko @sagewell.bsky.social · Jun 26

I would love to be added. I'm a neurodiveregent PhD candidate researching how to improve the well-being and mental health of autistic AFAB students.

1

Jennifer Macko @sagewell.bsky.social · Apr 29

You did a great job! I really appreciated the way you handled the round table discussion too. Using the ipad to have multiple screens was really effective! I might have to borrow this idea for next year.

1 1

Jennifer Macko @sagewell.bsky.social · Apr 29

This is so exciting! Your presentation at AERA was so good. I can't wait to read the article.

1 1

Jennifer Macko @sagewell.bsky.social · Apr 29

It's been a day. I finished my written PhD comprehensive exams this morning. They were planned for next semester, but my advisor & I decided that given the uncertain times, I should just get it done. Then this evening I submitted my final assignment for my last required course. Exhale.😮‍💨 #academicsky

4 2 69

Jennifer Macko @sagewell.bsky.social · Apr 25

Been a bit quiet, navigating program uncertainty to ensure I can keep doing the work I'm passionate about. Taking those steps feels important (more on this later.) Now I’m at #AERA2025 —a space where folks are deeply engaged in the work. It’s a welcome contrast to recent distractions. My ❤️ is happy.

4

Jennifer Macko @sagewell.bsky.social · Apr 25

Hi Kristen, I’d love to hear thoughts on this. I’m on Dr. Jamie Pearson’s team and we just discussed needing to figure out my timeline in relation to this issue.

Jennifer Macko @sagewell.bsky.social · Feb 27

I just added your session to my agenda on the app.

1 2

Jennifer Macko @sagewell.bsky.social · Feb 24

Thinking about your essay in Care Work on the pressure on femme leaders to be perfect and push through and proud of you for making the choice to cancel/reschedule to take care of your body. I hope you feel better soon!

1

Jennifer Macko @sagewell.bsky.social · Feb 17

I completely agree with you and here’s your proof. The latest Department of Education press release explicitly states that they are terminating funding for grants addressing systemic ableism. www.ed.gov/about/news/p...

U.S. Department of Education Cuts Over $600 Million in Divisive Teacher Training Grants

The U.S. Department of Education today announced it has terminated over $600 million in grants to institutions and nonprofits that were using taxpayer funds to train teachers and education agencies on...

www.ed.gov

Jennifer Macko @sagewell.bsky.social · Feb 17

If more proof is needed, check out the latest press release from the Department of education. It explicitly states that they are terminating funding for grants that are addressing ableism. www.ed.gov/about/news/p...

U.S. Department of Education Cuts Over $600 Million in Divisive Teacher Training Grants

The U.S. Department of Education today announced it has terminated over $600 million in grants to institutions and nonprofits that were using taxpayer funds to train teachers and education agencies on...

www.ed.gov

4 8

Jennifer Macko @sagewell.bsky.social · Feb 17

Specifically, it mentions the termination of grants for teacher preparation programs that involve “acknowledging and responding to systemic forms of oppression and inequity, including racism, ableism, “gender-based” discrimination, homophobia, and ageism”.

1 1

Jennifer Macko @sagewell.bsky.social · Feb 17

I’ve seen the posts hypothesizing that the special education transition program funding was accidentally cut due to a control F search for the word transition. However, this press release makes clear that disability justice in education efforts to reduce ableism are intentionally being targeted.

U.S. Department of Education @usedgov.bsky.social · Feb 17

U.S. Department of Education Cuts Over $600 Million in Divisive Teacher Training Grants www.ed.gov/about/news/p...

1 2 10

Jennifer Macko @sagewell.bsky.social · Jan 27

This a beautiful first person narrative of coming to self acceptance after learning about Indigenous views of autism. The author is
Cree and she explains that her “people have long had a word for people like me: pîtoteyihtam, which means ‘he/she thinks differently.’”

Dr Jackie Ryan @proudmum95.bsky.social · Jan 26

www.cbc.ca/news/canada/...

FIRST PERSON | Learning about Indigenous views of autism opened the door to accepting myself | CBC News

Julianna Maggrah used to think she was broken. Now, after learning about multiple Indigenous views of autism, she considers herself gifted.

www.cbc.ca

1 2

Jennifer Macko @sagewell.bsky.social · Jan 25

@aportraitinflesh.bsky.social Thank you for sharing. Autistic burnout is real and I’m so sorry you are struggling. You are not alone in feeling scared.

1

Jennifer Macko @sagewell.bsky.social · Jan 21

New #AutRes demonstrating the need for future research to address the well-being of transgender/gender diverse autistic folks…The authors found TGD adults were 10.9 times more likely to report a mental health condition & 5.8 times more likely to report self-harm than cisgender non-autistic adults.

Dr Elizabeth M Weir @elizabethmweir.bsky.social · Jan 21

New paper out #openaccess in Molecular Autism today that shows #autistic #trans #nonbinary and #genderdiverse (TGD) people are more likely to have physical and mental health conditions than nonautistic cisgender people. Alongside this, they also reported poorer quality #healthcare bit.ly/4geRRlC

Autistic and transgender/gender diverse people’s experiences of health and healthcare - Molecular Autism

Background Autistic people and transgender/gender diverse people experience poorer healthcare experiences and greater risk of diagnosed, suspected, and assessment recommended health conditions, compar...

bit.ly

1 3 12

Jennifer Macko @sagewell.bsky.social · Jan 15

The FACES program is recruiting caregivers of Black autistic students to participate in our free upcoming advocacy trainings offered across NC & in Atlanta, Baltimore, & Washington DC. Families will be compensated for their time & snacks will be provided. Learn more at go.ncsu.edu/joinfaces #AutRes

A black father and mother embracing.

A green text box reads: What is FACES? We address inequities in school and community- based services among Black autistic children across the lifespan by enhancing knowledge and empowerment among Black families.

A black text box reads: What do we offer? Caregiver training sessions
Community building
Service provider connections
IEP meeting advocacy
Resource website

A red text box reads: Join us! When: Between February and April 2025. Where: Various locations across NC; Washington, D.C.; Baltimore, MD; Atlanta, GA

To learn more, scan the OR code or visit the link: go.ncsu.edu/joinfaces

Black caregivers of Black autistic children ages 3-18 are eligible to participate. Caregivers must be 18 years of age or older to participate. The autistic child must have a medical or school-based diagnosis. All participant information will remain confidential. Caregivers will receive a $100 stipend for completing the five FACES sessions. This study is funded by the Institute of Education Sciences.

7 7

Jennifer Macko @sagewell.bsky.social · Jan 2

You can see @Neurowild's full explanation of spoon theory at www.facebook.com/permalink.ph...

NeuroWild

Teach me about Spoon Theory. Spoon theory was originally coined in 2003 by Christine Miserandino to help explain the physical fatigue of her chronic health condition, lupus. It has been adopted in...

www.facebook.com

1

Jennifer Macko @sagewell.bsky.social · Jan 2

Spoon/capacity planning is the way I've made it through grad school. Today I'm planning my spring semester. In addition to classes & assistantships, I'll be traveling to Jamaica for an internship, Baltimore for CEC, Virginia Beach for ACRES, & Denver for AERA. The plan: hoard my spoons. #academicsky

Image credit: @NeuroWild on Instagram. The Spoon Theory, created by Christine Miserandino as explained by @neurowild. The image features a lavender smiling octopus holding 2 spoons and a written plan that reads "Saturday: Shelly's party! Today: Do not use spoons on masking, shopping, acting normal, or loud places." The text reads: So I don't run out, it helps to make a plan about how I will use my spoons. If I know there's something expensive coming up, I will save some spoons for that.

1 5

Jennifer Macko @sagewell.bsky.social · Dec 26

This past semester seemed to linger. Each time I thought everything had been crossed off my to-dos something else popped up. Now that the holidays are over, I’m finally on break! My favorite reregulation activity is list making. Today I’m working on my list for 2025’s 52 week book challenge.

3

Reposted by Jennifer Macko

Neil Renic @ncrenic.bsky.social · Dec 15

Academic Christmas

12 160 730

Jennifer Macko @sagewell.bsky.social · Dec 5

Of course, please let me know if you want to chat more.

Jennifer Macko @sagewell.bsky.social · Dec 5

"This offers further evidence that parasocial contact w/non-neurotypical individuals via the popular fiction we consume can generate positive attitude change." And since attitude impacts self-efficacy for inclusive teaching, I'm wondering if I should add a book club to the PD I'm developing. #AutRes

aslynn's tremendous 'tism horror show 👻 🎃 @audhd-psychnp.com · Dec 3

“Participants in the novel condition showed significant improvement in their attitudes towards individuals with ASD after reading while those in the textbook condition showed more negative attitudes after reading the textbook chapter.”

I wonder what the Bluesky education efforts efficacy will be 👀

This research investigated the impact popular novels have on knowledge about and attitudes towards Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD), compared to that of traditional college textbooks. Study 1 found that...

link.springer.com

1 8

Jennifer Macko @sagewell.bsky.social · Dec 5

Thank you so much for coming!

1 1

Jennifer Macko @sagewell.bsky.social · Dec 5

Shout out to @kaylamalone.bsky.social who introduced me to GoblinTools, a set of AI tools to help neurodivergent folks with overwhelming and difficult tasks. I particularly appreciate the Magic ToDo, which task analyzes your to-dos & presents them back as manageable steps. goblin.tools

Magic ToDo - GoblinTools

goblin.tools

2 3