On Wednesday, September 17, the Neurodiversity Ambassadors Club (NDA) at Bridgewater-Raritan High School held its first meeting of the year, introducing its plans for the upcoming school year.

Neurodiversity Ambassadors is a club designed for students to understand the different and unique ways various minds think, such as how individuals with ADHD think differently from those with dyslexia, and aims to raise awareness about these differences. 

The meeting was led by NDA Advisor Cynthia Slootmaker, along with the club’s officers.

It began with introductions to the officer board and an explanation of the club’s purpose, so new members could gain an understanding of what they would be involved in. Following the introductions, they introduced their new PenPal partnership 

Snacks and food were also provided during the meeting to keep students well-fed while staying engaged during the presentation. 

Sophomore Heewon Park, who serves as the President of the club, shared her thoughts on the goals planned for club members this year. 

“The officers and my main goal for the year is to expand the club and its programs, especially collaborations with the special ed classes and outreach to local libraries and organizations. Many of our plans are centered around giving neurodiverse people experiences they normally wouldn’t have through the special-ed curriculum, such as music activities and interactive skit read-alouds. One special program we’re including is our pen pal partnership, where gen-ed and special-ed students get paired up to send letters to each other monthly! We’re unique from other clubs because we’re not only active in school but also in planning lots of events outside of school,” she said.

If any students are interested in joining the NDA this year, they can use the code vs3cixa or email Mrs. Slootmaker ([email protected]) for more information about the club.