Supporting Autistic Learners Who Are Nonspeaking/Minimally Speaking: What Every Parent Should Know

Despite constituting an estimated 25-30% of the autistic population, nonspeaking or unreliably speaking students often face disproportionate struggles in an educational system which too often conflates speech ability with intelligence. Nonspeaking students who in the past have been stigmatized and mislabeled as 'intellectually disabled' are revealing complex and vibrant inner worlds when given the chance and means to express themselves. Join Lisa Mihalich Quinn, Dr. Edlyn Peña and Julie Sando - co-authors of the book Breaking Barriers For Nonspeaking Autistic Students (https://a.co/d/hBWVE0a) - as they discuss a paradigm shift in the ways we view and educate nonspeakers, and how presuming competence and accessible technologies can enable these students to become successful communicators and self advocates. En español:    • Apoyo a Estudiantes Autistas que no Hablan...   WEBINAR DATE: January 14, 2026 PRESENTATION HANDOUTS: (https://xminds.org/resources/Document...) SPEAKERS: Lisa Mihalich Quinn, M.A./M.Ed./MBA, (http://www.reacheveryvoice.org) is a licensed special educator with nearly 20 years of experience making academic content accessible for neurodiverse students and learners who use Augmentative and Alternative Communication (AAC). A former Montgomery County Public Schools teacher, she is the founder of Reach Every Voice, co-founder of Communication for Education, and co-founder of Adaptiverse (https://adaptiverseapp.com), an AI powered platform that helps educators create adapted grade-level lessons in minutes. Dr. Edlyn Peña is a professor in the Education Leadership doctoral program at California Lutheran University and the co-founding Director of the Autism and Communication Center (ACC) (https://www.callutheran.edu/centers/a.... Dr. Peña leads national efforts in advocacy, scholarship, training, and community programs. In 2025, Dr. Peña became the founding CEO of the Dream Community Center, an inclusive recreation and learning hub for neurodiverse teens and adults. Julie Sando is the Founder of Autistically Inclined (https://www.autisticallyinclined.com) and Co-Founder of Communication for Education (https://www.communicationforeducation...), where she supports families and professionals in helping nonspeaking individuals communicate through text-based multimodal tools. She earned her B.A. in Communications (California Lutheran University, 2000) and a Certificate in Assistive Technology (CSUN, 2018). SPONSORED BY: Partnership for Extraordinary Minds (xMinds), https://xminds.org/ More resources on nonspeaking students on xMinds: https://xminds.org/Nonspeaking-Autistics