The Duality of Being
the Expert &
the Caregiver

Ayana Green is a Licensed Professional Counselor (LPC) in Georgia with more than 20 years of experience in the behavioral health field. A dedicated wife, mother, daughter, sister, and friend, Ayana is passionate about helping individuals navigate mental health, emotional, and substance use challenges and has gained extensive experience across a variety of behavioral health settings, including psychiatric hospitals, community mental health centers, and commercial insurance. As a caregiver for her mother, who lives with Alzheimer's disease, Ayana has experienced firsthand the challenges, responsibilities, and emotional complexities of caring for an aging loved one. Her caregiving journey inspired her to establish “Take Care – A Community for Caregivers,” a supportive forum created to provide caregivers with resources, education, and a safe space to share their experiences.

Amanda Hitchins, MS, CCC-SLP is a 2012 graduate of the Mass General Brigham University of Health Professions who has spent the last 14 years working in various settings from a suburban Massachusetts outpatient rehabilitation hospital, a 60-bed skilled nursing facility, to an adult and pediatric clinic in Eastern Congo, and most recently an elementary school in rural Minnesota. After both of her parents were diagnosed with early-onset dementias, Amanda was forced to navigate the boundaries of caregiving as an SLP and as a daughter. Now that her parents have passed, she has found both personal and professional opportunities to share her experiences with the hopes of helping others in similar circumstances.

Andi Putt , also known as Mrs. Speechie P, is an Autistic Speech Language Pathologist specializing in team-based Autism evaluations and neuro-affirming support. She is dedicated to empowering families and helping Autistic children understand and embrace their authentic selves while also advocating for each individual’s unique needs. When she’s not advocating, you can find her indulging in a good book, planning her next travel adventure, procrastinating literally anything, or enjoying time with her family.

Dr. Carliss Miller is an organizational behavior scholar, leadership advisor, and founder and principal advisor of Transformation Architects. With more than 20 years of experience across corporate, academic, and consulting settings, she helps leaders and organizations build inclusive, human-centered, and psychologically safe environments. She teaches Inclusive Leadership Strategy as adjunct faculty at the University of Houston’s C. T. Bauer College of Business and serves on the board of the Inclusive Leadership Institute. She is also the founder of Petty Professor, an education-inspired brand that uses humor and affirmation to make learning and leadership more accessible.

AC Goldberg (he/him), PhD, CCC-SLP, is a speech-language pathologist licensed in the U.S., Canada, and Australia, currently a Senior Lecturer in Speech Pathology at Victoria University in Melbourne. His award-winning scholarship centers voice, neurotype, culturally responsive practice, and affirming communication care. AC is the executive director of the CREDIT Institute, and founding member of the Trans Voice Initiative. He shares education and advocacy resources on Instagram at @transplaining.

Germaine Graham, M.S., CCC-SLP, is a bilingual ASL/English speech-language pathologist and the founder of Deafinitely Communicating, a private practice services to Deaf and Hard of Hearing (DHH) children, their families, and schools. With more than a decade in Deaf Education she brings a bilingual, strengths-based, access-first approach to every child she serves, educating families about early language access, its impact on the brain, and the benefits of ASL for Deaf children. Germaine’s work is shaped as much as she is a full-time caregiver to her daughter with multiple disabilities while also navigating special education services with another daughter who is developmentally delayed. Living on both sides of the table gives her a deep understanding of what families carry and is the foundation of her compassionate, person-centered approach.

Meghan Haney, M.S. CCC-SLP is a Speech-Language Pathologist with more than 25 years of experience in public schools, serving students from Pre-K through grade 12. Throughout her career, she has supported students with diverse needs and collaborated with families and school teams to help children access meaningful educational opportunities. As a parent advocating for her own child’s educational needs, Meghan has gained a deeply personal perspective on the challenges of navigating the school system. Her experience on both sides of the table has reinforced her belief that knowing the system and navigating it for your own child are two very different experiences.

Stacy Bardon is the Founder and CEO of Everything Autism Consulting services and the Director of Taki-Wa-Tanga virtual microschool. She is passionate about teaching Autistic students around the globe, with more than 30 years of experience as an SLP, Early Intervention Autism Specialist, Sensory Enrichment Therapist and a Child Development Specialist. As a Black educator who identifies as ADHD, Stacy brings a dual, intersectional perspective to supporting neurodivergent students, combining lived experience with practical, classroom-tested strategies. She co-hosts "Shifting the Narrative on Everything Autism" , a podcast that offers listeners the opportunity to view Autism through various lenses.

Destiny Huff, LPC, is a late-diagnosed Autistic and ADHD therapist, non-attorney special education advocate, speaker, author, and educator. She is the founder of HRG Counseling & Supervision, LLC and Destiny Huff Consulting, LLC, where she supports neurodivergent individuals, families, and professionals through a neuroaffirming, trauma-informed, and connection-centered lens. As a Black Autistic and ADHD woman, military spouse, wife to an ADHDer, and mother raising neurodivergent children, Dr. Huff brings both professional expertise and lived experience to her work advocating for more inclusive, affirming, and equitable systems. She has supported families across the United States in navigating IEPs, evaluations, school-based supports, and disability-related educational needs. Her work centers on moving beyond compliance-based approaches and creating environments that prioritize access, regulation, autonomy, communication, belonging, and meaningful support.

Zidonia Wong is an LMSW, CSW-I, with over 15 years of experience in social services. She earned her BA in Sociology and Masters of Social Work at the University of Nevada Las Vegas. She currently works as Youth and Adult Intervention Specialist, in the Institutional Mental Health Dept, with Clark County Clinical and Community Services; specializing in crisis stabilization with youth in foster care, and Commercially Sexually Exploited Children. Zidonia also serves as a Mental Health Counselor with R.I.S.E Homes, serving youth in a transitional housing program.