Reflections
As part of the Vanderbilt Kennedy Center's 50th anniversary celebration, families, researchers, staff, trainees, and others shared their reflections. View a sample below, and select "more" to view additional comments.
| A reflection from a family |
 | My involvement with the Vanderbilt Kennedy Center has been through Tennessee Adult Brothers and Sisters (TABS), a support group for adults who have siblings with special needs. We are the first generation to grow up with our siblings kept at home, instead of being institutionalized. That brings many wonderful blessings but also brings challenges. TABS, with the Vanderbilt Kennedy Center, has helped us navigate this new course. Tina Prochaska - Sibling See More... |
| A reflection from a trainee |
 | The VKC has become a home to my family in the few short years since my daughter’s birth. We’ve benefited in countless ways from its research, professional training (I was a LEND Family Trainee), workshops, and other community programs. I also have the opportunity to learn and give back to the Center as part of the Community Advisory Council and the Public Policy Committee. The VKC has been an incredible resource to me as a parent but has also been critical in my development as a professional, helping me to become a voice for other families through special education advocacy. From both perspectives, I cannot overstate the importance of the Center’s role in creating more meaningful and productive lives for people like my daughter, and I am proud to be part of an organization that continues to lead this charge both locally and nationally. Christine Sartain - Parent, LEND Trainee, and Disability Advocate See More... |
| A reflection from a professional |
| [The VKC] is an absolutely amazing place to work, but more importantly, people here truly help to change lives for the better. I’ve worked here in some capacity since I graduated from the Master’s of Special Education program in 2007, and I cannot think of a better place to refer families who have a loved one with a disability. In my own work, we are helping high school students with autism and their families prepare for the transition from high school, and we are also helping faith communities as they support people with disabilities to find and hold employment. Jenny Gustafson - Special Education Alumna and VKC Disability Professional See More... |
| A reflection from a researcher |
 | I have been attracted to developmental disabilities research since graduate school, when I was involved in cloning the fragile X syndrome locus. I continued work to solve genetic puzzles related to developmental disabilities as a postdoctoral fellow studying Prader-Willi and Angelman syndrome. I have extended these efforts across the genome in collaborative efforts to discover the nature of genetic variation underlying autism. Studying how systems are affected by risk factors may ultimately lead to improved therapeutic options for vulnerable populations. The VKC is unique as a trans-institutional Center with activities spanning an extraordinary spectrum from community outreach and family support to basic research. It is this reach across so many disciplines, providing opportunities to bring different kinds of expertise and investigators together to attack the problem of diagnosing, treating, and deciphering the underlying biological basis of a developmental disorder that I find so compelling. James Sutcliffe, Ph.D. - Molecular Physiology & Biophysics See More... |
Submit your reflection here