ShaRhonda Knott-Dawson

Dear Black Students, Your Freedom Will Not Come From What You Learn in School
The master’s tools will never dismantle the master’s house. Audre Lorde Dear Black Students: I understand how frustrating it must be to see all the…

How I’m Helping My Child With Special Needs Navigate Remote Learning
My children always start school two weeks before everyone else. So after two weeks of e-learning—or what I am calling two-weeks “in the trenches”—I feel…

Let’s Celebrate Scholarships and Financial Aid Like We Celebrate College Acceptance
This is the time of the year that high schools, parents and students are proudly boasting about their acceptance into colleges and universities. Acceptance to…

No, It’s Not OK to Leave My Child Behind, Even in a National Crisis
As a disability advocate and a parent of a child with autism, I’m hearing stories from other parents of children with autism that break my…

If It’s Important for Girls to Lead, Let’s Make It a Priority at School
Coronavirus has given us little to celebrate. My hope is that one of the silver linings during this crisis is that all students, but especially…

Here’s What I Suggest Schools Do Now to Support Students Through This Pandemic
This Coronavirus pandemic is truly a life-changing event. It is hard to even compare what we are experiencing to any other time period in American…

My Kids Are Online All the Time Now And I Don’t Always Know What They’re Looking At
OK, I have a confession to make. I have not been as good at monitoring my children’s internet access as I should have been. If…

Real Talk From Parents Homeschooling Children With Disabilities
Parents of children with disabilities are already some of the strongest, fiercest and most exhausted parent advocates for quality schools during regular times. So sure,…

Here’s a Virtual Hug for All You Instant Homeschoolers
Dear parents of school-age children: Please don’t be so hard on yourself if “e-learning” at home is hard for you. Teaching is a profession, where…

My 7-Year-Old Helped Frame Her IEP Goals
Having a child with a disability, and becoming disabled myself, has put me through a boot-camp that prepared me for the war for quality services…