Voices of Change: Inside the EALA Community of Action

Aurora Dreger:
So congratulations to [inaudible].

Tim Villegas:
This is Think Inclusive. I’m Tim Villegas.
What you just heard was a celebration of the winners of the participatory grant funding through the Educating All Learners Alliance (EALA) Community of Action—an event that took place in December 2024.

Change doesn’t come from the top down. It starts with the people closest to the challenges. That’s the heart of the Community of Action: a space where organizations come together to co-design solutions that directly support students with disabilities and learning differences.

Late in 2024, 22 mission-aligned organizations gathered for a 36-hour sprint of innovation. The result? Two powerful projects, chosen through a community-led grantmaking process, each receiving $75,000 to bring their ideas to life.

In this bonus episode, you’ll hear from participants behind the two winning initiatives—Youth Action Power and the Transformative Engagement Alliance—as well as voices from other teams who brought their passion and creativity to the table.

These projects aren’t just inspiring—they’re proof of what’s possible when we trust educators, families, and students to lead the way. Whether you’re an educator, advocate, or changemaker, this episode is for you.

After a short break, you’ll hear from a cross-section of folks who helped bring the Community of Action to life. Stick around—we’ll be right back.

Theresa Kowcheck (Elevate Literacy):
These past couple of days have been remarkable. The people I’ve networked with and met have truly inspired me in ways I didn’t expect. I’m excited to be here—it feels like a new beginning for me.

Tim Villegas:
Yeah, it was great working with you.

Theresa Kowcheck:
It was phenomenal working with such brilliant minds. At first, I felt like a spectator—I didn’t know what to expect. But I’m leaving feeling like a true team member.

Cara Laitusis (Senior Associate, Center for Assessment):
This is my 31st business trip of 2024, and it’s the first time I’ve participated in such a cross-sectional group—teachers, former administrators, and organizations supporting departments of education. It’s been a diverse and worthwhile experience. I didn’t come in expecting funding—I didn’t even know how much was available!

Tim Villegas:
Awesome. It was great meeting you—thanks for indulging me.

Sarah Sandelius (Founder & CEO, The Ability Challenge):
We’re totally going to win the pitch.

Tim Villegas:
I love the confidence!

Sarah Sandelius:
It’s been a great opportunity to connect with others in the space and step away from the day-to-day logistics of running an organization. It’s helped me think more about what we need as a sector and how to collaborate across organizations.

Tim Villegas:
Last year, I felt like I’d never collaborated so intensely before. Even if we hadn’t won funding, I just wanted to keep doing more of that.

Sarah Sandelius:
Exactly. It’s hard to think about long-term impact and collaboration when you’re focused on your own work. This experience really pushed us to think about how to work together more intentionally.

Ana Evancic (Program Officer, International Youth Foundation):
Our project centers around youth voice. Too often, we gather expertise from adults to solve problems affecting students—but we don’t include the students themselves. It’s not about romanticizing youth involvement—it’s about recognizing they deserve a seat at the table. When they get that seat, the transformation is powerful.

Tim Villegas:
Any takeaways from the experience?

Ana Evancic:
So many. Our project was a collaboration among seven organizations. It reminded us to tap into our shared humanity and recognize everyone’s value. We took time to connect on a deeper level, centering what we care about—young people and their opportunities to transform the world.

Maribel Gardea (Executive Director, MindShift at Parent Institute):
We’re super pumped! Our project focuses on parent engagement, especially addressing barriers like language access and special education. We hope to create a solution that helps measure and improve engagement with families who speak different languages.

Tim Villegas:
Do you anticipate any barriers?

Maribel Gardea:
Of course. The work we’ve proposed is immense. But we’re determined—we won’t let anything stop us. I’m confident we’ll accomplish what we set out to do.

Justine Katzenbach (Director of Organizational Strategy, Diverse Learners Cooperative):
We didn’t get the funding, but I feel great. It’s not about winning—it’s about the experience and the connections. I learned so much in just 36 hours. I’m walking away with actions I can take to improve my organization.

Tim Villegas:
Same here. Last year, I learned so much about project planning and communications. It’s been super valuable.

Justine Katzenbach:
Exactly. Talking to similar organizations about both programming and operations has been powerful. It’s helped me reflect on how to improve what we’re doing.

Alicia Ciocca (Coach & Consultant):
This was my first time coaching at the Community of Action. I wasn’t sure what to expect, but I ended up working with the largest group. It was amazing to see so many powerful ideas come together. Everyone dreamed big, but we had to work within a tight timeframe. It was beautiful chaos—guiding and coaching them to shape something impactful.

Tim Villegas:
You coached one of the winning groups—Youth Action Power. Can you summarize the project?

Alicia Ciocca:
It started with the question: how do we amplify youth narratives and center youth voices? We realized we couldn’t make decisions for youth—they need to guide the change they want to see. The idea became a youth-led project, possibly using youth participatory action research (YPAR). We scaled it to fit the time and resources, but left room for future growth.

Aurora Dreger:
Let’s start with Amber.

Tim Villegas:
All right. Can you say your name, your role, and your organization?

Amber Fowler:
My name is Amber Fowler, and I’m the Project Associate for EALA.

Tim Villegas:
Perfect. What are your takeaways from the last couple of days?

Amber Fowler:
This is actually my first Community of Action, and at first, I didn’t know what to expect. But being in this environment and seeing how collaborative everyone was—how people from different organizations came together to combine their thoughts and processes to make an impact in the education sector—was really an amazing experience.

Tim Villegas:
Yeah. Have you reflected at all about next year? Any thoughts on how we could expand?

Amber Fowler:
Not too much yet—I’m still coming down from the whole experience. But I think it would be amazing to have a bigger turnout next year. A larger audience would be great. I know it would take a lot of work and planning, but the more people we can bring into this kind of environment, the better.

Tim Villegas:
Awesome. Thank you. Any other thoughts before I turn it over to Aurora?

Amber Fowler:
No other thoughts.

Tim Villegas:
Okay. Thank you for your time.
All right, Aurora, you ready?

Aurora Dreger:
Yeah.

Tim Villegas:
Name, role, organization?

Aurora Dreger:
Hey, I’m Aurora Dreger, and I’m the Project Director of the Educating All Learners Alliance—otherwise known as EALA.

Tim Villegas:
Excellent. You keep talking about the “EALAverse.” I really enjoy that.

Aurora Dreger:
It’s a little MCU—like the Marvel Cinematic Universe. A fun reference.

Tim Villegas:
Exactly! And MCIE is part of the EALAverse. We’re a proud member.
This is the third year you’ve done this, right?

Aurora Dreger:
Yes, this is the third iteration—or phase—of the Community of Action. So, another Marvel reference: this is Phase Three of the EALAverse.

Tim Villegas:
Stay consistent with the metaphors!
What was this one like? You’ve been part of all three—what are your immediate takeaways?

Aurora Dreger:
The biggest thing is about being flexible, being adaptive, and finally stepping into my own as a leader. I’ve been with EALA for almost three years, and I love the work. Being able to lead this final iteration as the official Project Director was a really meaningful moment for me—both professionally and personally. I was able to use everything I’ve learned along the way to make this the best event yet.

Tim Villegas:
We were part of last year’s event, and you did a fantastic job. We didn’t receive funding, but honestly, it was so worth it just to be here—the connections, the learning, the project planning, the design thinking—it was all incredibly valuable.

Aurora Dreger:
I love to hear that. That’s the biggest thing I want people to walk away with. About 80% of participants won’t receive funding, but I hope everyone feels like it was a good use of their time. It’s about adapting to feedback, learning from past years, and continuing to improve. I’m always eager to hear what people think and what comes next.

Tim Villegas:
Well, great job. Thank you for your time—we’ll be in touch.

Tim Villegas (closing):
Before we wrap up, I just want to say thank you once again to the Educating All Learners Alliance—not only for the opportunity to participate in the Community of Action, but also for supporting MCIE through our podcast, Think Inclusive.

If you get a chance to be part of it, please do. It’s a fantastic, collaborative experience. I can’t say enough about what it’s meant to me and our organization.

Check them out at educatingalllearners.org. It’s a community you want to be involved with—especially if you support learners with disabilities.

That’s all the time we have for this bonus episode of Think Inclusive.

🎧 Credits:
Think Inclusive is brought to you by me, Tim Villegas. I handle the writing, editing, design, mixing, and mastering.
This podcast is a proud production of the Maryland Coalition for Inclusive Education.
Our music is by Melody.

We truly appreciate each and every one of you who tunes in. Do us a big favor—rate us on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you listen.

You can always send me a note and let me know what you think: email me at tvillegas@mcie.org.

We’ll be back next week with our regular episodes through the end of July. Then we’re taking a break until early September, which will kick off our 13th season.

Thanks for your time and attention.
And remember: Inclusion always works.

— From MCIE

Download the complete unedited version of the transcript here.