Russ Ewell: Creating Inclusive Soccer and Hope Technology School ~ 302

Tim Villegas
I’m recording from my living room in beautiful Marietta, Georgia. You’re listening to the Think Inclusive Podcast, Episode Nine, brought to you by Brooks Publishing Company. I’m your host, Tim Villegas. Today, I’ll be speaking with Russ Ewell, the CEO of Digital Scribbler, founder of Hope Technology Group—which started Hope Technology School, a nationally recognized full inclusion school—and founder of E-soccer, an all-volunteer inclusive soccer program.

I had the pleasure of visiting with him one evening in November of last year. Russ and I discussed the beginnings of E-soccer, and how, for all intents and purposes, it happened by accident. We also talked about how sports programs can become more inclusive when everyone has the right attitude and gets training on how to be proactive instead of reactive. Russ even makes me blush near the end of the interview, so make sure to listen to the entire podcast.

So without further ado, let’s get to the Think Inclusive Podcast. Thanks for listening.

Joining us today on the Think Inclusive Podcast is Russ Ewell, the CEO of Digital Scribbler, which is the creator of the communication app Quick Talk AAC. He’s also the founder of Hope Technology Group, which started Hope Technology School, a nationally recognized full inclusion school. And also, he’s the founder of E-soccer, an all-volunteer inclusive soccer program dedicated to empowering both typical and special needs children of all abilities.

Russ, thanks so much for taking some time to speak with us.

Russ Ewell
I’m excited to be here. It’s a privilege to be on your podcast, and all the Think Inclusive work that you do inspires me.

Tim Villegas
Well, thanks, Russ. You are a man of many hats, that is for sure.

Russ Ewell
Yeah. I don’t know how it happens to me yet.

Tim Villegas
So I just read that description. Did you set out to start something like this? Or how did this happen exactly?

Russ Ewell
You know, I didn’t set out to do any of these things. My wife probably deserves the bulk of the credit. She’s the Executive Director for Hope Technology School. She’s the real person who put it together. Hope Technology Group, which I work with, just pretty much raised the money and continues to support the work financially and with technology.

As a parent of two sons with special needs—and one typical child—I was looking for a way to do something like a father-son experience with them. This was in the mid to late ’90s. I joined some special needs sports programs. They were enjoyable, and my son and I liked them. But having grown up as an athlete, I realized that a big part of athletics is the family and community experience.

What I noticed was that in the special needs sports I was involved in, we were off to a different side of the field or court while everyone else was in another place with the typical children. That was very different from how I grew up. I wanted my kids to experience what I experienced—a complete, total community. What we now call inclusion, for me, was just life.

So I came home one day and told my wife, “I just don’t know how much longer I can do this.” I wanted my son to be with his friends who were in the typical program. They were together all week, and then they’d leave for sports. I said, “I’ve got to do something.”

I reached out to my friends—many of whom had neurotypical kids and were high-level soccer players. I had been reading and studying, trying to figure out what to do next. Back then, there wasn’t as much information for parents of kids with special needs. I read that soccer was more popular worldwide for many reasons: it’s not expensive, it doesn’t require hand-eye coordination, and it’s accessible.

So we launched what eventually became E-soccer.

I got my friends together and said, “I want my kids to experience what everyone else is experiencing.” We ended up across the street from our house at a middle school with about 16 of us and six to eight kids. We just started doing little soccer drills.

My big vision was that any teenager or middle schooler who volunteered would help the kids become really good at soccer so they could play at a high level. We wanted to help kids with special needs develop fine and gross motor skills and give them friendships. And as parents, we could hang out on the sidelines and enjoy a real community experience.

It started small—maybe 25 kids on a Saturday. Then one mother came by and asked if she could join. I said, “It’s not really a program.” But my wife said, “Are you really going to leave this poor mom all by herself with no help?” So I let her in. That led to hundreds more joining over time.

Everything I’ve done—E-soccer, software development—hasn’t been on purpose. It came by necessity, by chance, and because I thought it was helping people.

Tim Villegas
That’s really interesting. Like you said, inclusion is about community. And it’s best when it happens organically, not when it’s forced. You weren’t trying to “do inclusion”—you just wanted your kids to have the same experience as everyone else.

So where did it go from there? And the “E” in E-soccer stands for “everyone,” is that correct?

Russ Ewell
It started as “exceptional.” That was a word used a lot at the time for kids’ programs. But now, the “E” tends to stand for whatever the person attending thinks it stands for—some say “everyone,” some say “exceptional,” some say “empowered.” The idea was that this program is different. We can take anybody and help them have the experience of what we now call inclusion.

We started at a middle school, then moved to a park. Eventually, we had to move to the largest park in Foster City, California. We maxed out at about 125 kids. People were driving an hour and a half to get there on Saturdays because they said there was nothing like it.

One couple even bought a house across the street because they loved the program so much. The city didn’t charge us for the field—we became part of the community. Now, we have about 400–500 kids every Saturday across various programs.

College students have launched clubs on their campuses. Some have started their own versions of E-soccer. We’ve had programs in Africa and Las Vegas—Las Vegas had 400 people show up on the first day.

I even received the Jefferson Award for community service and a congressional citation from Congressman Tom Lantos. I thought it was a joke at first! But they said, “These are the kinds of things that make our community better.”

The most rewarding part has been seeing parents of typical children say, “We want our kids to grow up in a diverse world where they learn to give back.” That’s been incredibly encouraging.

Tim Villegas
That’s fabulous. Are there any restrictions on who can participate? What about kids with significant physical or behavioral challenges?

Russ Ewell
Great question. In the Bay Area programs we run, we’ve never turned anyone away. We don’t get a lot of kids with significant physical disabilities, but we do get some. Our attitude is: let’s work with the child on the field and ask the parents to step back a little.

We train our coaches extensively. Originally, I required five weeks of training before anyone could work with a child. Now, it’s a weekend training, but still very thorough. We have physical therapists, occupational therapists, and special education teachers involved.

We teach our coaches that a lot of what makes a child “difficult” to work with is the attitude of the people receiving them. We train them to be patient, to take responsibility, and to reflect on their own approach.

Sometimes, a child will sit on the sidelines for weeks before stepping onto the field. But eventually, they’re out there playing. That’s how we approach inclusion.

Tim Villegas
That’s wonderful how you are able to convey that to the people you work with and who take the time to do that—not only in so-called “special programs” or programs where children with disabilities are involved, but in schools. I wish people would take the time to talk with teachers or paraprofessionals about how to deal with challenging behavior. I hear stories, I read stories, and I see things with my own eyes that, if only we had that background knowledge, we would be able to handle those situations a little bit better.

I’d like to transition us from talking about E-soccer to Hope Technology School, which you had a hand in founding or creating as well. Is that correct?

Russ Ewell
Yeah, I think it was a team effort. My wife—Silicon Valley was booming in the ’90s, and we happened to be living here. A number of our friends from all different walks of life were having great success. I went to a graduation at a private school in Los Angeles. My friend’s daughter was graduating from a very exclusive and well-known school. I was invited, and we sat with family and friends on this beautiful campus on a sunny day. Leonard Nimoy was there, along with Disney executives and other recognizable people.

The commencement speaker got up and talked about how the school started. He said, “When I first looked at the school, it was just a set of trailers on a hill, and everything else was mud.” That’s where the school began. I turned to one of my friends and said, “You can start a school? If that’s all it takes—five or six trailers—you can start a school?”

I came home and started talking to my wife. She said, “Yeah, we could do that.” Of course, the first question was, “How do you pay for anything?” It’s intimidating. I grew up in public education, my kids were in public school, and I thought, “How in the world do you do that?” You see all the infrastructure and think it’s impossible.

But then I talked to a teacher—one of my first goals—and said, “Can you start a school?” She said, “It’s not that hard. I know I can teach kids ABCs.” She encouraged me. Our friends said, “Let’s do it. We’ll offer the gym, we’ll raise the money. It’s doable.”

We put the money together. My wife took the reins and started recruiting teachers. She began with one experimental class over the summer to see how it would go—an even number of typical and special needs kids. There was an elementary school in the Bay Area whose student population had dropped. Someone we knew found out about it and helped us get a contract with them.

She started with two or three classes after that summer. From there, it grew to K–8. She’s got a set of educators and teachers. I don’t have anything to do with the running of the school, but she’s built a great team. They recently finished California accreditation, and the reviewers marveled at what has taken place at Hope Technology School. They referred to the paraeducators as “rockstars”—many of them have master’s degrees.

It’s inclusive. I forget the exact percentage, but I think it may be 60/40 or 50/50 typical and special needs. They have speech therapists, occupational therapists, physical therapists on campus. Great administration, great parent group.

It’s inspired me—not really about private education—but about what’s possible when teachers and parents get on the same page and work together. When parents respect what teachers know and teachers learn from parents, it’s extraordinary to watch. I think it’s a vision of where education will go in the future, even in public schools.

Tim Villegas
Yeah, I agree. The potential that’s there when teachers and parents are on the same page and trust is built—that’s a big key to what’s missing. When we have IEPs that are five or six hours long, with advocates and lawyers, it’s a trust issue.

If we trusted each other, had open communication, and were on the same page, we could go a lot farther. It sounds like that’s what you’re trying to do with Hope Technology School. And also, you started so small. With public education, it’s hard because it’s such a big system—not just district-wide, but state and federal. No one seems to be talking to each other.

Russ Ewell
It’s interesting. Public education takes a beating sometimes. I grew up in a family with a mother who worked in public schools. My dad was an educator. My mom taught me before I got to school. I have a high degree of respect for educators and teachers.

She worked all day, came home, took care of us, and went back to work. I went to a suburban school that was part of the community—it was great. But she didn’t want to teach where I went to school. She wanted to help African American kids in the inner city who needed help.

What I believe now is that when teachers are empowered in the classroom and supported by administration—and when parents are involved and respected—it shows. Some teachers at Hope Technology School came from public schools. I saw a study recently that said many teachers in private education don’t make as much money as those in public education. But they get more freedom, a smoother life, and get to see the success of their students. That’s attractive.

In smaller environments, you can do things more quickly. A teacher can say, “I want to do this in my class,” and it gets done. One teacher came to me and said, “You’re doing Digital Scribbler. Can we get the software in here?” We talked to people at Apple, and volunteers helped get iPads. Within seven days, they were up and running.

I look forward to a day in education when a teacher can make the call for what they need to do for students without going through layers of forms and approvals. I know I’m probably idealistic, but it’s my hope.

Tim Villegas
Well, you know, we can all be that way, I suppose. I definitely have my lofty dreams about education—and in particular, about public education. There is a place for public education. It’s unfortunate that we have to work so hard to get the things we want, and it does take a long time.

Just as an example, we were talking about technology. I have a particular software that I use—I’m not going to promote it or anything—but I didn’t have the updates for it. And it’s not like I can just go and download the updates. I have to have someone else do that for me. Also, everything is blocked. We don’t have free rein on the internet. Everything is filtered. So websites that would be useful, I can’t access. I can’t send them to my colleagues to read at school—they have to do it at home. That gets frustrating. So we just have to do the best with what we have.

Russ Ewell
It’s complicated, obviously. The truth is, everybody faces some challenge. That’s part of the reason we wanted to start the different programs we started. It’s not that we were unhappy with public schools—I was happy with the public school system for myself, and my wife went to public school. My kids were in public school while they were there.

But at some point, you want to innovate. And sometimes the best way to get things started is to have some examples—small, shining examples. Hopefully, they’ll eventually have an impact. That’s why I like what you’re doing. A lot of teachers on the ground are making a difference, and I like what they’re doing.

For someone like me, developing software, I depend on great teachers—in physical classrooms, special education classrooms, inclusive classrooms—to tell me what they need. I wish I had more time to make more of what I hear is needed.

One of the reasons I wanted to be on your podcast is because of all the work I see you doing. I get inspired when I look at it. If we can get tools into the hands of teachers like yourself and others—and give them the freedom—I think a lot of things will take care of themselves in the education system.

The hard part, as you said, is that as long as it’s big, it’s hard for that to happen. But you may sometimes be plowing away, writing articles, mobilizing people like me and parents to contribute and collaborate, and wonder if it’s making a difference. I talk about you at least every two or three weeks with someone—something I’ve read on your site, or someone you’ve interacted with.

Also, I think about how hard you work. It reminds me of my mom. She would spend her own money on her classroom. I knew it. She insisted, “My classroom is going to be the best—design, inspiration, energy—if I have to pay for it myself.” Sometimes we didn’t get what we wanted because she said, “I had to get posters for my classroom. You’ll have to wait.”

That’s how I learned about public school teachers. So I just wanted to say thank you for what you do, for all you write, and the way you mobilize. Some days when I think, “I can’t write another word, I can’t do another thing,” I’ll see you post something new or get something from another writer. That’s how change happens.

I don’t think anyone’s going to walk into the White House and change things overnight. It’s going to be people on the ground—in classrooms. There are few people I admire more than teachers. I’ve encouraged a lot of people to become teachers. I tell them, “I remember my teachers—Mrs. Sherman in fourth grade, Mr. Wood in fifth grade, Mrs. Young in ninth grade—they changed my life.”

There’s nothing like being a hometown hero. And that means a lot to me. I’ve always been impacted by how much it means to them that I’ve done something useful with my life. Your Think Inclusive work is a reason I wanted to come on here and talk. I admire what you’ve done. The creativity is outstanding. I’m not sure you hear that enough, but I’ve been feeling that for a long time.

Tim Villegas
Thank you very much, Russ. That means a lot coming from you. I definitely have a mutual respect for you as well—and the work you do with Digital Scribbler and Quick Talk AAC, which I actually have on my iPad. I wish I used it more. It’s just not something I’m able to see right now, but I have shown it to other people.

Like I said, I appreciate those words very, very much. Sometimes it’s hard to gauge what kind of impact you’re having when you’re a blogger. But it’s good that I have this kind of cognitive dissonance every time I go to work. I’m in a self-contained environment and have been since my first day as a teacher. But I’ve always had this inclusion mindset with my kids.

Even when I taught in Pasadena, California, in a self-contained autism class, I would take my kiddos into fourth-grade general ed for math. When I first got there, they wanted us to go into the separate preschool playground. I said, “No, no, no. We need to be out with everybody else. We need to mingle. We can’t be invisible.”

It was a different mindset. I tried to buck the system, and I continue to do it. Sometimes you get the feeling like you’re being annoying.

Russ Ewell
This is the historical truth: anytime change happens, it’s rarely comfortable for the status quo. As the world becomes more globalized, we experience that here in the Bay Area. You sit in a coffee shop and hear languages from all over the world.

The world is getting more diverse. And those who think people with special needs or disabilities won’t be part of that inclusion are mistaken. It’s not just a moral issue—it’s a mistake creatively.

If it hadn’t been for special needs kids, a lot of the technologies that are beginning to explode wouldn’t exist. I’ve talked to developers and engineers at HP, Apple, Google. They become more passionate when they find out a child without language or who was isolated is now able to connect emotionally and socially because of their technology.

I sat in a room with the engineers who built the HP TouchSmart. They were stunned when they found out what we were doing with it in classrooms.

So when I see you on the playground, pushing for your kids to be accepted, I think it’s pushing society to say, “We can’t just build a world for the fittest. It has to be for everybody.” And we all gain from that.

That’s why I stay driven. I was that kind of kid growing up—academics, sports, grades, test scores. I had all that. But when I got to college in Boston, I realized the world was bigger than my small bubble.

By the time I had kids with special needs, I had already bought into the idea that you don’t just build your exclusive little world. Once I had kids with special needs, I said, “This whole idea that if you have talent, you’re great, and if you don’t, you’re out—that’s out the window.” I had to erase my whole frame and start over. And I’m glad I did.

So when I hear what you’re talking about, just keep at it. Every teacher is shaping society every day.

Tim Villegas
Yeah. I definitely think that changing your heart and mind about what inclusion is—that’s what’s going to change people. Research is great and useful, especially in schools where decisions are based on it. But for teachers in the classroom, if I can show them a video, an article by a self-advocate, or an example of how to include a student with significant disabilities in a typical classroom—those are the big “aha” moments.

It was the same for me. When I started my teacher training, I thought, “There’s no way I could include a student with severe autism in a general ed room.” I thought, “Why would that ever work?”

But my professors and educators said, “Actually, you can. And here’s how.” Once I saw it, I thought, “Oh, that’s not what I thought it would be.” My eyes were opened.

I remember when I first got into my education program and was picking classes. My advisor mentioned inclusion for students with significant disabilities. I was completely against it. I said, “No, they need specialized instruction. They need to be in a safe environment.” I was saying all the things I hear now when I bring up the conversation.

She said, “Actually, no. Check this out. Read this. Look at this.” Slowly but surely, my eyes were opened. And now, there’s no way I can go back to where I was. I’ve seen with my own eyes that it can work.

That doesn’t mean there aren’t challenges or that some environments aren’t ready. That’s a real discussion. But to say it doesn’t work or will never happen—that’s just because we haven’t seen it yet.

Well, this has been a really great discussion. I want to wrap things up and give you a chance to plug some of your work. I know E-soccer is expanding into other sports. Or if you want to talk about Quick Talk AAC, I’m happy to plug that.

Russ Ewell
If people want to check it out, they can search for E-sports or go to my site: www.digitalscribbler.com. But honestly, I came on just to have a great talk with you. I’ve enjoyed the podcast, and I wanted to encourage people to listen to your work and follow you more often. That’s why I wanted to be on.

Tim Villegas
Well, thanks a lot, Russ. I appreciate it. If anyone is interested, they can check out digitalscribbler.com. You also tweet at @D_Scribbler, right?

Russ Ewell
Yes, that’s right.

Tim Villegas
And you can also Google E-soccer—there’s a lot of great information out there. Thanks again, Russ, for being on the program.

Russ Ewell
Thank you very much.

Tim Villegas
That concludes this edition of the Think Inclusive Podcast. For more information about Russ Ewell and E-soccer, visit his website at digitalscribbler.com or on Twitter at @D_Scribbler. Remember, you can always find us on Twitter at @think_inclusive or on the web at thinkinclusive.us.

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Today’s show was produced by myself, talking into USB headphones, a MacBook Pro, GarageBand, and a Skype account. Bumper music by Jose Galvez with the song “Press.” You can find it on iTunes.

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From Marietta, Georgia, please join us again on the Think Inclusive Podcast. Thanks for your time and attention.