Towson’s second Inclusive Excellence Summit centers around DEI and neurodiversity 

By Theresa Pratt, Deputy News Editor

Towson University’s Office of Inclusion and Institutional Equity held its second Inclusive Excellence Summit on Friday, Nov. 6, covering the topic of inclusivity for neurodivergent groups. 

The first summit was held in November 2025, with Nikole Hannah-Jones serving as the keynote speaker. 

This year’s Keynote speaker was author Ludmila Praslova, with the event title being “The World Works Better With Us.”

The panelist theme was “Building Better Together: Advancing Neuro-affirming Spaces through Student Joy,” where students and guest speakers talked about how the university can improve the services and resources they offer to neurodivergent people. 

Praslova presented the ideas from her book, “The Canary Code: A Guide to Neurodiversity, Dignity, and Intersectional Belonging at Work,” which inspired the theme for this year’s summit. 

Praslova said she thinks the focus of this year’s summit is important.

“Too many people assume that inclusion means lower standards, when it is the opposite. In fact, as this year’s theme suggests, ‘the world works better with us,’” she said. “When we create organizations that work for neurodivergent people, we make work better for everyone.”

She also said it’s vital to break down barriers around inclusion that are put up by companies and organizations, including universities. 

Brian Jara, the director of inclusive excellence education and support, was one of the university staff members involved in the planning of the event. He said the increasing number of discussions about neurodiversity are good. 

“Neurodiversity is being talked about a lot more. One of the things I’ve learned from Jenn, the entire ADS team, and others in our division is that this is not a brand-new concept. It’s just more understanding on the fact that our brains work differently,” Jara said. 

Jennifer Walsh, the senior disability coordinator for the university’s Office of Accessibility and Disability Services, was also involved in the summit planning and said she was excited to see neurodiversity take center stage.

“I think there’s a lot of topics that fall under DEI. While disabilities are not completely forgotten about, a lot of times the other topics just tend to be so big,” she said. “I’m just so glad that this go-around, disabilities are the angle.”