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TWE 288: Diana Diaz-Harrison on Her Groundbreaking School for Autistic Children

October 7, 2020 //  by Catherine Anaya//  Leave a Comment

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Diana Diaz-Harrison, Founder and Executive Director of the Arizona Autism Charter School, talks with TWE Host Catherine Anaya about dealing with the challenges in starting this innovative, tuition-free charter school for kids with autism, like her son Sammy, and how Sammy and the school are thriving.
Diana Diaz-Harrison, founder of the Arizona Autism Charter School, with Catherine Anaya

Available also on Apple Music, Spotify and Stitcher

Diana Diaz-Harrison, founder and Executive Director of the Arizona Autism Charter School, is my featured guest on this BRAND NEW episode of The Women’s Eye podcast with Catherine Anaya.

Diana Diaz-Harrison, founder and CEO of the Arizona Autism Charter School, with her young son Sammy/Photo Courtesy Diana Diaz-Harrison
Diana and her young son Sammy

An astounding 1 in 54 children in the U.S. is diagnosed with autism.

Not finding a fit in public school options, Diana was inspired to start Arizona Autism Charter School in 2014 for her son Sammy who was diagnosed with autism when he was two-years-old.

Based on the success of charter schools for children in other states, she decided to start a tuition-free school in Arizona because the private school options were so costly.

Today, Sammy is thriving and so is Arizona Autism Charter School, which is expanding to a new state-of-the-art campus! 

This charter school is the first tuition-free, public charter in the state to focus on the needs of students with autism.

In six short years, the school has grown from 90 students to a new 40,000 square foot campus with an enrollment of 375 students.

Diana Diaz-Harrison, founder of the Arizona Autism Charter School, with her son Sammy, age 18/Photo Courtesy Diana Diaz-Harrison
Diana and Sammy turning 18

Diana tells me what she believes her school’s growth says about the needs of children and families with autism, many of whom have traveled across the country to enroll their students in her school.

We also talk about the challenges the pandemic created for families with children with special needs and how Arizona Autism Charter School and its students adapted to at-home learning.

Plus, find out what drives Diana to continue advocating for families and children with autism and her future plans for satellite schools across the state and perhaps beyond.

Enjoy the vidcast!

Don’t miss our conversation on the next episode of The Women’s Eye podcast!  

For more information about Arizona Autism Charter School:

Instagram: @azautismcharterschools

Facebook: Arizona Autism Charter Schools

Also, please check out our story on changemaker Jessica Posner who fought for establishing a school for girls in Kenya:

Jessica Posner On Building The First Free School For Girls In A Kenyan Slum
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Category: TWE Radio, TWE Radio & Podcast Archive, TWE Radio PodcastsTag: Arizona Autism Charter School, autism, Autism Schools, autistic children, Catherine Anaya, Diana Diaz-Harrison, Podcasts, TWE Podcasts

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