Since 2013, as a Choices Counselor for Gateway Academy and St. Thomas High School, I have been working with incredible clinicians and educators to create the LIFE Curriculum for both neurodivergent and neurotypical young people, their parents, teachers, and various other professionals. I call it the LIFE Curriculum, as these are Lessons Inspiring Future Excellence!

Much of a young person’s world, as guided by the adults in their life, is centered around fundamental academic education, with a bit of extracurricular activities sprinkled in and the ultimate goal often being college and a successful career. However, as a society, we are failing to recognize the importance of many other life lessons that are paramount in creating healthy teens and young adults. Schools rarely provide the practical LIFE lessons needed to build the necessary personal skills to navigate the adult world. As our young children reach their teen and young adult years, they are less equipped to handle the responsibilities that come with growing up. We are seeing more self-doubt, depression, anxiety, self-harm, suicide, and low motivation. Healthy relationships with self and others are giving way to isolation and screen relationships, which do not actually help build the interpersonal skills required for healthy adult relationships.

The LIFE Curriculum is designed to provide quality researched information about each topic so that there is a clear foundational understanding that grows into deeper knowledge through ongoing self-reflection and practical application. This ensures that the concepts and principles are well understood and intentionally applied in the real world and in our digital world.

The LIFE Curriculum is also a place where you can share your successes and wins in life while gaining insight and support from other subscribers going through similar experiences. I have learned more from others than I could ever share and aim to cultivate a community where anyone can gain LIFE experience from their own experiences or from each other, because life is not a solo journey, but one that requires the benefits of a healthy community.