A high school student and his mom smile in a photo with a backdrop of a person dreaming about being an architect.

Wrapping Up 2025: Numbers with Impact

Our community’s support equipped 1,913 people with the knowledge, tools, and resources to be disability confident.

Together we made a big impact this year! Thank you.

What is Disability Confidence?

Disability confidence is a skill everyone can build.

It’s not about having all of the answers.

It’s about having the awareness and tools to engage confidently around disability so inclusion becomes part of everyday life, not an afterthought.

The Numbers

Let’s take a look at who built their disability confidence with us this year:

  • 40 middle and high school students with disabilities raised their expectations for their own futures.
  • 25 Deaf and Hard of Hearing people gained confidence and skills to succeed at work and beyond, and 500 more discovered the resources Starkloff offers for when they’re ready to advance their careers.
  • 83 college career advisors learned how to help every disabled student on their campus navigate unique barriers in preparing to launch their careers.
  • 7 college students and 5 adults with disabilities connected directly for 1:1 support in advancing their careers (and many more waiting to join us when additional program staff come on board in 2026!).
  • 830 architects, designers, planners, and homeowners explored the benefits and beauty of a world designed with every body in mind through expanded Universal Design education.
  • 923 professionals, disabled and nondisabled, expanded opportunities for people with disabilities to thrive in more than 18 organizations with the expertise shared by our workplace education team.

Behind each of these numbers is a story that changes how someone understands our world. This shift is how we break down barriers that exclude and isolate people with disabilities across our communities.

One of those people is Gio.

The Impact

Gio’s Future Transformed

When Gio arrived at Dream Big Career Camp, he was a bit shy. As a Deaf teen, his family’s recent move from the United Kingdom meant learning a new language. While English is about the same both places, American and British Sign Languages are completely different. Different grammar. Different vocabulary. Even a different alphabet.

Gio was able to work one-on-one with our Deaf and Hard of Hearing Coordinator throughout Dream Big. With that support, his ASL skills improved and his self-confidence grew. By the end of camp, he was signing with his American peers and adults.

And that wasn’t even the biggest transformation…

During camp, our partners at Mackey Mitchell helped students explore careers in architecture. This is where Gio met Kevin, a Deaf architect.

It was a game changer.

Kevin and Gio chatted for a long time about being a Deaf professional (Gio had lots of great questions!). But the fact is, Gio didn’t know it was possible for him to pursue a career in architecture…until he saw someone like him thriving in their career.

This is the difference our programs make.

Would a nondisabled kid ever think they couldn’t be an architect when they grow up? The reality is, most of the time, no one even asks kids with disabilities the question.

At Starkloff, we do. We’ve traveled the same path, and we know how to navigate the barriers. When our young people visit companies with Dream Big, they get to see and talk to disabled professionals in roles at every level. Students expand what they know to be possible. Futures transformed by new opportunities.

People who come to Starkloff are often on the path society laid out for them, excluded and isolated. Our programs teach them how to blaze their own trail.

Thank you for helping us create a world where everyone has the opportunity for success.

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