Before Conan Gillis was a mathematician or an advocate, he was an eight‑year‑old kid who just wanted to use his local library. But the aisles weren’t wide enough for his wheelchair, and the building simply wasn’t designed with him in mind.
That experience – and many others like it – sparked a lifelong practice of self‑advocacy, supported by his family.
Today, Conan is a PhD candidate who has navigated a wide range of educational systems, from K through twelve classrooms with formal support plans to the much more self‑directed world of higher education.
Along the way, those experiences shaped how he understands disability: not as a problem of individuals, but as a reflection of the environments and systems we build.
This episode explores:
- Learning self‑advocacy at a young age
- Transitioning from structured support to higher education
- The role of family in navigating disability and education
- Disability as an environmental and systemic issue
Move To Include is a national partnership of WXXI and the Golisano Foundation, to promote disability inclusion, representation, and accessibility in public media.
Additional support for the Move to Include Podcast is provided by Mary Cariola Center and the URMC Strong Center for Developmental Disabilities.
New episodes drop monthly. Subscribe wherever you get your podcasts.
