Celebrating Neurodiversity Week 2025 at GCU

Monday 17-03-2025 - 15:01

Celebrating Neurodiversity Week 2025 at GCU

Hey superstars, it’s Neurodiversity Week! This is a fantastic opportunity to celebrate and raise awareness about neurodiversity and inclusion within our GCU community.

Over the past few months, I've been collaborating with Erica, our Disabled Students’ Officer, and Uche, a PhD student at GCU to lobby the university management to establish a dedicated sensory room on campus. As well as this, Uche has submitted an application for the Magnusson Fund to aid the projects development. This project has been a key focus for us, and we're committed to making it happen.

My recent visit to the Stirling University sensory room solidified our belief that GCU can successfully create a similar space — all we need is a room to furnish. The library team is also keen to explore additional accessibility improvements for students, which is a great step forward.

A dedicated sensory room is essential to provide a calm and comfortable environment designed to support the wellbeing of neurodivergent students and offer a peaceful space for all students whenever they need to unwind. Such a space would offer appropriate lighting, sensory toys, and furnishings to help students de-stress, recharge, and find respite from the busy campus environment. The Disabled Students’ Network led by Erica has been working hard to raise awareness of quiet spaces on campus. Our goals include:

Creating posters to highlight quiet spaces and encourage people to minimize noise near those areas.
Developing a video map to help students easily locate these quiet spaces.
Organizing more mindfulness and wellness events to promote calm and relaxation on campus.

To celebrate Neurodiversity Week 2025, we hosted a special stall in the library on Wednesday 19th March 2025 from 11am. This was a great chance to:

Learn about inspiring neurodivergent individuals in public life.
Give feedback on what the university or your students association could do better to support YOU.
Share your experiences, ideas, and thoughts on what neurodiversity means to you.
Explore sensory toys and resources.

If you're passionate about inclusion or would like to support the development of our sensory room, please reach out to me or Erica. Together, we can create a more inclusive and supportive environment for all students at GCU.

Let's celebrate Neurodiversity Week with curiosity, understanding, and positivity!

Tom Tom
Vice President GSBS