The stairs creaked as the speakers left the stage following their sound checks before silence filled the cavernous hall. The swish of the revolving door one floor below began to echo. Then, suddenly, the hall’s anticipatory silence crescendoed into eager chatter as the 2025 Breakthroughs in Twice-Exceptional Futures Conference began.

This annual conference is one of Quad Prep’s longest-standing traditions, gathering influential speakers and neurodiversity advocates from across the country to highlight and celebrate the importance of neuroinclusivity in education and beyond. Held at International House in New York City, this year’s conference was a meeting of the minds for educators, parents, and practitioners alike as they swapped ideas, shared best practices, and established new connections.

The conference had a star-studded lineup, opening with morning keynote speaker Peter Shankman. A six-time bestselling author and Co-Founder of Mental Capital Consulting, a global firm dedicated to helping companies attract, hire, and retain neurodiverse talent while creating inclusive, customer-centric workplaces, Peter inspired and energized our audience with insights into his own journey with ADHD.

The crowd erupted when Peter concluded his presentation, and the day continued with a roster of sessions that, according to several attendees, was so incredible, it was difficult to choose which exciting session to attend next. 

This year’s Nancy Tarshis Legacy Fellowship was presented to Kelly Mahler, award-winning occupational therapist, author, and self-proclaimed interoception groupie. Kelly captivated the audience with a keynote presentation on interoception and its importance in the emotional development of neurodiverse students. “This session was not just extremely enjoyable, but also pivotal to working with this population [of twice-exceptional students],” said one attendee.

Other sessions included a presentation on Harvard University’s The Open Canopy from Project Zero’s Co-Director, Liz Dawes Duraisingh; a session on neurodiversity in girls from Jennifer L. Hartstein, PsyD; sessions on Williams’ Creative Thinking Strategies and parenting in a digital world from gifted education guru, Lisa Van Gemert, M.Ed.T; a session on psychopharmacology from Paul B. Yellin, MD; a panel on AI and neurodiversity in the workplace with Morgan Stanley; a session on executive functioning and social cognition from Quad Prep’s very own Athena Stagias, MS, CCC-SLP; and a presentation on transitioning to college for students with disabilities from Susan Yellin, Esq.

The Breakthroughs Conference is always a poignant opportunity for professionals in every field to learn and grow, and for the Quad Prep faculty and clinicians, it is a built-in opportunity to learn about cutting-edge practices and research relevant to their daily work with twice-exceptional students. One Lower School staff member wrote in reflection to the conference, “I want to thank you for organizing the best Breakthroughs yet. Each speaker I [heard from] was so empowering and resourceful and inspired me with more ideas for [my] department.” 

For over ten years now, the Breakthroughs Conference has been a major convergence of conversations around twice-exceptional education, creating a space to envision new possibilities and pathways for a more neuroinclusive future. As one conference attendee noted, “You know it is a great conference when you envision kids that are in your class/school while you are there, and you jot down ways to make changes immediately.”

We look forward to seeing what the future of Breakthroughs holds!