Sometimes just one small action can change a life. For Mickey Rowe, Founder and Artistic Director of National Disability Theatre, it began when he was introduced to Seattle Children’s Theatre by his grandmother. Rowe, who is autistic and legally blind, was told that he could never enter the mainstream world. Acting changed all of that. In this keynote, Rowe shares his deeply personal and inspiring story of growing up autistic and pushing beyond the restrictions of a special education classroom to shine on Broadway. The talk is based on his new memoir: Fearlessly Different: An Autistic Actor's Journey to Broadway's Biggest Stage. He shows all of us that whether disabled or not, the things that make us different are often our biggest strengths.

Right now, disabled students across America are still segregated from non-disabled students--often hidden away from the rest of the school in their own classroom in the back of the building. In this keynote, Mickey Rowe, Founder and Artistic Director of National Disability Theatre, speaks from his personal experience on how segregated education doesn't benefit anyone. He empowers educators with the best practices of Universal Design and emboldens all students to succeed regardless of their challenges.

Not only is a diverse and inclusive workplace morally right, but it is also just good business and makes the most financial sense. Right now, many companies, Microsoft included, have discovered the advantages of hiring disabled employees. As one of the leading experts on autism in our country and as an autistic person himself, Mickey Rowe, Founder and Artistic Director of National Disability Theatre, shares the undeniable business and problem-solving benefits of hiring for diversity and the power of diversity in our workplaces and our world.

Mickey Rowe, Founder and Artistic Director of National Disability Theatre, is not only an expert in the fields of disability, Universal Design and autism but is also an autistic person himself. In this insightful talk, Rowe articulates to parents and medical professionals what autism is like from the inside and “the why” behind many previously not understood autistic behaviors in a way that few can. Rowe helps medical professionals understand the differences between the medical model of disability and the social model and how they can benefit from learning about both.

As an autistic and legally blind person, Mickey Rowe knows what it’s like to feel different and excluded. Like a lot of other disabled students, he was segregated from the rest of the school’s population. But that didn’t stop Rowe from achieving his dreams and helping others. Rowe not only became an advocate in special education, but also an activist for industry-wide change on Broadway. He became the very first autistic actor to play the autistic character Christopher Boone in the Tony Award-winning play “The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time.” In this inspiring talk, Rowe, Founder and Artistic Director of National Disability Theatre, shares his story of advocating his way all the way to performing on Broadway's biggest stage. He’ll also will disclose the steps you need to take to advocate for yourself and others and make the changes you want to see in the world a reality.

Mickey Rowe had to overcome so many barriers to live his dream of becoming a professional actor and director. In a time when disability was not valued, Rowe, who is autistic, carved his own path and educated others on his own value. His tenacious pursuit of his goals got him all the way from special education (autistic and legally blind) to Broadway's biggest stage. In this motivational talk, he’ll share his story and how you, too, can live your dreams. If he can do it, so can you, Rowe says.

As an autistic man, Mickey Rowe has carved his own path communicating with people very different from himself professionally as a director at some of the nation's largest Tony Award-winning theaters, as a husband, romantic partner, as an award-winning author and as a father. People often compare the challenge of communicating with an autistic person to that of breaching the Mariana Trench or the Dark Side of the Moon. We all often need to communicate with people who seem very different from us. As someone who has broached the biggest communication bridges daily, Rowe shows you how.