This Florida Senator Wants Disability Families to Tell Her What's Broken | Miami Autism Dad

Miami Autism Dad Victor Antunez interviews Florida State Senator Alexis Calatayud, who grew up in the Miami district she now represents. She went from student body president at Florida International University, to Director of Policy and Programs at the Florida Department of Education, to a seat in the Florida Senate she won in 2022, and she co-chairs the Florida chapter of Future Caucus, where a Republican and a Democrat sit on the same side of the table and work the same problems. This conversation is about what state government can and can't do for a family raising a child with a disability. Calatayud filed the bill to catch developmental delays and autism earlier, because the clock on a diagnosis is the clock on services. She breaks down the Family Empowerment Scholarship for Students with Unique Abilities, the matrix that sorts a child from roughly $10,000 to $34,000 in funding, and why she wants those numbers to climb as a child's needs climb. She names the misconception she hears most, that government is either the savior or the villain, and replaces it with something she calls a strategic partner. And she asks the families listening to tell her what needs fixing. Most politicians come to the microphone to talk. This one came to listen.



Connect with State Senator Alexis Calatayud:
https://www.flsenate.gov/Senators/s38...

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