Delilah Steinmann
About
Delilah grew up in Santa Cruz, California. She was diagnosed with Dyslexia and a visual-processing disorder in the 5th grade. Delilah was introduced to Eye to Eye in her sophomore year of college as a Mentor and later as a Chapter Leader. She graduated from Gonzaga University with a B.A. in Psychology in 2022. In her current position, Delilah is excited to build community among Chapters and share her passion for neurodiversity advocacy within the Near-Peer Mentoring Program. Delilah enjoys traveling, being around family and friends, and hanging out with her cat in her free time.
Why this Work is Important to Me
Growing up, I struggled with internalized self-stigma regarding being neurodivergent. Being 12 years old and having to self-advocate with every single teacher, in every classroom, in front of all my peers for something I felt shame about would be so draining. It was not until I had an academic advisor in high school who willingly worked with me to understand how my brain processes information that I understood how important it was to continue to self-advocate and start to unpack my self-stigma.
I think of how having a program like The Neurodiversity Alliance would have helped me to understand and accept my identity much earlier. Being neurodivergent is something I am so proud of today, and I wish I had not spent years of my life harboring fear and anxiety surrounding it. This work is meaningful because neurodivergent individuals are incredibly skilled and creative. It’s thrilling to see our students unlock their full potential and succeed.