Education and Facilitation

Education and Facilitation Experience

Crip Care 

Co-Founder and Co-Organizer | Connecticut | January 2025 - Present 

• Design and facilitate community learning spaces for Disabled, Neurodivergent, Mad, Deaf, and Chronically Ill community members centered on accessibility, solidarity, and mutual support

• Use Community-Based Participatory Research (CBPR) approaches to guide community conversations and inform popular education materials on disability justice and accessibility

• Develop and share accessible educational resources on disability justice, self-advocacy, and community care for Disabled community members and partner organizations

New Reach 

Advocacy and Grant Writing Intern | New Haven, CT | August 2024 – April 2025 

• Provided education on legislative sessions and advocacy opportunities, supporting staff and administrators in understanding legislative processes and engaging in storytelling and advocacy 

• Facilitated letter-writing workshops with shelter residents and supported development of storytelling skills for advocacy and public testimony 

• Designed and led staff onboarding trainings focused on trauma-informed care, DEI, and staff engagement practices 

• Co-facilitated DEI, Engagement, and Trauma-Informed Care committees, contributing to organizational learning and equity-centered practices 

• Developed accessible educational and outreach materials supporting community participation in policy and advocacy initiatives 

Connecticut Trans Community Access Network 

Founder and Lead Organizer | Connecticut | March 2024 – August 2024 

• Facilitated accessible community learning and peer support spaces, including disability-focused support groups, ASL classes, and film screenings centered on trans and disability justice 

• Coordinated accessibility practices for events and educational programming, including ASL interpretation, accessible venues, and accessible outreach materials 

• Developed and facilitated online community engagement spaces supporting mutual aid, peer learning, and relationship-building among trans and disabled community members 

• Created and distributed educational resources and zines focused on disability justice, accessibility, and trans community issues 

High Horizons Magnet School

Special Education Paraprofessional | Bridgeport, CT | March 2024 – June 2024

• Provided individualized academic, behavioral, and social support to students with autism and other neurodevelopmental disabilities in classroom settings 

• Collaborated with teachers, specialists, and support staff to implement IEP accommodations and create accessible learning environments  

• Designed and facilitated lessons on disability, accessibility, and disability rights for middle school students 

• Supported peer relationship-building and inclusive classroom participation for students with disabilities

Democracy Prep Public Schools

Special Education Teacher | New York, NY | August 2021 – April 2022 

• Coordinated with interdisciplinary teams, families, and educators to support inclusive educational practices for students with disabilities 

• Advocated for classroom and curriculum accessibility and cultural responsiveness, including modifications to support equitable participation for students with disabilities

• Facilitated family engagement and resource-sharing to support student advocacy and educational access across school and home environments 

• Developed individualized supports and instructional strategies responsive to varied learning, communication, and behavioral needs

Zeta Charter Schools

Kindergarten Teacher (Integrated Co-Teaching) | New York, NY | July 2020 – June 2021

• Facilitated fully remote, relationship-centered learning environments for a diverse classroom of students during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic.

• Designed interactive virtual learning experiences across reading, writing, and mathematics instruction using Zoom and other digital platforms 

• Adapted instruction and engagement strategies for students with varied learning styles, behavioral needs, and access needs 

• Built meaningful relationships with students and families to support participation, connection, and learning in remote environments

• Collaborated with families and support staff to develop individualized supports, behavioral interventions, and responsive learning strategies

• Used ongoing formal and informal data collection to adapt instruction and support student growth across academic and behavioral domains   

Selected Invited Workshops and Trainings

• Cotto, A., Violante Cole, S., Meehan, Q., Boland, S., Campbell, X.T. (May 2026) Using Equity Centered Community Design to center lived experience in ending youth homelessness. Connecticut Coalition to End Homelessness 23rd Annual Training Institute, Hartford, CT

• Meehan, Q. (May 2026). Embracing disability justice. Universal Health Care Foundation All-Staff Meeting [virtual]

• Meehan, Q. (April, 2026). Sharing your lived experience through legislative advocacy. Youth Action Hub [virtual]

• Meehan, Q., Maiolo, L. (March, 2026) Embracing disability justice. Leadership Education in Neurodevelopmental and Related Disabilities Seminar, Farmington, CT

• Meehan, Q. (April, 2025). Advocacy at New Reach: Opportunities to engage in advocacy. New Reach All-Staff Meeting, New Haven, CT

• Meehan, Q. (February, 2025). Advocacy at New Reach: The Governor's budget and relevant legislation. New Reach All-Staff Meeting, New Haven, CT

• Meehan, Q. (January, 2025). Advocacy at New Reach: Legislative and budget priorities. New Reach All-Staff Meeting, New Haven, CT

Peer-Reviewed Presentations

• Evans, S., Meehan, Q., Paceley, M. S., Iacono, G., Roman-Hampton, V., Bishop, M., Gzesh, A., Kynn, J., & Fish, J.N. (2026, August). Anti-Trans Attacks from the State: Impacts and Parental Strategies to Mitigate Harm for TGE Youth. {Paper Presentation. Society for Research on Child Development: Special Topic Meeting: Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity in Childhood and Adolescence: A Global Forum on Development, Health, and Rights. Utrecht, The Netherlands.  

• Iacono, G., Muro, P., McGeough, B., Evans, S., Prince, D.M., Roman-Hampton, V., Gzesh, A., Meehan, Q., Paceley, M. S., Perry, K., & Greenwood, E. (2026, August). Mental Health Providers’ Support of Transgender Youth Amid Restrictions on Gender-Affirming Care in the USA. [Paper Presentation]. Society for Research on Child Development: Special Topic Meeting: Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity in Childhood and Adolescence: A Global Forum on Development, Health, and Rights. Utrecht, The Netherlands. 

• Paceley, M.S., Meehan, Q. (2026, July). Artistic Imagining of Queer, Trans, Disabled Futures Amidst a Hostile Sociopolitical Climate. [Performance & Presentation]. Pedagogy and Theatre of the Oppressed Conference: Democracy in the Ashes: Voices of Resistance, Songs of Transformation. Minneapolis, MN. 

• Paceley, M.S., Evans, S., Meehan, Q., Jen, S., Carolan, K. (2026, April). How to Resist the Sociopolitical Climate Through Queer, Trans, Disabled Imagined Futures. [Workshop]. Southern Connecticut State University Women’s and Gender Studies Conference. New Haven, CT. 

• Meehan, Q. (2026, February). Cripping Queer Intimacies: Reimagining Love, Care, and Interdependence in an Ableist World. [Paper Presentation]. Sexuality, Disability, and Power to Disrupt Conference. Virtual. 

• Paceley, M.S., Meehan, Q., Evans, S., Jen, S., Carolan, K. (2026, February) Disrupting Hate and Harm toward Queer and Trans Disabled Communities in the U.S. through Creative Dreaming and Imagining Better Futures. [Paper Presentation] Sexuality, Disability, and Power to Disrupt Conference. Virtual. 

• Hong, C., Muro, P., Meehan, Q., Conley, R., Eldredge, M. (2026, January). Mental Health Outcomes, Associated Factors, and Help-Seeking Among Rural LGBTQ+ Populations in the United States: A Scoping Review. [Poster Presentation]. Society for Social Work and Research Conference. Washington, DC. 

• Paceley, M.S., Iacono, G., Bietsch, B., Harrington, K.Y., Lawerence, S.E., Learman, J., Manuel, J.I., Meehan, Q., Muro, P., Roman-Hampton, V., Singh, S., Werkmeister Rozas, L. (2026, January) Critical Hope and Resistance through Collective Poetic Inquiry: A Response to Federal Attacks on Queer and Trans Communities by Scholar Advocates [Paper Presentation]. Society for Social Work and Research Conference. Washington, DC.

• Evans, S., Paceley, M.S., Iacono, G., McGeough, B., Prince, D. & Meehan, Q. (2026, January). “These are clients of ours and we have a duty and a right to serve and honor them”: Therapists' experiences supporting transgender and gender expansive clients within an anti-trans political climate. [Poster Presentation]. Society for Social Work and Research Conference. Washington, DC. 

• Hong, C., Muro, P., Meehan, Q., Conley, R., & Eldredge, M. (2025, November). Mental health outcomes, associated factors, and help-seeking among rural LGBTQ+ populations in the United States: A scoping review. [Paper Presentation]. New England Rural Health Association Conference. Groton, CT. 

• Meehan, Q. (2025, October). Cripping Queer Intimacies: Reimagining Love, Care, and Interdependence in an Ableist World [Paper Presentation]. Lesbian Lives Conference. New York, NY. 

• Evans, S., Paceley, M.S., Meehan, Q., Carolan, K., & Jen, S. (2025, October). Embracing the resistive nature of imagined futures for disabled LGBTQ+ communities: A community-engaged, research-informed practice project. [Paper Presentation]. Council on Social Work Education Annual Program Meeting. Denver, CO. 

• Evans, S., Paceley, M.S., Meehan, Q., Carolan, K., & Jen, S.R. (2025, September). Queer and Trans Futures for Disabled LGBTQ+ Communities: Resisting the Current Hostile Sociopolitical Climate through Imagined Futures [Paper Presentation]. LGBTQ Research Symposium. Virtual. 

• Meehan, Q. (2025, September). Cripping Queer Intimacies: Reimagining Love, Care, and Interdependence in an Ableist World [Workshop]. LGBTQ Research Symposium. Virtual.