By: Menachem Rephun, Communications Manager, Creative Spirit For over 70 years, Mental Health Awareness Month (MHAM) has been celebrated annually in the U.S. to promote the importance of mental health and recovery from mental illness. MHAM is especially important for the roughly 67 million Americans who are neurodivergent (15 – 20% of the U.S. population)....

By Laurel Rossi, Co-Founder, Creative Spirit Ariel Winter was just a child — the bright, brainy middle daughter on Modern Family, growing up on camera in front of millions. Her character was smart and endearing. Offscreen, however, Ariel became the target of harsh criticism, sexualization, and ridicule from complete strangers — many of them adults....

By Menachem Rephun, Communications Manager, Creative Spirit For most people, the interview process is one of the most dreaded stages of finding a job. The trick questions and general pressure can be intimidating, even for those with experience. For neurodivergent candidates (i.e., those with autism, ADHD, dyslexia, and other invisible disabilities), the interview process brings...

By Menachem Rephun, Creative Spirit Communications Manager In the United States, over 5 million adults and 3.2% of children have autism spectrum disorder (ASD), according to data from the Centers for Disease Control (CDC). ASD is a range of neurodevelopmental conditions that affect social interaction, often involving sensory sensitivities, literal thinking, and repetitive and restrictive...

By Menachem Rephun, Communications Manager, Creative Spirit After the Americans With Disabilities Act (ADA), Section 504 is one of the most important disability rights laws in U.S. history. Though less well-known than the ADA, Section 504 has been just as vital in protecting millions of Americans with disabilities from discrimination in education and employment. As...

By Menachem Rephun, Communications Manager at Creative Spirit In January, President Donald Trump signed an executive order mandating the end of telework for all federal employees, requiring employees to be in-office 5 days a week. The move has raised questions about how the rule will apply to federal employees with disabilities, as remote work is...

By Menachem Rephun, Communications Manager at Creative Spirit Whether at school, at work, or in other parts of daily life, most of us will likely experience burnout at some point. In a 2024 survey, SHRM found that 44% of 1,405 employees felt “emotionally drained” from their work. Another 51% reported feeling “used up” by the...

Creative Spirit is dedicated to making a difference in fair-wage employment for the neurodiverse community. To do that, we need data on accessibility/inclusion in the workplace. That’s why this year’s “Disability Inclusion @ Work” survey from Deloitte is so important. The survey found that 88% of all respondents disclosed their condition or difficulty to at...

By Menachem Rephun, Communications Manager & Advocate, Creative Spirit Disabled/Neurodivergent/People With Disabilities and IDPWD 44.1 million, or 13.4% of the population: that’s how many Americans have a disability/disabilities, according to the 2024 American Community Survey (ACS). Meanwhile, 15-20% of people are estimated to be neurodivergent (Nancy Doyle), equaling more than 1 billion people worldwide. Despite...

By Menachem Rephun, Creative Spirit Communications Manager and Advocate Creative Spirit #HireDifferent logo in blue, placed above a stylized blue illustration of the U.S. Capitol Building with red stripes in the background. Below the illustration, the text reads ‘The ABLE Act’ in bold blue font, with ’10th Anniversary’ in smaller red font beneath it, all...