Speaking With Confidence
#MyPLTIStory
My name is Thao Tran, and I graduated from the Parent Leadership Training Institute (PLTI) in June of 2023. I want to share with you how PLTI has changed my life and empowered me to advocate for people with disabilities, especially in the education system.
I am a first-generation Vietnamese-American woman, born to refugee parents in Los Angeles, who fled from Vietnam as part of the second wave of refugees. I live in Merced County, California, and I wear the hat of a nurse and nurse practitioner. I serve as a parent coach and advocate for families with children and adults who are neurodivergent.
Discovering PLTI
I am a mother of a child with a disability. When I found out how hard it was to navigate the system and get the services my child needed, I decided to do something about it. I wanted to work with the system, not against it. I want to make it more disability-inclusive, equitable, and responsive to the needs of people with disabilities.
That’s when I discovered PLTI, a 20-week training that teaches parents how to be effective community leaders and advocates. There are resources on the internet, but not all of them are credible. Plus, in-person learning adds great depth and authenticity to understanding the current issues we face in Merced. PLTI gave me the skills, tools, and resources I needed to make a difference. I learned how to tell my story, how to research and analyze policies, how to communicate with stakeholders, and how to create and implement a community project to create impact on a system-wide level.
Advocating for Special Needs Education Reform
My impact as a result of my PLTI training has not gone unnoticed. After graduating from PLTI, I organized a meeting with Aaron Brieno, the chief of staff of our California state Senator, Melissa Hurtado. After an initial conversation with Aaron, I invited 16 other parents from across the state to join me and share their stories and concerns about the special needs education system. We told him how the system is broken, how it fails to provide adequate and appropriate services to our children, how it violates their rights and dignity, and how it leads to poor outcomes such as incarceration, unemployment, and isolation.
We proposed solutions, such as increasing funding, accountability, and transparency, improving teacher training and support, and promoting inclusive and accessible learning environments. Chief of Staff Brieno listened to us attentively and empathetically. He acknowledged that this is a national tragedy and that we must act urgently. He thanked us for our courage and leadership and agreed to review the evidence, follow up with us, and advocate for our cause. I look forward to working with his office and the California Department of Education to address these issues and improve the quality of life for people with disabilities.
Most recently, I was successful in helping a friend advocate for her family in a virtual meeting with Pennsylvania State Representative Tarik Khan. I presented to him my carefully constructed PowerPoint slides to show him the data highlighting the systemic failures of our public schools for students with learning differences or who are neurodiverse.
These meetings with legislators were a huge success and a testament to the power of PLTI. Without PLTI, I would not have been able to organize these meetings, to speak with confidence and clarity, and to influence policymakers. PLTI gave me the voice and the vision to make a change.
help sustain parent leadership
I am so grateful for PLTI and to NPLI supporters like you. You are making a difference in the lives of many people, especially those who are often marginalized and ignored. You are helping us create a more just and inclusive society where everyone has a chance to thrive and contribute. PLTI is not just a training; it’s a family to grow an equitable and righteous system to support all individuals.
Please consider making a donation today to help NPLI continue its amazing work. Your donation will help NPLI train more parents like me, who are passionate and committed to making a positive impact in their communities. Your donation will help create more leaders, more advocates, and more change-makers.
Thank you for your kindness and generosity.
Thao Tran
Parent Leader
Merced County, California
Help Sustain Parent Leadership
Your Support Makes A Difference
If you feel moved or inspired by this story, consider making a donation of $50, $100, $250, or even more.
We welcome any donation you can afford. As a nonprofit organization, we rely on the generosity of donors like you to sustain and expand our work. All donations are tax-deductible and your support directly fuels our initiatives like PLTI and our system capacity work, helping parents like Thao become effective leaders in their communities. Every contribution, regardless of size, plays a crucial role in creating positive change.
