‘ICI Gave Me My Career’: Former Staffer Gives Gift to Support Transition Leadership

The Institute for Community Inclusion has received a $100,000 gift from Dr. Stelios Gragoudas, a youth leadership advocate and former staffer who said he hopes the funds can support transition specialist training and student self-determination initiatives.

Over the next five years, the Stelios Evan Gragoudas Discretionary Fund for Community Inclusion will provide $20,000 annually to support the ICI’s work. Gragoudas previously worked as a rehabilitation counseling intern on the ICI’s employment services team as well as a staff member on the Education and Transition Team, and he is an advocate for youth leadership development and self-determination.

"At ICI, I realized there were others who had the same mission, which was to include all students in school and in every aspect of life," Gragoudas said.

When Gragoudas was an undergraduate, he knew he wanted to be a teacher, but he said he didn’t know if anyone would hire him. Then, an advisor at Boston University recommended he check out the Institute for Community Inclusion.

"When I got to ICI, I met people who believed the same thing I did, who believed that youth and students with disabilities should be included in every aspect of school and that they should be encouraged to think about what they want to do after high school," Gragoudas said.

He added that it was reassuring to find people at the ICI who believed that all students should be included because of his experience with public schools, where his parents had to fight tooth-and-nail for him to be included among other students.

After meeting with an ICI staff member, Gragoudas started his internship, which led to him being hired to making training materials for the organization. Eventually, Gragoudas went to the University of Kansas to get his PhD in special education before returning to Boston.

Gragoudas said the ICI has always had a special place in his heart.

"ICI gave me my career," Gragoudas said. "Without ICI, I wouldn’t … have gone to KU, and I wouldn’t have been the teacher I am today. And that’s why I gave the gift, because I know ICI’s values, I know the people who will be handling the gift, and I know that they will do great work."

Gragoudas said the ICI “can do almost whatever they want” with his donation, but he’s worked with Maria Paiewonsky, the director of the UMass Boston Transition Leadership program, to figure out where the donation can have a significant impact. A portion of the donation was used earlier this year in scholarship to support five students who otherwise wouldn’t have been able to attend the Transition Leadership program.

"It’s a gift to ICI to say ‘thank you’ for what they did for me and to support the next generation of leaders," Gragoudas said.

If you want to support ICI in empowering and collaborating with people with disabilities, and ensuring their full engagement in workplaces, schools, healthcare settings, and the community, go to the ICI website and make a tax-free donation. Contributions of any amount are welcome. Every donation helps support ICI’s mission of full inclusion.