LEAP Connect
LEAP Connect aims to bring both needed and inspirational leadership dialogues to the community. Through a series of accessible monthly leadership conversations, trainings, networking opportunities and more, participants will build the tools and resources needed to inspire change within their personal and professional communities.
Upcoming Session
Beyond Silence | Disability, Neurodiversity, and Expanding Care in AANHPI Communities
In many Asian American, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander (AANHPI) communities, disability and neurodivergence are not absent; they are simply unnamed. Shaped by cultural silence, survival, and stigma, many of us learned to adapt quietly, mask our needs, and equate worth with endurance.
This session explores how disability and neurodiversity already live within AANHPI families, workplaces, and communities, and what becomes possible when we shift from silence to shared understanding. Through lived experience, storytelling, and culturally grounded reframes, participants will examine how stigma is formed, why visibility can feel unsafe, and how care, access, and belonging can be expanded without abandoning cultural values.
Rather than positioning disability inclusion as something “new,” this conversation invites us to recognize it as a return to community care, one that honors interdependence, dignity, and the many ways our bodies and minds move through the world.
Participants will leave with language, tools, and perspectives to foster more affirming, accessible, and psychologically safe spaces across generations.
LEAP Connect leadership workshops are free, accessible to the public, and are intended to bring a safe space to the community. Participants can walk away from the sessions with the tools and resources necessary to increase their leadership skills and inspire change.
About Dennis Tran
Dennis Tran (he/him) is a queer, disabled, late-identified autistic-ADHDer and partially blind Vietnamese American storyteller, speaker, and inclusion strategist based in Los Angeles. With a background in public health, media, digital health, and nonprofit leadership, Dennis bridges lived experience with systems change to advance neurodiversity, disability justice, mental health advocacy, and psychological safety, particularly the AANHPI community, building systems rooted in access and community care that is humane and inclusive. He has consulted on inclusive storytelling and representation in children’s media, including Blue’s Clues & You, introducing its first autistic character, and developed accessibility-focused curricula and national resource toolkits. His work has helped shape inclusive curricula, accessible digital platforms, and community-centered programs impacting thousands nationwide. A LEAP Impact Program 2024–2025 alumnus, Dennis has spoken at UCLA, UCSF, Sony Pictures, Autodesk, and the ADHD International Conference, leveraging storytelling as a tool for healing, advocacy, and belonging.
2026 LEAP Connect Season
2026 LEAP Connect Season
April 15th
Beyond Silence | Disability, Neurodiversity, and Expanding Care in AANHPI Communities
In many Asian American, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander (AANHPI) communities, disability and neurodivergence are not absent; they are simply unnamed. Shaped by cultural silence, survival, and stigma, many of us learned to adapt quietly, mask our needs, and equate worth with endurance.
This session explores how disability and neurodiversity already live within AANHPI families, workplaces, and communities, and what becomes possible when we shift from silence to shared understanding. Through lived experience, storytelling, and culturally grounded reframes, participants will examine how stigma is formed, why visibility can feel unsafe, and how care, access, and belonging can be expanded without abandoning cultural values.
Rather than positioning disability inclusion as something “new,” this conversation invites us to recognize it as a return to community care, one that honors interdependence, dignity, and the many ways our bodies and minds move through the world.
Participants will leave with language, tools, and perspectives to foster more affirming, accessible, and psychologically safe spaces across generations.
May 20th
Meeting the Moment: Data, Narrative, Action for Bolder Futures
This workshop will help bridge the gap between information and advocacy. Led by Karthick Ramakrishnan, this session will dive into the “Action” pillar of AAPI Data’s core DNA—Data, Narrative, Action—framework. Ramakrishnan will also expand on the Bolder Futures initiative, which brings together intergenerational changemakers and leaders to enact meaningful action.
While having accurate data about our communities is important, data alone is not enough to develop effective strategies and produce meaningful results for our communities. This session is specifically designed for leaders and professionals who want to learn effective strategies for implementing data-driven change and raising community visibility.
Participants will leave with a clear roadmap for translating data insights into tangible results in their own professional spheres, and how to use data to inspire action and lasting change.
Thank you to our LEAP Connect sponsors
