In this warm and practical episode of Podcasts by Dr. Kirk Adams, Kirk welcomes Lauren DeVillier, Chief Executive Officer of Exceptional Minds, the Los Angeles nonprofit academy and working studios that train young adults on the autism spectrum for careers in animation, visual effects, and a newly launching game-arts program. DeVillier traces her path from property manager on Bill Nye the Science Guy through Microsoft, Yahoo, and Disney to her first year leading Exceptional Minds, and lays out how the organization works: a three-to-four-year vocational academy (mirrored online nationwide), two revenue-generating studios doing VFX and animation for major studios like Marvel, Sony, Disney, and Blumhouse, and a blended funding model of tuition, California self-determination/regional-center funds, earned studio income, and $1.5–2M a year in fundraising.
The conversation’s through-line is DeVillier’s strategic pivot from developing talent to developing workplaces, employer training and a new career-and-student-services center to place graduates into neuro-inclusive jobs, framed by her conviction that accommodations are “low-hanging fruit” that benefit everyone, not a “nice-to-have.” She shares the PATH Water Autism Acceptance Month bottle designed by Exceptional Minds artist Benny, reflects on how the work has deepened her relationship with her own neurodivergent daughter, and points listeners to https://exceptional-minds.org. Kirk closes by half-jokingly recruiting Starbucks for a design partnership and promising to “break bread” with DeVillier in Southern California soon.
TRANSCRIPT:
Podcast Commentator: Welcome to Podcasts by Dr. Kirk Adams, where we bring you powerful conversations with leading voices in disability rights, employment, and inclusion. Our guests share their expertise, experiences, and strategies to inspire action and create a more inclusive world. If you’re passionate about social justice or want to make a difference, you’re in the right place. Let’s dive in with your host, Dr. Kirk Adams.
Dr. Kirk Adams: Welcome, everybody, to another episode of Podcasts by Dr. Kirk Adams. I am that Dr. Kirk Adams, speaking to you from my home office in Seattle, Washington. And today my special, wonderful guest is Lauren DeVillier. Lauren is the Chief Executive Officer of Exceptional Minds. Say hey, Lauren.
Lauren DeVillier: Hey there. Hello. So happy to be here.
Dr. Kirk Adams: Good. Well, we’ll be back to you momentarily. So for those of you who don’t know me, just super briefly: I am Dr. Kirk Adams, immediate past president and CEO of the American Foundation for the Blind, Helen Keller’s organization. I had the honor of serving in those same leadership roles at the Lighthouse for the Blind here in Seattle. I am a blind person. My retina is detached. When I was in kindergarten, I went to a wonderful school, the Oregon State School for the Blind, for first, second, and third grade. Thank you, Mrs. Summers, for teaching me how to read Braille. And thank you, Mr. Pearson, for teaching me how to use the long white cane. And off into public school after that. College, career in banking and finance, moved into the nonprofit sector. First nonprofit job was development officer for the Seattle Public Library Foundation, raising money for the statewide Talking Book and Braille Library. Later pursued and earned a master’s degree in nonprofit leadership, and later on a PhD in Leadership and Change from Antioch. So I guess I go back to school every 15 years or so. And I met Lauren because a classmate of mine from Whitman College, who was also an econ major, named Vivian Ho, and I reconnected. Vivian lives in the Bay Area. She is a trustee of the University of Washington Board of Regents. And she reached out to me, said, ‘I met this really interesting person named Lauren, and she’s working on a fantastic project that involves young artists with disabilities, and I think you two should know one another.’ So Lauren and I talked about the project she was working on with the Kennedy Center, and we touched base every once in a while. And then, fast forward — I don’t know, six, nine months since we connected — and lo and behold, she is the executive director of a nonprofit called Exceptional Minds, doing some fabulous things. I know it started in Southern California, but it’s really a national and growing scope. And rather than try to tell you about Exceptional Minds myself, I will let Lauren do that. We’d love to have you talk to us, Lauren, about some of your background, some of your experiences, what led you to be involved with Exceptional Minds, the history of the organization, and where are you now and where are you taking things?
Lauren DeVillier: Sounds fantastic. I would love to. So thank you so much again for having me on your podcast. I’m so excited to be here with you today. And my career actually started in Seattle. I worked on Bill Nye the Science Guy at the very beginning of that show. And I—
Dr. Kirk Adams: Okay, here’s where I jump in to say: when my children were little, we’d watch Bill Nye the Science Guy on channel nine, KCTS, our public broadcasting station. We remember one wonderful day where he showed an experiment where you could take a plastic garbage bag and put a hairdryer underneath it and fill it with hot air, and it would rise up to the ceiling. So we did that. And science — that’s Bill Nye.
Lauren DeVillier: Science. Science rules. Yes. I want to say that was the Lift episode. That was one of our very first episodes. I was the property manager, so I found all the props for the show, all the background for his experiments, all of those things. It was an incredible experience and really started my career in TV for kids. And so I was with the show for four of the five years. And then I would freelance at Microsoft when we would go on hiatus. I was working on a lot of projects for Microsoft that were kids-related. And then, after the show ended, I ended up joining Microsoft. I was at Microsoft for about five years, and then was recruited to Yahoo, which was the thing that brought me to LA. Because I did love Seattle, but as soon as I got down to the sunny weather of LA, I was like, ‘I’m sold.’ And so, joined Yahoo, was there for a couple of years. And then I worked on the lifestyles portfolio, and one of them was overseeing the kids group. And so I was out trying to do deals with some of the studios while I was in LA. And I ended up talking to Disney a lot. And they offered me a position to oversee digital strategy for the three kids networks. So it was Disney Channel, Disney XD, and Disney Junior. And that was a phenomenal experience for me, because I had worked on a TV show, then I went into technology, and then I went to Disney. And Disney really taught me about IP and branding, and really how to meld together digital with storytelling. And so, I was at Disney for quite some time, and then went off to Discovery, went back to Disney, had a startup, and then I was consulting. And my daughter went to a school, a local school here for 2e kids — and 2e is twice exceptional. So the child identifies as gifted, but they have a learning difference. And so somebody from this school reached out to me and said, ‘There is this opportunity, and you sound like you’d be a perfect fit for it.’ And they sent me the overview, the job description, for Exceptional Minds. And I read the job description, I was like, ‘This is a perfect fit for me.’ It is in the entertainment industry — kind of a little adjacent to it, not right in a studio. And I have a daughter who is neurodivergent. And I thought, well, not only can I do the business side of this job and the passion side of this job, but as a parent, I understand how you have to navigate with a child who is on the autism spectrum or is neurodivergent. And so I wrote a very passionate letter and said, ‘This is why you need to hire me.’ And I got hired. And so here I am at Exceptional Minds. And yesterday was actually my one-year anniversary.
Dr. Kirk Adams: Congratulations.
Lauren DeVillier: Thank you very much. And now I’ll tell you a little bit about Exceptional Minds.
Dr. Kirk Adams: Yeah. Tell us about how kids and young people and neurodiversity and entertainment all come together with Exceptional Minds.
Lauren DeVillier: So Exceptional Minds was started in 2009, so we’re in our 15th, almost 16th year. It was started in 2009 by a handful of parents who were in the entertainment industry, who had young adults who were on the autism spectrum that wanted to also get into the entertainment industry. And so they started this nonprofit. And in 2011, they opened their first academy. So we are a three-year vocational academy teaching young adults on the spectrum. So you have to be 18 and over and have a high school diploma or GED and a diagnosis of autism. We teach young adults animation, VFX. We’re just launching a game arts program. So both of those programs are three-year programs. Our game arts program is a four-year program. And then we have two working studios. So we have an animation studio and a VFX studio, and those were launched in 2014, and in 2016 our VFX studio was launched.
Dr. Kirk Adams: Just to make sure — I assume VFX is virtual effects.
Lauren DeVillier: No, visual. Visual.
Dr. Kirk Adams: Okay, yes.
Lauren DeVillier: When you see — let’s say there’s a glare in Brad Pitt’s glasses — we remove that glare.
Dr. Kirk Adams: Or if there’s somebody—
Lauren DeVillier: —with a boom mic standing there, we remove the boom mic.
Dr. Kirk Adams: Okay.
Lauren DeVillier: So yeah, we started doing work for most of the major studios, because the founders had a lot of connections. And so we started doing work for Marvel and Sony and Disney — pretty much all. We still, to this day, do work for all of those major studios.
Dr. Kirk Adams: So Exceptional Minds has contracts with the studios, and the work is performed by your students or your graduates?
Lauren DeVillier: That’s right. And so when our students graduate, they can apply for jobs in one of our studios.
Dr. Kirk Adams: Okay.
Lauren DeVillier: And we can either — if they’re ready for it, we hire them into the studio. But we also support our students in finding internships and jobs outside of our own studio, because we only have so many seats. So we really try to support our students once they graduate, because ultimately our mission is about workforce development and putting our graduates into the workplace, so they can have independent lives doing what they love to do.
Dr. Kirk Adams: So give us an idea of the scope currently. I know you’re growing, but how many students are involved in the three programs? How many individuals with autism are working in the studios? How many people moving on to other employment?
Lauren DeVillier: So our last graduating class — because we’re still accepting applicants for this upcoming class — our last graduating class in 2026, they just graduated in June. We had a total in the school of 58 students. And everything we do — we have a campus, and everything we do on campus we also mirror online. So half of our students come from another part of the country. About 14, 15 last year were online doing the same curriculum. Community building is a huge part of what we do, so we have game nights and movie nights and crochet club. So part of everything that we offer, beyond the hard-skill training, is the soft-skill development — a lot of community-based events, a lot of career development building. So that’s how many students we have in the academy. We have workshops throughout the year as well. So between the workshops and the school and our summer program, which is going on right now, we serve about 250 to 300 students a year with all of these different programs. Inside of our studios, because we flex with the jobs that are coming in, we will have anywhere between the two studios from 20 to 30 working artists on a part-time basis. It’s an incredible and fulfilling role for me, because I sit between the academy and the studios. So I am constantly interacting with our artists and with our students. And it’s just incredible — the work that they’re doing, and their passion, and them as individuals.
Dr. Kirk Adams: So, as a former CEO of several nonprofits, I have to ask you about the revenue model. So I’m hoping that some of the students are being funded by our vocational rehabilitation system through the Department of Education. So hopefully some of the students, especially those from other states, are coming with VR from that state. And then it sounds like you have earned income through the work of the studios. And I’m assuming there’s philanthropic dollars that come in as well.
Lauren DeVillier: Yes. So it’s really a mix of three. So the academy — we have an annual tuition. And within California, we have the regional centers, and a lot of our students pay for their education through self-determination funds. Some parents pay out of pocket, and we also do scholarships. So that’s the academy side. On the studio side — yes, we bid out projects like any other studio. And so we get revenue through the work that we do for Blumhouse and Disney and all the others. And then, because we have our overhead, and because we are trying to train our artists — I think we’re the only studio in town that’s trying to kick our artists out, so they go out and get other jobs — we offset some of the costs within the studio through our fundraising. So we are also fundraising between one-and-a-half to $2 million a year to offset that.
Dr. Kirk Adams: I’m curious about the original founding parents group. So you mentioned there were parents in the entertainment industry with children who were moving into that school-to-work transition age, who were interested in entertainment. That was the genesis — very, very similar to something that happened at Microsoft, when a number of Microsoft employees early on, with autistic children, really drove a focus on autism that has become something significant across the lake here at Microsoft, as far as employing people with autism and neurodivergence. So the original founding spark from those parents — I’m guessing those children are well into adulthood now. Are any of their original parents involved, or has it been a rolling succession of new families and new leaders of Exceptional Minds who are involved in the entertainment industry? I’m just really interested in how, from an organizational development, board development standpoint, things evolve from that beginning group who said, ‘Hey, let’s create this thing.’
Lauren DeVillier: Yeah. So Judy Bennett, who is one of the first founders — she worked on a lot. She’s an AD, an assistant director, and production manager. She worked on a lot of things like Kramer vs. Kramer. I mean, these are all very old movies — Broadcast News, Star Trek — she worked on all of that stuff. So she’s still involved in ways. I talk to her, and really get a lot of inspiration from her. I met with another one of the original founders, Ron Burns, and his daughter Molly, who had a kid who was on the autism spectrum that was interested in the program. And so the original founders are still engaged on some level. Usually I reach out to them and tell them what’s going on, and sometimes we bring them in for interviews and things like that, to provide inspiration to the newer leaders. And then we have two parents on the board of Exceptional Minds whose students went through this program, which is great, because they provide a different perspective to us. And in terms of how engaged parents are beyond the board — we have a very engaged parent group. They have their own social media group, and we definitely seek them out. We are actually actively looking for board members in the entertainment industry. And then, adjacent — we would love to add some board members who are adults on the autism spectrum, because we definitely want that perspective. So yes, that is of great interest to me.
Dr. Kirk Adams: Wonderful. And then — you’ve been there a whole year now, so I’ll ask you a couple things. So let’s look at the challenges first. What has come into your world that perhaps you weren’t quite expecting, or is more challenging than you thought it would be, or you had no idea this would be a challenge? And then, after we talk about that stuff, I’d love to hear about the happy surprises — what are some things that are more wonderful than you could ever have imagined? So let’s talk about challenges.
Lauren DeVillier: Yeah. So the challenge is — I believe that everyone is well-intentioned. That’s where I start from, right? And as we head into our new fiscal year, one of the things that we’re really focused on is employer training and workforce development. Because the biggest challenge — I have artists, and they’re amazing, and they’re great at what they do. And yes, there are organizations like Microsoft who really weave neurodiversity into their culture. Salesforce also has Neuroforce, and they really weave it in. A lot of organizations aren’t quite there yet. And so where we are pivoting is really in that area of teaching and development of employers. So we just added somebody on our board who works at CBS Sports and has hired four of our graduates. And we go on little talking tours and talk about how, if you build a neuro-inclusive workplace, it’s not as difficult as it sounds. And so it really is around development. We’re already taking care of the development of our students and our artists, and now we’re shifting a little bit to the development of the workplace. So I’m now speaking at different organizations and saying, ‘Hey, yes, it’s a different lift. It’s not a heavy lift, it’s a different lift.’ And as we’re looking at the research — I’ve looked at different research, like, I just looked at YouGov, where 30% of people under 30 identify as neurodivergent. I have looked at other stats where it’s almost 50% of people identify as neurodivergent within the workforce. And so as we’re seeing this acceptance and this growth, where we sit is: we want to be partners and thought leaders in this area of, it’s not a nice-to-have. It just is.
Dr. Kirk Adams: So, is it employer attitudes, misconceptions, fear of disability? Or is it more a lack of awareness, or some sort of combo plate?
Lauren DeVillier: I think it’s all those things. Right? I think it’s all those things. In my speaking to different groups about it, it’s just amazing the things that come up. When you’re talking about building a neuro-inclusive workforce, whatever is good for a neurodivergent person also benefits — what, as I say in air quotes — a ‘neurotypical’ person. Like being clear. Just some of the simplest things that benefit an entire organization, not just people on the spectrum, right?
Dr. Kirk Adams: Creating a good fit between the person and the workplace — a good employer should want to do that for everybody, right?
Lauren DeVillier: Yeah, exactly. Exactly. So some of the accommodations, again, are just — it’s like low-hanging-fruit stuff. So it’s kind of a combination of everything that you said. So that’s a big focus for us this year.
Dr. Kirk Adams: And then, on the flip side of the coin — what are some great things that have occurred or have manifested during the year you’ve been there that maybe you weren’t quite imagining would happen?
Lauren DeVillier: Well, so this is a personal one. I have a 21-year-old, and I have learned so much about her, about myself, about our relationship, about how we interact — and actually how I can be better — by just my everyday work here and my everyday interaction here, and just digging into neurodiversity and autism and understanding it on a different level. Because I only have one child, and I only know her and her perspective. It’s really broadened my perspective overall of neurodiversity and autism, and it’s really helped me understand everything about my relationship with her. So that’s been a wonderful experience for me.
Dr. Kirk Adams: That’s great. So you’ve talked a little bit about some of the strategic focus areas for you as the Chief Executive Officer. We talked about adding some neurodivergent adults to the board. We talked about building out more contracts for the studio. You mentioned fundraising, which I know is always an ongoing imperative. So what’s your vision for year two, year three?
Lauren DeVillier: So my vision for the next couple of years — it’s a couple of things, right? Anybody that is staying on top of, or reading anything about, what’s happening in the entertainment industry knows that, specifically in the LA area, there are a lot of challenges here. There are a lot of people who are looking for work. There’s a lot of consolidation, with mergers and acquisitions and things like that. And so, how do I continue to serve the mission in developing artists for the workforce? We are expanding the type of work that we’re doing outside of just straight entertainment work. We’re really leaning into what I like to call market-adjacent work. So, finding work for artists in marketing departments, finding work for our artists in that law office who needs content. We are a very content-driven culture, with short-form, short videos, other content. And so, how do we expand beyond sort of the traditional studio life and into other areas? We are training in the creator economy — how do you have your own business, how do you develop your YouTube channel, how do you build an Instagram, in terms of where you can actually be a creator making money. So we’re leaning into some of those areas, in further development of our talent. And then, kind of leaning back into the workforce development piece, we are building out a career and student services center that is supporting our artists through upskilling. We continue to upskill our talent after they graduate. We help them, again, in those soft-skills training pieces — like, how do you interview, how do you write a resume, how do you interact with your peer group, how do you communicate with your manager, what do you disclose or don’t disclose. So we are standing up this career and student services center for not only our students, but for our alumni and our recent graduates, so we can continue their education and continue to support them in finding work in the market.
Dr. Kirk Adams: Awesome. So if someone listening right now is an autistic person, 18 or over, with a GED or high school diploma — or has such a person in their life — who is interested in the entertainment industry, or adjacent industries like design and content creation, how can they get in touch?
Lauren DeVillier: Well, they can reach out to me, and they can go to our website, which is https://exceptional-minds.org. We have all of our programs up there. I would encourage anyone who’s really passionate about art and drawing and animation and VFX and gaming — we have a lot of summer workshops happening right now. We’re in the middle of one right now, and we have three more to come, so check those out. Or, if you’re interested in our three-year or four-year program, that’s also listed on the website. We also have a one-year program called Media Arts Foundation, so there’s that. We would also gladly accept donations to support these programs, to support our scholarships, to support our career and student service center. And if you’re in the entertainment industry — and if you’re not — we are working with many, many different clients outside of the entertainment industry to develop content for marketing assets and other—
Dr. Kirk Adams: Product design. Right — I know you mentioned your graduates had done some design work. I think you said a water bottle, last time we talked.
Lauren DeVillier: Oh yeah, yeah. So, thank you for bringing that up. So we did a partnership with PATH Water, I think they’re called, for Autism Awareness Month, which is in April. And one of our artists, Benny, did the design for that. Benny was an animation [student] and decided that — after they did this design — they wanted to get into product design. So thank you for bringing that up. I’m reaching out to more. There’s one company in Seattle that sells coffee that — yes, I’m like, ‘Have you heard of them? I would love to do something with them.’ And so, yeah.
Dr. Kirk Adams: Okay, well — I’m not shy. Okay: Starbucks. We’ve got some people who are trained to help you with design and content, who are autistic and eager and ready to work.
Lauren DeVillier: Thank you so much. Yeah. It’s such a great — just the passion of these artists. Once you’re interacting, like Benny working on this design — it’s just such a phenomenal experience, for Benny, for us, for PATH. It was just a great experience all the way around. And we have supervisors that help kind of guide that process.
Dr. Kirk Adams: That’s awesome. So, from being the property manager for Bill Nye the Science Guy to being the Chief Executive Officer for Exceptional Minds — what a wonderful path you are on. So proud of what you’re doing, and just so excited to follow along as you grow your programs and change the lives of more and more people. So, for those of you listening, go to https://exceptional-minds.org to get connected with Lauren and her team, and reach out to me at https://drkirkadams.com, or @KirkAdamsPhD on LinkedIn. Reach out to Lauren, reach out to me — let’s connect, let’s build this community. And thank you so much, Lauren, for being here today.
Lauren DeVillier: Thank you so much for including me in this great podcast. I so appreciate it, and I’m so grateful for the relationship we have.
Dr. Kirk Adams: Yeah. Well, I’m looking forward to meeting you in person very shortly. We’ll break bread together in Southern California soon. And for everyone listening, we’ll see you next time on another episode of Podcasts by Dr. Kirk Adams.
Podcast Commentator: Thank you for listening to Podcasts by Dr. Kirk Adams. We hope you enjoyed today’s conversation. Don’t forget to subscribe, share, or leave a review at https://www.drkirkadams.com. Together, we can amplify these voices and create positive change. Until next time, keep listening, keep learning, and keep making an impact.
Dr. Kirk Adams, Ph.D.
Advocate, Leader and Keynote Speaker on Disability Inclusion & Leadership
Leading the Way to Accessible Innovation
” Inclusion isn’t just the right thing to do — it’s a strategic advantage. “
Institute for Sustainable Diversity and Inclusion (ISDI)
Executive Director
Strengthening individual and organizational capability for creating diverse, inclusive and equitable workplaces.
Innovative Impact, LLC Consulting
Managing Director
Impactful Workforce Inclusion Starts Here
American Foundation for the Blind
Immediate Past President & CEO
To create a world of no limits for people who are blind or visually impaired.
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