Grow or fold: The Journey of a Dad and His Autistic Son with High Support Needs . With Matt Ross
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What is the main topic discussed in this episode?
The primary purpose of Uniquely Human the Podcast is to educate and inform. The views expressed during all episodes are solely those of the individuals involved and do not constitute educational or medical advice. Listeners should consult with professionals familiar with each individual or family for specific guidance.
Uniquely Human, the podcast, is produced by Elevated Studio. Music is graciously provided by Matt Savage of Savage Records.
Hi, I'm Dr. Barry Prazant, clinical scholar, researcher, and consultant on autism and neurodiversity, and a Brooklyn boy raised in the big city. And
I'm Dave. I'm none of those things, and I grew up on a farm in Illinois. But being on the spectrum myself, I have plenty of personal insight to lend.
And
this is
Uniquely human the podcast, a show that illuminates and celebrates autism and neurodiversity.
Today we have a very special guest and Dave and I are excited because we already have had some wonderful conversations with Matt Ross. So Matt, welcome to Uniquely Human the Podcast. Thank
you for having me.
It it's our pleasure. Um, and we're gonna really do a deep dive into many reasons that we wanted Matt to uh be on our podcast so our listeners could benefit from his experience and his wisdom in a number of areas. So a little bit about Matt. Uh Matt is an entrepreneur, an author, and media executive with nearly thirty years of experience building businesses that inspire passion and creativity, and especially his interest in the arts, which we're gonna dig into a little bit. He's also the father of an adult non speaking autistic son. Since twenty twelve Matt has been the founder and CEO of One River School, a company whose mission is to transform art education today. One River operates fifteen schools in six states,
In 2005, Matt became the CEO of School of Rock, and under his leadership, the company grew from five to 55 locations. Matt holds an MBA in finance from the Stern School of Business at NYU and is a cumlati graduate in marketing from SUNY Albany. So we are fellow SUNY alums. He also is a former member of the Board of Trustees for R20. and the Bergen Performing Arts Center. His advocacy efforts focus on two main areas, supporting organizations that build communities for adults with autism. And championing artists and art-based organizations. He's the author of the forthcoming book Grow or Fold, Transform Yourself in Midlife and Beyond, a story of awakening your enthusiasm for growth. So let's dig in. There's so much we could talk about.
Uh Matt, if you would just share some aspects of your journey, of your personal and professional journey. and how that led to your current work, especially in building communities for autistic adults, as well as promoting artists and art-based organizations.
So, born and bred in New York, in Queens, um uh not the beneficiary of a lot of uh mentoring. So I've always had to have this keen sense of how do I work on myself to navigate the streets of New York, build a career that would inspire me. And uh so my career journey took me into um the radio business. I was passionate about music and passionate about advertising and consumer behavior. Just to consolidate that, I spent twenty years in that space. Um and um when I went to the School of Rock, it was Just just the most wonderful pivot to be able to be at an early stage venture to teach kids to play rock and roll. which was at the foundation of what motivated me in live music and Performative aspects. Um along my journey.
We had a um a son who was born with severe autism and um And a lot of other complexities,
um,
you know, so um behavioral. Uber challenging. And um You know, he almost died. He had seizure disorder and young baby, uh little guy like one and a half, two, and so the the trauma of being a parent. trying to advocate, we'll call it in the late nineties, early two thousands in this space, for somebody who had we'll call it the maximum challenge was unbearably stressful. On top of raising a second kid, on top of trying to be a provider for my family and trying to live out my best self professionally, which I was highly motivated to do.
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Chapters
6 chapters
1
What is the main topic discussed in this episode?
0:00–7:11
2
What is the background and early career of Matt Ross before his son’s diagnosis?
7:11–17:00
3
How did Matt discover his son’s autism and what were the initial challenges?
17:00–27:02
4
What crisis points did the family face when Alex’s health deteriorated?
27:02–39:00
5
How did Matt’s “grow or fold” mindset emerge during his personal low point?
39:00–50:14
6
What steps did Matt take to turn his personal struggle into a business and artistic venture?
50:14–59:47
Speakers
2 identifiedMore from Uniquely Human: The Podcast
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