About us — Neurodiversity Published

What we believe

Every brain works differently, and these differences should be celebrated, not misunderstood.

By introducing children with developing minds to topics such as dyslexia, autism and other forms of neurodiversity at an early age, we hope to reduce the stigma surrounding neurodivergent individuals and help everyone feel seen and valued.

Through short children's books featuring vibrant, colorful drawings, relatable stories and age-appropriate explanations, we hope to make learning about neurodiversity both fun and engaging.

Vibrant, colorful drawingsEvery page is illustrated by a student artist.
Relatable storiesCharacters children recognise from their own classrooms.
Age-appropriate explanationsBig ideas, explained simply and kindly.

How we work

A nonprofit, and a club

01

We publish

Short children's books that introduce neurodiversity in an age-appropriate, empathetic way, with extra resources for parents and teachers at the back.

02

We are student-led

Neurodiversity Published is also a student-led club at the Lawrenceville School in New Jersey. The club brings together students who are passionate about advocacy, writing and drawing.

03

We share what we learn

Alongside the books, we collect reliable, accessible resources on neurodiversity for students, families and educators. Explore the resources.

The team

Meet the students behind the books

Five students, writing and drawing from New York to Hong Kong, Moscow, Lagos and Calgary.

New York

Nicole Li

Founder · Writer & illustrator

Nicole is the founder of Neurodiversity Published and a senior at The Lawrenceville School. Inspired by her own experiences learning about neurodivergence and the misconceptions surrounding it, she founded the club to make complex scientific concepts accessible to young readers and underserved communities. Her published book, The Dancing Words, has been accepted by 35 libraries across 16 states, with several adding it to their collections and the list still expanding. Through her work, she hopes to inspire empathy and celebrate the many unique ways people learn and think.

Since her freshman year, Nicole has written for her school's science journals and has a research paper on genetics and precision medicine in familial hypercholesterolemia accepted by a peer-reviewed journal. She also completed an internship at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health during the summer of her junior year.

Wrote & illustrated The Dancing Words
Wrote Colours of the World

Hong Kong, China

Eleanor Wang

Leading artist

Eleanor is a leading artist behind Neurodiversity Published. She believes every child deserves to see differences celebrated, and hopes her work helps young readers understand that different ways of thinking make our world stronger, kinder and more creative.

A senior at the Lawrenceville School, she served as a Diversity Representative and volunteers to bring educational summer camps to students in rural China.

Illustrated Colours of the World
Made the Our Mission in Numbers infographic

Moscow, Russia

Valery Lyubashevskaya

Vice President · Artist

Valery is the Vice President of Neurodiversity Published and a junior at the Lawrenceville School from Moscow, Russia. She believes that pictures reach children before words do, and that a story drawn with care can help a child understand a classmate whose mind works differently from their own. Through her illustrations, she hopes young readers grow up seeing difference as something to be curious about, not afraid of.

Outside the club, Valery is the leading artist of the STEM Illustrated publication, spends much of her time on neuroscience research, and completed a bioengineering internship at the University of California, San Diego.

Vice President
Artist for the books

Lagos, Nigeria

Michelle Kanu

Writer

Michelle is a senior at the Lawrenceville School from Lagos, Nigeria, and a writer for Neurodiversity Published.

Calgary, Canada

Tola Olatunji