Deejay Stevie and the Legacy of Inclusion at ICS Addis
Deejay Stevie and the Legacy of Inclusion at ICS Addis
The International Community School of Addis Ababa is proud to be a responsibly inclusive school, an international leader in supporting neurodiverse learners. In April each year, neurodiversity is celebrated through Unique Awareness Month, one of the ways in which ICS recognizes and values our diverse community.
For nearly 20 years, support for neurodiverse learners at ICS Addis has grown, both within the Student Support Services Program and within the greater community. Throughout this time, ICS Addis has expanded its capacity to support different student needs, hiring learning support staff, English as an Additional Language teachers, and other specialized professionals. An “Individual Student Classroom” was opened in 2011, which evolved into the “Transition Program” in 2014 and was finally renamed in 2018 to the current “Student Transition Education Program (STEP)” that exists today.
The Ferreira family was instrumental in initiating events around Unique Awareness Month, starting with Autism Awareness activities. Derek Ferreira, the ICS Elementary School counselor, and his wife Yalem Ferreira, started a social skills group and provided training to teachers on how to support students with autism.
Stevie plays the keyboard at ICS Addis's Grade 5 Market Day in 2014
Their son, Stephen (Stevie) Ferreira is autistic and was an ICS elementary school student at that time. He and his family left Ethiopia in 2015 to return to Canada. Stevie now lives in Toronto, Canada, and continues to pursue his interest in music as “Deejay Stevie”, with a YouTube channel called “Autism Rocks”.
Click here to watch Deejay Stevie perform "Let it Be."
“Living with autism has shaped how I see and feel the world — and music has always been my way to express it. Reaching this milestone on my YouTube channel and sharing music history shows is more than just content to me — it’s my voice, my passion, and my way of connecting with others through sound and story.” Stevie Ferreira, ICS Class of 2020
Keep an eye out for more stories like this one and activities around campus in April, as ICS Addis celebrates Unique Awareness Month.