January 14, 2021 - Born and raised in Minnesota, Autumn Moder calls Maplewood home. She comes from a Deaf family. Autumn grew up mainstreamed and used American Sign Language interpreters through college. Recently, she enrolled and was accepted to the master's program in Deaf Education at the University of Minnesota. She’s excited and proud to be a Gopher again!
Currently, Autumn works as a deaf and hard of hearing teacher in Early Childhood Special Education, teaching the three-to-five-year-olds who attend the Anoka-Hennepin School District. She loves what she does. “I LOVE IT. It is great working with DHH students and helping them foster positive self-identity.”
What she enjoys the most is the opportunity to give back to her community. She loves being able to give both personal and academic insight to parents and other colleagues about being a child who happens to be deaf or hard of hearing.
Autumn finds it challenging to balance personal life, graduate school, and teaching all at the same time. “It has proven to be very difficult. However, it has been rewarding to work with my students and watching them grow and blossom into incredible individuals! It has also been fun learning more about my community and students and being able to build on my knowledge and actively apply what I have learned every day.”
She has held numerous jobs over the years in different areas of employment, doing many different things. In those jobs, Autumn has always worked with people in some capacity. Her experience ranges from working to serve people at the state fair to working as a direct care professional at a group home. “Now, I find myself as a teacher, working with our youngest generation. I know that I have always been meant to work with others, and it is fun to help foster growth and positivity within our youngest people!”
When not working, Autumn enjoys a variety of outdoor activities, including hiking, kayaking, and relaxing in a hammock. When she is not in the great outdoors, she explores city-centered activities such as being a typical foodie and drink enthusiast. Autumn loves exploring and trying new things. She finds that to be the most exciting part of her life. She also knows how to relax... sometimes.. and can be found binge-watching shows and movies for excessive amounts of time.
The #CanDoAnything campaign showcases people who are deaf, deafblind, or hard of hearing at work, giving them an opportunity to share what they do at their jobs and explain how communication access works for them. This campaign shows what our community can do, which is anything!
