Carl Young, Community
Faculty: Hilory Liccini
Carl "Fat Bastard" Young is a father of five children, and grandfather of 3. Currently a resident of North Dakota where he lives with his bride of 29 years, he is a fierce advocate for neurodivergent individuals. Carl and his family adopted a toddler in 2003 who was "special needs". At the time, special needs included race. Over the course of the next 20 years, Carl transitioned from a small business owner to an advocate for his son. Initially diagnosed with a plethora of mental health issues, his son was eventually diagnosed with Autism and then in 2017, Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder. In 2018, he and his wife founded a non-profit dedicated to helping families not have to struggle alone to get an appropriate diagnosis for their child, and to ensure that every effort was made to develop appropriate supports for all neurodivergent individuals who need them. Carl's children gave him the nickname "Fat Bastard" around 2009 as a homage to his desire to embrace his weird sense of humor. It is a nickname that he has fully embraced.
During the course of his work as an advocate, lobbyist and trainer, Carl has loved meeting new people. A self-described introvert, he sometimes struggles in large crowds. Part of this is due to hearing loss and needing to be closer to people than he is comfortable with in order to hear them above background noises.
Carl's lifelong motto is "Embrace that which makes you unique, no matter how weird others may find you to be. There is only one you."