Suzanne Feit

I attribute my success to a lifelong commitment to listening closely, solving real problems, and believing deeply in human potential. For more than fifty years, my work has lived at the intersection of education, technology, and access—not because I set out to build a legacy, but because I was driven to notice what wasn’t working for learners who were too often overlooked, underestimated, or unheard. That instinct—to observe first and respond thoughtfully—has guided every chapter of my career. My journey began in special education, where I earned my master’s degree and quickly recognized that access, not ability, was the greatest barrier facing many students. Long before assistive technology entered mainstream conversation, I collaborated with educators, therapists, families, and emerging technology companies to develop tools that gave learners greater agency over their education and their voices.

In the late 1980s, I founded a nonprofit network connecting schools and families with major technology partners. That role took me around the globe, developing curriculum, training educators, and implementing assistive solutions that helped students not only participate but thrive. What has sustained my work is seeing the impact firsthand—from a nonverbal child speaking her first words through a communication device to a stroke survivor finally expressing complex thoughts using adaptive technology. Most personally, I have experienced this impact as a parent, raising my son with Down syndrome and using technology as a bridge to independence, connection, and joy.

More recently, my curiosity has led me to explore artificial intelligence as the next frontier of accessibility. That work resulted in my book, Family Adventures from A to Z Using ChatGPT, which helps families and educators move from AI anxiety to AI partnership through creative, human-centered use. Whether I am training educators, writing, or speaking at events such as the LA Times Book Festival, my purpose remains the same: to translate powerful tools into accessible, empowering experiences that help people realize what is possible.

Use technology as a thinking partner, not a replacement. Maintain your authorship, judgment, and voice—while allowing innovation to expand what’s possible.

For me, that means starting with my own ideas and perspective, then using AI to refine, challenge, and build on them. Technology should amplify human thinking, not replace it. When we keep the judgment loop intact, where we decide, AI responds, and we decide again, we preserve creativity, ethics, and ownership.

That balance is the real literacy of the future: collaborating with innovation, while staying fully human at the center of the work.

For me, that means starting with my own ideas and perspective, then using AI to refine, challenge, and build on them. Technology should amplify human thinking, not substitute for it. When we keep the judgment loop intact, where we decide, AI responds, and we decide again, we preserve creativity, ethics, and ownership.

That balance is the real literacy of the future: collaborating with innovation while keeping the human center of the work.

My advice to young women entering this field is to listen first. When technology is placed in the hands of people who approach challenges like detectives, observing carefully, asking thoughtful questions, and truly understanding the problem before prescribing a solution, it becomes transformative. That mindset has guided my work from the beginning, continues to shape my practice today, and fuels everything I hope to build next. I encourage you to seek first to understand, and then to be understood. Be an observant problem-solver: notice how a person accesses tools, where barriers exist, and what strengths are already present. When you adapt solutions to the individual rather than forcing people to adapt to technology, you create access, empowerment, and lasting impact.

The greatest challenges in my field have rarely been about technology itself. They’ve been about perception, access, and timing. For decades, assistive technology was often misunderstood or dismissed as a “nice-to-have” rather than a necessity. Convincing institutions to invest in tools for students with diverse learning needs required repeatedly proving their value, even when outcomes were clear. Innovation frequently outpaced policy, funding, and training, leaving eager educators and families without the support they needed. Equity has been another persistent challenge. Access to technology often depends on geography, income, or awareness. Brilliant solutions exist, but they don’t always reach the people who need them most.

Bridging that gap requires advocacy, partnerships, and ongoing education—not just about how to use tools, but also about why they matter. On a personal level, navigating these systems as a parent of a child with Down syndrome brought its own obstacles. Others often set expectations low, and families were forced to push back, demonstrate potential, and insist on inclusion. Those experiences reinforced my commitment to creating solutions that empower individuals rather than define them by their limitations.

Today, artificial intelligence presents a familiar challenge in a new form: fear of the unknown. AI, like every transformative technology before it, raises concerns about misuse and displacement. My focus is on reframing that conversation, helping people see AI as a supportive, creative, and independence-enhancing tool when guided by thoughtful human intention. While public hesitation and limited awareness present practical hurdles, AI tools like ChatGPT also consolidate many assistive features into one accessible platform, opening new opportunities for training, inclusion, and meaningful learning. I’ve learned that progress doesn’t come from avoiding complexity, it comes from leaning into it, asking better questions, and refusing to accept “that’s just how it is” as an answer.

I have been deeply passionate about special education and assistive technology for more than fifty years, but that passion became profoundly personal when I began working alongside my son, David, who has Down syndrome. He didn’t just influence my career; he inspired it, shaped it, and gave it purpose. Every classroom I entered, every technology I championed, and every system I challenged was guided by the belief that families deserve tools that open doors rather than limit expectations. That belief also inspired me to write Family Adventures from A to Z Using ChatGPT, a book designed to help families use AI to connect, explore, and create meaningful experiences together.

For me, technology is never a replacement for relationships—it’s a bridge that strengthens them, sparks curiosity, and expands possibilities. Sharing this work with families through platforms like Amazon, Barnes & Noble, IngramSpark, and BookBub has been incredibly rewarding. My values—accessibility, empowerment, curiosity, and connection—drive everything I do, both professionally and personally, and continue to guide the work I hope to contribute in the years ahead.