Alexandria (Alli) Mulqueen struggled through much of her academic career before learning of her diagnosis of ADHD at 17, a discovery that would alter her life trajectory.

“I went through most of school having a really difficult time academically, not thinking I was smart, and not thinking that I could do things,” said Mulqueen, a Cal State San Marcos psychological science senior. “I just had differences in terms of how I communicate with other people.”

Mulqueen was recently honored with the President’s Student Champion Award for Inclusive Excellence and Diversity, which is given out every fall. She received the award at the All People’s Luncheon in October.

Many 17 year olds in her shoes would have been frustrated over the delayed diagnosis and perhaps the unnecessary struggles that she endured. But those who know Mulqueen know she leveraged her experiences and observations to bring about change.

A student who radiates positive energy, she instead went exploring.

As a beginning college student, she dove into all the services and support options for neurodiverse students. 

What she found was a system filled with dedicated faculty and staff, but unfortunately also a system that nonetheless fell short in many ways.

Ever the optimist, she’s interested in identifying issues and then casting a wide but realistic net when it comes to solutions.

“In many ways I was very fortunate,” said Mulqueen, who is also minoring in linguistics. “Going to college and having a better understanding of myself gave me the opportunity to really flourish, but in doing so, I've also recognized the needs that need to be addressed.”

Mulqueen is a doer. She is co-president of CSUSM Best Buddies, which is the campus chapter of Best Buddies International, a nonprofit organization dedicated to a volunteer movement that creates opportunities for one-to-one friendships, integrated employment, leadership development, and inclusive living for individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD). 

As the only student organization on campus focusing on neurodiversity and disability justice, the student leaders vision a place for community building, belonging, learning, and advocacy for students with disabilities and allies.

Best Buddies has a strong partnership with the CSUSM Aspiring Scholars Program, a four-year non-degree university program for students with intellectual disabilities seeking an inclusive college experience and focused on promoting competitive integrated employment.

“Both programs serve a very important role in the college experiences of students in the general CSUSM population as a whole,” Mulqueen said.

She serves as a peer mentor for the Aspiring Scholars Program, where she provides academic and social engagement support to students in the program. The program is growing each year, necessitating more peer mentors.

Sammy Eckard is a psychology major at CSUSM after transferring from Palomar College. He identifies as autistic, although he hasn’t received a formal diagnosis. The cost in seeking a diagnosis as an adult is significantly larger than being diagnosed as a child.

Eckard met Mulqueen through an internship class with Allison Jobin, an assistant professor in psychology.

Both students have worked with neurodivergent students in various capacities, as peer mentors through the Aspiring Scholars Program on campus and as providers within community organizations supporting early development for individuals with developmental disorders including autism.

Eckard was immediately drawn to Mulqueen’s upbeat energy and positive outlook with anyone she encounters.

“She helps them out, be it making connections at the club, helping them make friends or talk to people and making sure that everyone's enjoying themselves in the club she's a part of,” said Eckard, who has future aspirations of becoming a relationship counselor specializing in neurodivergent clients.

Jobin is principal investigator and director of the SPARCC Lab on campus. Her psychology research lab is dedicated to improving community-based services and supports for autistic individuals and their families.

Mulqueen, who is interested in studying socioemotional and relationship-based therapeutic strategies for neurodivergent individuals, knew upon her arrival on campus that she wanted to get involved in helping others.

She just wasn’t sure how. That is, until she met Jobin.

Mulqueen credits meeting Jobin with “sparking” her interest in research.

“Our lab is really focused on doing community-partnered work,” Jobin said. “There’s research to tell us how important that is…the work that researchers are doing doesn't always reflect the needs of the community. And so one thing that I'm really proud of Alli for doing is seeing, hearing, listening. Hearing a need, even experiencing a need, as a student.”

Jobin describes how community-engaged scholarship can be challenging, but it is worth it.

“Not only are we working on making sure that our work is collaborative with the community — that makes research really hard and messy —but also that it has an impact,” Jobin said. “And she's just a beautiful example of doing that.”

Mulqueen plans to pursue a doctoral degree, where she can expand her clinical and research training, after graduating from CSUSM.

There’s still significant work that needs to be done. Chiefly for Mulqueen is a center for disabled and neurodiverse students and allies on campus, and the integration of disability and neurodiversity into DEI efforts.

CSUSM has been lauded for the physical spaces — mostly in the University Student Union — provided for traditionally underrepresented groups of students. The Student Life Centers for Identity, Inclusion, & Empowerment celebrate, educate and create spaces for students to find a sense of belonging.

The latest to open this fall semester was the Asian & Pacific Islander & Desi American (APIDA) Student Life Center. The American Indian SLC should be the next space to open on campus.

Mulqueen emphasized the need for a dedicated center for students with disabilities or who identify as neurodivergent, highlighting the lack of such a resource despite CSUSM’s diverse campus community. Her mentored research examining neurodivergent college students' social belonging aims to address these gaps.

“There's still work that needs to be done and implemented, and I want to create that opportunity for as many people as possible because I know that there are people who are struggling,” Mulqueen said.

Along with other student leaders and faculty mentors, she sees a need for a student life center that recognizes neurodiversity as a unique aspect of student life, invests resources to increase neurodiversity-oriented programming efforts on campus and in the community, and increases access opportunities for students and allies to gather, experience belonging, and make their unique experiences known and heard.

“To find that one student organization can't meet the needs of everyone who needs a community and who needs the support and sense of belonging that they don't really get elsewhere,” Mulqueen said. “I'm just going to push.”

Although she empowers her students to be at the forefront of the push for a disability and neurodiversity student center, Jobin is right alongside them.

Many difference-makers on campus have heard from Jobin.

“We talk a lot about thinking big and thinking long term, about sustainability and impact,” Jobin said. “And these are students who are so passionate and driven to bring about change. Their presence on our campus is transformative in and of itself.”

A life is not important except in the impact it has on other lives. Jackie Robinson, who broke the color barrier in Major League Baseball 77 years ago, famously shared this thought on self-reflection.

Eckard remembers the day he first crossed paths with Mulqueen. What stood out the most in that meeting was the immediate feeling of inspiration she provided through her impactful words.

“She has this aura of kindness and understanding,” Eckard said. “Alli has a way of making ripples, and to her, it's a very small thing. But those ripples eventually lead into waves that she doesn’t even see. She doesn't even realize it. If it wasn't for meeting someone like Alli, I wouldn't have thought someone would listen to me. I feel heard with her.”

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