MNLEND Fellow Celebrates Transformative Experiences and Inclusion

The quest for a healthy mind and body inspires the work of MNLEND fellow (2022-23) Mary Troullier in her role as a therapeutic recreation and inclusion recreation specialist with Minneapolis Parks and Recreation Board . She also teaches adaptive yoga for children and adults with a variety of intellectual and neurodevelopmental disabilities.

“Supporting people and building more adaptive programs across Minneapolis is very important to me,” Troullier said.

Troullier enjoys the outdoors and says one of her favorite recent work projects involved improving access to the sailing program on the Minneapolis chain of lakes. Participants need to use a rowboat to reach the sailboats tethered to a buoy on the lakes. Several people requested that the buoys and boats closer to shore be reserved for people with disabilities.

“It was sort of a puzzle,” Troullier said. “The Americans with Disabilities Act states ‘reasonable accommodations’ should be made. We had to determine what that meant for the sailing program. We decided that the three buoys and boats closest to the shore would be available for a person with a disability to reserve. It is a bit like the accessible parking spots,” Troullier added.

The ability to reserve boats and buoys began in the summer of 2025 and has been well-received.

Before starting her job with the Minneapolis Parks and Recreation Board, Troullier spent time working at the University of Minnesota’s Disability Resource Center. That experience led her to apply to graduate school at the University of Minnesota and to pursue a Minnesota Leadership in Neurodevelopmental and Related Disabilities (MNLEND) fellowship.

The MNLEND fellowship at the Institute on Community Integration enabled Troullier to connect with people working across various disciplines. It also led to a job with the Highland Friendship Club , a St. Paul-based nonprofit that serves teens and adults with disabilities by providing programs that build friendships and self-advocacy. Troullier worked at the club for three years and says the experience brought her an incredible amount of joy.

“The work to support people who have disabilities is very intertwined, and the MNLEND fellowship allowed me to interact with people in different areas and to go beyond classroom learning,” Troullier said.

“The experience of being a MNLEND fellow was transformative,” Troullier added. “Before the fellowship, I suspected I might have ADHD and be on the autism spectrum. When I was in preschool, my parents said one of my teachers was concerned because I was mute. I just did not talk. My parents thought it was due to being shy or nervous.”

During her fellowship, Troullier went to the Association of University Centers on Disabilities conference, and during a workshop session, she began to see her behaviors as part of the autism spectrum. She also remembers a compelling MNLEND class speaker from the Autism Society of Minnesota. “We had to do an exercise about the autism spectrum diagnostic criteria.”

Those experiences and insights led Troullier to seek care from several therapists before officially receiving a diagnosis of autism and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD).

“Getting that official diagnosis was 100% a relief,” Troullier recalled. “I was proud of myself for being persistent and finding the resources. It also helped me feel less isolated because I realized other people were experiencing the same things I was experiencing. There was also a bit of sadness because of the years I had to struggle internally.”

Troullier believes her personal experience living with autism and ADHD allows her to make better connections with other people who have a disability. She’s also grateful her MNLEND experience transformed her life both personally and professionally.

“I really want to get the word out about ICI and the MNLEND fellowship,” Troullier said. “I think both are great resources and opportunities that can help people in many ways.”