MANDI
RICKELMAN

Mandi has dedicated more than two decades to working alongside individuals on the autism spectrum, families, educators, and professionals across home, school, and community settings.

After earning her Master’s in Curriculum and Instruction from the University of Colorado Boulder, she began her career at the Cleveland Clinic Center for Autism’s Lerner School. She later spent 17 years at the Monarch Center for Autism, first as a classroom teacher and then as the Director of Early Childhood Services. There, she trained educators, parents, and professionals, partnered with local school districts, and helped hundreds of individuals and families.

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Throughout her career, Mandi observed a recurring challenge: families and professionals wanted to provide meaningful support but did not always know what an individual needed, how to help, or where to begin. Spaces, routines, and expectations did not always account for how each person communicated, processed information, regulated, or learned.​

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Mandi created Welcoming Spaces to help close that gap.

Her approach begins with understanding the individual—their strengths, interests, communication, sensory needs, and what their behavior may be communicating. She then considers the whole environment: physical space, sensory demands, routines, expectations, communication supports, and how others provide support. Together, these pieces help identify barriers and opportunities for change.

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Today, Mandi brings this approach to family homes, schools, healthcare facilities, museums, libraries, and other community organizations. Through consultation, training, and sensory-supportive environmental design, she helps families and professionals recognize individual needs and translate them into practical changes to spaces, routines, and supports—creating environments and experiences that are easier to understand, navigate, and participate in.​