Diana MTK Autin, Esquire

Diana graduated from the University of Michigan Law School. During her time in the Law School Clinic, she represented a student in federal court challenging the school district for violating his rights to free speech and privacy, and to be free from unlawful search and seizure. This case was the first time in Michigan that a jury awarded money damages to a student for violation of his rights.

Since graduation, Diana has worked in multiple legal fields. She was Managing Attorney for Advocates for Children of NYC for 7 years, serving as co-counsel for the plaintiffs in the Jose P. case, the longest running special education class action case in the country, as well as the successful Ray M. case, focusing on the issues of failure to ensure timely referrals and evaluations for preschoolers with disabilities, placement in segregated settings for all preschoolers with disabilities, and over-segregation of preschoolers with limited English proficiency. 

For 28 years, she served as Executive Director or Executive Co-Director of the SPAN Parent Advocacy Network (SPAN), New Jersey's Parent Training and Information Center. During that time, SPAN has been involved in multiple class action lawsuits regarding special education. SPAN also worked with the New Jersey Special Education Practitioners to "overturn" a decision of the New Jersey Supreme Court Committee on Unauthorized Practice of Law that lay advocates speaking on parents' behalf at IEP meetings or mediations was an unauthorized practice of law.

In addition to her current role as Senior Program Director for Organizational Capacity-Building at SPAN, Diana is a co-founder and Director of the National Center for Parent Leadership, Advocacy, and Community Empowerment (National PLACE).

She is also a parent, having raised four diverse adopted children with a range of needs. A Cajun with Houma, Cherokee, and Sioux background, Diana has a lifelong commitment to equity and to combining her love of teaching and her love of the law to prepare and support communities to use the law to advocate to improve services to, and outcomes for, children and families across systems.