Abstract
My name is Brad Linnenkamp and, in this article, I will share about my lived experience as a researcher, including my experience transitioning from an advocate to a researcher. I currently work as a paid researcher at the Kansas University Center on Developmental Disabilities (KUCDD) and have a long history of engagement in disability advocacy. I think it’s been really important as a person with a disability to be involved in the research and being a researcher gives me an opportunity to shape what is happening and educate individuals with and without disabilities and also teach them how to communicate in a way that is easier for others to understand. I also share about barriers I have faced, especially when getting started and various projects I have worked on. All the research in its own way really means something to me, and it means something to me to be a part of all parts of research.