At the start of 9th grade, Dillan was asked about his proudest achievement in school  9/17/14

My greatest achievement in school was to give a speech to my graduating class in 8th grade.  It was important to me to at least have an opportunity to be heard, not in a personal self gratifying way, or in a public acknowledgment way, not even in an intrinsic sense.  I did it to tell as many people as I could that even though we don’t speak or control our bodies, we are never not a student, deserving of an appropriate education.  Am only having an opportunity to have an opinion and voice thanks to the relentless efforts of people who believe I am competent and have a mind.  A person with a mind intact.  And so now high school lies ahead of me, and I hope to have more achievements and make more connections with my fellow students.

Here is a link to the news coverage of Dillan’s graduation speech and full transcript:

http://abc7.com/news/non-verbal-teen-with-autism-gives-grad-speech/96359/