The challenge of being neurodivergent in STEM

Charlotte Fuqua’s love of chemistry ignited when she was 7 and her parents bought her a book filled with science experiments for kids. One of them, she recalls, introduced her to the concept of molecules. “I was completely awestruck.” Fuqua was so captivated by her newfound knowledge of chemistry that it was all she could focus on; she spent the next week spouting facts about molecules to anybody who crossed her path. “My teacher had to be like, ‘Charlotte, we’re in the middle of a lesson. You can tell people about molecules later,’ ” Fuqua says. “Coincidentally, that’s the year I got diagnosed with ADHD.” ADHD, or attention deficit hyperactivity disorder , is a neurodevelopmental condition often marked by difficulty regulating one’s thoughts and actions. It’s considered a form of neurodivergence , an umbrella term that refers to thinking, learning, or communicating differently than what society considers typical. Other neurodivergent conditions