Small acts can have a big impact. We’ve all heard this in inspirational speeches. We’ve seen memes scroll by in our newsfeed. But I’ve personally witnessed the impact and ripple effect caused by a simple act by my son’s teachers almost 20 years ago. It all started with a hug. Like so many on the autism spectrum, my son’s first experiences at school were difficult. The kids at school either ignored him or bullied him. The teachers at this first school just didn’t work well with students who learned differently. Though he wasn’t diagnosed at the time, we could see that he was struggling to keep up with his peers,…