Accessible Audio for Making A Difference

The Georgia Council on Developmental Disabilities’ (GCDD) public policy team has made tireless efforts to foster new relationships and educate legislators on the need for policy change that promotes opportunities for Georgians with developmental disabilities (DD) to live, learn, work, play, and worship in their communities – and it’s showing results. 

This year, GCDD hosted three Advocacy Days. Advocacy Days encourage individuals from the intellectual (ID) or developmental disabilities (DD) community throughout Georgia to use their voices to advocate for their needs by coming to the state Capitol and speaking to their legislators directly. As a way to increase participation and to fully prepare advocates for their experience at the Capitol, each Advocacy Day during the 2024 session consisted of a virtual and an in-person day.

The Georgia Council on Developmental Disabilities (GCDD) is driven by its Five Year Strategic Plan goals to improve services and supports for people with intellectual and other developmental disabilities (I/DD). The Council, charged with creating systems change for individuals with developmental disabilities and family members, will work through various advocacy and capacity building activities to build a more interdependent, self-sufficient, and integrated and included disability community across Georgia.

This project was supported, in part by grant number 2001GASCDD-03, from the U.S. Administration for Community Living, Department of Health and Human Services, Washington, D.C. 20201. Grantees undertaking projects with government sponsorship are encouraged to express freely their findings and conclusions. Points of view or opinions do not, therefore, necessarily represent official ACL policy.

For children with disabilities, school can be a stressful and overwhelming time. The Georgia Council on Developmental Disabilities (GCDD) sat down with Leslie Lipson, an attorney and director of the Georgia Coalition for Equity in Education, to discuss how students, parents, and primary school faculty can navigate the process of laying out the individualized education program (IEP) for students with disabilities to receive an educational experience that meets their unique needs and equips them for a future of self-advocacy and success.

The Georgia Council on Developmental Disabilities (GCDD) is driven by its Five Year Strategic Plan goals to improve services and supports for people with intellectual and other developmental disabilities (I/DD). The Council, charged with creating systems change for individuals with developmental disabilities and family members, will work through various advocacy and capacity building activities to build a more interdependent, self-sufficient, and integrated and included disability community across Georgia.

This project was supported, in part by grant number 2001GASCDD-03, from the U.S. Administration for Community Living, Department of Health and Human Services, Washington, D.C. 20201. Grantees undertaking projects with government sponsorship are encouraged to express freely their findings and conclusions. Points of view or opinions do not, therefore, necessarily represent official ACL policy.

The Georgia Council on Developmental Disabilities (GCDD) Equitable Dinner event, “A Seat at the Table: A Transformative Conversation Around Equity, Disability and Support” attracted capacity crowds for in-person and virtual sessions this past February. Presented by GCDD, Equitable Dinners, L’Arche Atlanta, and Out of Hand Theatre, these two gatherings brought together 175 Georgians with disabilities, their family members, community leaders, and disability advocates for a discussion about the value of equitable opportunities and supports in the lives of Georgians with developmental disabilities (DD) and their families and is the latest iteration of the GCDD Storytelling Project. 

The Storytelling Project was created six years ago in a partnership between GCDD and L’Arche Atlanta to increase public awareness and motivate Georgia legislators to act now for this remarkably underserved community. By providing living portraits of individuals struggling to receive a life-altering benefit, the project aimed to expand cross-sector allies and garner voices of support outside of the DD community. Since its beginning in 2019, more than 170 stories have been shared via mini-documentary films, short films, creative prose, podcasts, written stories, and photographs. 

The Georgia Council on Developmental Disabilities (GCDD) is driven by its Five Year Strategic Plan goals to improve services and supports for people with intellectual and other developmental disabilities (I/DD). The Council, charged with creating systems change for individuals with developmental disabilities and family members, will work through various advocacy and capacity building activities to build a more interdependent, self-sufficient, and integrated and included disability community across Georgia.

This project was supported, in part by grant number 2001GASCDD-03, from the U.S. Administration for Community Living, Department of Health and Human Services, Washington, D.C. 20201. Grantees undertaking projects with government sponsorship are encouraged to express freely their findings and conclusions. Points of view or opinions do not, therefore, necessarily represent official ACL policy.

The State of Georgia kicked off its legislative session in January, and the Georgia Council on Developmental Disabilities (GCDD) was front and center to advocate for the disability community across the state. During the session, GCDD hosted its annual Advocacy Days at the Georgia State Capitol. Advocacy Days is an opportunity for GCDD, self-advocates, and the developmental disabilities (DD) community across Georgia to meet, educate, and inform legislators about issues that are important to Georgia’s disability community. 

This year, there were three days of advocacy at the Capitol focusing on:

• Increase funding for Inclusive Post Secondary Education (IPSE).
• Increase in wages for direct support professionals (DSP) and an increase in the number of Medicaid waivers allocated to people with DD each year.
• Employment equity (abolishing 14(c), the law that allows employers to pay subminimum wages to people with disabilities).

The Georgia Council on Developmental Disabilities (GCDD) is driven by its Five Year Strategic Plan goals to improve services and supports for people with intellectual and other developmental disabilities (I/DD). The Council, charged with creating systems change for individuals with developmental disabilities and family members, will work through various advocacy and capacity building activities to build a more interdependent, self-sufficient, and integrated and included disability community across Georgia.

This project was supported, in part by grant number 2001GASCDD-03, from the U.S. Administration for Community Living, Department of Health and Human Services, Washington, D.C. 20201. Grantees undertaking projects with government sponsorship are encouraged to express freely their findings and conclusions. Points of view or opinions do not, therefore, necessarily represent official ACL policy.

On January 24, 2024, the Georgia Council on Developmental Disabilities (GCDD) hosted its annual Inclusive Post-Secondary Education (IPSE) Advocacy Day at the Georgia State Capitol. The event serves as an opportunity for students with intellectual disabilities (ID) to advocate to the General Assembly for state-supported funding for IPSE programs. There are nine active IPSE programs in Georgia, with an additional program opening in Rome, GA at Berry College. 

The Georgia Council on Developmental Disabilities (GCDD) is driven by its Five Year Strategic Plan goals to improve services and supports for people with intellectual and other developmental disabilities (I/DD). The Council, charged with creating systems change for individuals with developmental disabilities and family members, will work through various advocacy and capacity building activities to build a more interdependent, self-sufficient, and integrated and included disability community across Georgia.

This project was supported, in part by grant number 2001GASCDD-03, from the U.S. Administration for Community Living, Department of Health and Human Services, Washington, D.C. 20201. Grantees undertaking projects with government sponsorship are encouraged to express freely their findings and conclusions. Points of view or opinions do not, therefore, necessarily represent official ACL policy.

The Georgia Council on Developmental Disabilities (GCDD) hosted its annual Advocacy Days at the Capitol during the 2024 legislative session, which began in January. Using the power of self-advocates from Uniting for Change, GCDD was able to educate and inform lawmakers on issues affecting the developmental disability (DD) community throughout Georgia. 

GCDD hosts three separate Advocacy Days each year during the Georgia legislative session, IPSE Day, Waivers and Wages Day, and Employment Day. IPSE Day focuses on advocating to increase funds for IPSE grants. Waivers and wages day address the 7,000 Medicaid waitlist, as well as wages for direct support professionals (DSPs) in Georgia. Employment Day focuses on ending the 14c certificate, which makes it legal to pay people with disabilities subminimum wages and making Georgia a State as a Model Employer state. 

This feature highlights self-advocates from across the state of Georgia and their experiences advocating at the capitol during each of the three Advocacy Days.

The Georgia Council on Developmental Disabilities (GCDD) is driven by its Five Year Strategic Plan goals to improve services and supports for people with intellectual and other developmental disabilities (I/DD). The Council, charged with creating systems change for individuals with developmental disabilities and family members, will work through various advocacy and capacity building activities to build a more interdependent, self-sufficient, and integrated and included disability community across Georgia.

This project was supported, in part by grant number 2001GASCDD-03, from the U.S. Administration for Community Living, Department of Health and Human Services, Washington, D.C. 20201. Grantees undertaking projects with government sponsorship are encouraged to express freely their findings and conclusions. Points of view or opinions do not, therefore, necessarily represent official ACL policy.

For most kids, summer is one of the most wonderful times of the year. And one thing that makes it pretty awesome is summer camp. 

There was a time when children and young adults with developmental disabilities (DD) didn’t have access to the same summertime activities as many others. However, more programs are emerging to give everyone enjoyable experiences while adding the life skills of self-confidence, leadership, and character building.

The Georgia Council on Developmental Disabilities (GCDD) is driven by its Five Year Strategic Plan goals to improve services and supports for people with intellectual and other developmental disabilities (I/DD). The Council, charged with creating systems change for individuals with developmental disabilities and family members, will work through various advocacy and capacity building activities to build a more interdependent, self-sufficient, and integrated and included disability community across Georgia.

This project was supported, in part by grant number 2001GASCDD-03, from the U.S. Administration for Community Living, Department of Health and Human Services, Washington, D.C. 20201. Grantees undertaking projects with government sponsorship are encouraged to express freely their findings and conclusions. Points of view or opinions do not, therefore, necessarily represent official ACL policy.

As I sit down to write this, I’m feeling raw. We just wrapped up Georgia’s General Assembly session, and it was a real mix of wins and losses.

Win – the developmental disability (DD) rate study. All summer, fall, and winter long, we at the Georgia Council on Developmental Disabilities (GCDD) worked in tandem with multiple other organizations to press the case for why a rate increase was so critically needed. Thank all that is good – it worked. 

The Georgia Council on Developmental Disabilities (GCDD) is driven by its Five Year Strategic Plan goals to improve services and supports for people with intellectual and other developmental disabilities (I/DD). The Council, charged with creating systems change for individuals with developmental disabilities and family members, will work through various advocacy and capacity building activities to build a more interdependent, self-sufficient, and integrated and included disability community across Georgia.

This project was supported, in part by grant number 2001GASCDD-03, from the U.S. Administration for Community Living, Department of Health and Human Services, Washington, D.C. 20201. Grantees undertaking projects with government sponsorship are encouraged to express freely their findings and conclusions. Points of view or opinions do not, therefore, necessarily represent official ACL policy.

With the expansion of telehealth and similar methods of virtual care, many people, particularly people with disabilities, may have questions about the efficacy and availability of telehealth. A study at the Morehouse School of Medicine’s (MSM) National Center of Primary Care (NCPC) strived to answer these questions. 

Led by Megan Douglas, principal investigator and director of research and policy of the NCPC; Mitchell Blount, co-project lead and associate project director of research of the NCPC; and Rasheera Dopson, research assistant, the team  received a one-year grant from the Georgia Council on Developmental Disabilities (GCDD) to study the adoption and use of telehealth by people with disabilities in Georgia. The goal was to understand whether and to what extent telehealth has improved access to quality health care services.

The Georgia Council on Developmental Disabilities (GCDD) is driven by its Five Year Strategic Plan goals to improve services and supports for people with intellectual and other developmental disabilities (I/DD). The Council, charged with creating systems change for individuals with developmental disabilities and family members, will work through various advocacy and capacity building activities to build a more interdependent, self-sufficient, and integrated and included disability community across Georgia.

This project was supported, in part by grant number 2001GASCDD-03, from the U.S. Administration for Community Living, Department of Health and Human Services, Washington, D.C. 20201. Grantees undertaking projects with government sponsorship are encouraged to express freely their findings and conclusions. Points of view or opinions do not, therefore, necessarily represent official ACL policy.

In November, Uniting for Change held a State and Area Leadership Collective retreat in Macon with 80 people attending. During this retreat, we set priorities for 2024 within each workgroup of the four Local Area Networks, and as the Statewide Leadership Collective. We decided that we will focus on legislative advocacy in each of our three workgroups: Impact and Engagement, Education, and Outreach/Public Relations. 

As a part of this retreat, Uniting for Change wrote and sent a letter to all of our state legislators, sharing our legislative priorities for 2024 and again requesting they move the “NOW and COMP Waiver Rate Study” forward to provide the necessary support for increasing wages paid to our Direct Support Professionals (DSPs). 

The Georgia Council on Developmental Disabilities (GCDD) is driven by its Five Year Strategic Plan goals to improve services and supports for people with intellectual and other developmental disabilities (I/DD). The Council, charged with creating systems change for individuals with developmental disabilities and family members, will work through various advocacy and capacity building activities to build a more interdependent, self-sufficient, and integrated and included disability community across Georgia.

This project was supported, in part by grant number 2001GASCDD-03, from the U.S. Administration for Community Living, Department of Health and Human Services, Washington, D.C. 20201. Grantees undertaking projects with government sponsorship are encouraged to express freely their findings and conclusions. Points of view or opinions do not, therefore, necessarily represent official ACL policy.