Letter from Leadership: Growing Our Team, Growing Our Impact

Please join me in welcoming GCDD’s two newest employees: Cathy Harmon-Christian as our Public Policy Director and Rena Harris as our Chief Program Officer. By the time you read this, they will have been on the job for a couple of weeks, settling in, setting priorities and, I’m sure, already making a difference with their expertise. 

I participated in the selection processes that brought Cathy and Rena into GCDD’s employment. The pool of candidates for both positions was competitive, and I’m excited our top choices accepted our offers. I know Cathy and Rena will be great additions to the GCDD team, and I look forward to working with them. 

While I'm thrilled about Cathy and Rena joining our team, I also want to share some insights from the broader interview process. All the candidates were well-qualified and enthusiastic. During our conversations, they offered valuable advice that I thought would benefit our entire GCDD community. This Letter from Leadership is the perfect opportunity to pass along their wisdom.

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.