Hi, my name is Ben Oxley and I’m from McDonough, Georgia. When I was a kid, McDonough was a quiet little town, just 20 minutes south of the hustle and bustle of Atlanta. Older people and the generation of folks like me only knew it as a quiet l...

Hello advocates! We’re back with another federal update on critical funding for the disability community. In our previous articles, we’ve worked hard to give you all the essential information about how proposed federal budget cuts could affect ...

People with intellectual and developmental disabilities (I/DD), their families, and allies work hard every day to make life better for the disability community. Along the way, they face many challenges in society, politics, money, and systems. ...

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, settlin...

The Georgia Council on Developmental Disabilities welcomes two new staff members. Rena Harris is the Georgia Council on Developmental Disabilities’ (GCDD) new Chief Program Officer. M. Cathy Harmon-Christian, PhD is GCDD’s new Public Policy Dir...

Session is out and we are in the middle of summer, but the perfect time to advocate is now. We’ve experienced many changes over the past few months. These include funding shifts at the federal level to key developments within the Department of ...

When it comes to inclusive education in Georgia, the Georgia Coalition for Equity and Education (GCEE) is changing how families advocate for children with disabilities in schools. This organization is making sure their voices are heard. 

My name is Natasha Nelson, and I was born in 1989 as the oldest of seven children to Ruby Miller, a single mother living in Rome, Georgia. In kindergarten, I was evaluated and put in the gifted and talented program. But my childhood was a confu...

There is a bridge my daughter crawled across as a baby. It is a playground bridge. Back then, I wanted her to play like a big kid. So I would help her crawl across. Now as I am writing this, she is walking across it in a few steps. She is a twe...

The Georgia Council on Developmental Disabilities (GCDD) thanks Georgia families and self-advocates for their hard work. You used your voices to speak for other Georgians during a big federal budget debate. House Resolution 1 (HR1) passed. It i...

The disability rights movement lost one of its visionary leaders when John O'Brien passed away on June 27, 2025. For decades, O'Brien and his wife Connie Lyle O'Brien championed a simple belief: that every person deserves to be fully included i...

Every July, the United States celebrates Disability Pride Month. This month is a time for people with disabilities to feel proud of who they are, speak up about their rights, and celebrate being seen and heard in their communities. It is also a...

By Evan Nodvin - For the past 12 years, I’ve been proud to serve as a council member for the Georgia Council on Developmental Disabilities (GCDD). Looking back now, I realize just how much I have grown, and how much the council has grown t...

Guardianship isn't always the answer. Supported Decision Making is an alternative to guardianship. Some people with disabilities might need limited guardianship or conservatorship. But many people with disabilities don't need it. There are ofte...

As we reach the midpoint of 2025, the Georgia Council on Developmental Disabilities (GCDD) continues to track federal policies that may significantly impact Georgians with intellectual and developmental disabilities (I/DD). Over the past few...

The "Embracing Possibility: Georgia's Disability Justice Journey" exhibit opened this May at the Tubman Museum in Macon, GA. The opening celebration celebrated the exhibit's goal to change how people think about people with disabilities and hon...

For many people with disabilities, finding independence, purpose, and a full life in the community can be a daily challenge. Centers for Independent Living (CILs) are community-based, non-residential organizations who help people who want to ov...

The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) was signed into law on July 26, 1990, by former President George H. W. Bush This law created civil rights legislation that expanded the rights of people with disabilities. For millions of Americans with...

As federal lawmakers debate sweeping budget cuts, Georgia’s disability advocacy leaders are working hard to get critical information to our community. What is at stake: the future of Medicaid including vital community-based services, and...

Brook Kubik, a council member for the Georgia Council on Developmental Disabilities, went to the 2025 Disability Seminar in Washington, D.C. She returned to Georgia with more than policy updates – she came back with a new understanding of the s...

My Time on the Georgia Council on Developmental DisabilitiesHi, my name is Dorothy Harris, and I am from Fitzgerald, Georgia. I have served as a Council Member for the Georgia Council on Developmental Disabilities (GCDD) off and on since...

The Developmental Disabilities (DD) Network is a group of organizations working together to improve services and supports for people with DD in every state. This network is authorized under the Developmental Disabilities Assistance and Bill of ...

The Developmental Disabilities (DD) Network is a group of organizations that work together to improve the lives of people with developmental disabilities. This network was created by a law passed in 2000 to protect the rights of people with dev...

Berry College, located in Rome, Georgia, launched the Berry College Program for Inclusive Learning the Fall semester in 2024—the first inclusive post-secondary education (IPSE) program offered by a private university in Georgia. This program op...

The Advancing Employment Training and Technical Assistance Center at the  University of Georgia's Institute on Human Development and Disability (IHDD) is a long-running initiative of the Georgia Council on Developmental Disabilities (...