GCDD Impact: Georgia’s Advancing Employment Center Expands Impact and Reach

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 (GCDD). It is making major strides in creating more integrated workplaces for people with disabilities across the state.

Doug Crandell, Public Service Faculty and DirectorNow entering its seventh year, the initiative continues to grow in both scope and influence — thanks to a focused commitment on systems change, ongoing education, and stakeholder engagement.

“We really take seriously that phrase, ‘continually improving,’” said Doug Crandell, Public Service Faculty and Director of the Advancing Employment project. “We’re not just training and providing technical assistance. We’re shaping policy, bringing people together, and pushing toward meaningful employment for all.”

Policy Change Driving the Mission

One of the Center’s most recent projects was advising on a Georgia Senate bill to phase out subminimum wage employment for individuals with disabilities — a practice that, in some cases nationally, has meant people earning as little as 22 cents an hour. “That’s still legal in the U.S.,” Crandell noted. “It’s been our policy for 85 years. Georgia decided that needed to change.”

Crandell, who authored a book titled “Twenty-Two Cents an Hour, Disability Rights and the Fight to End Subminimum Wages,” is referring to the The Dignity and Pay Act that demands community rehabilitation programs pay their workers at or above the minimum wage by 2027. It is now at the desk of Governor Brian Kemp, waiting to be signed into law.

The Center has also been instrumental in Georgia becoming a model employer for people with disabilities and in updating policies around self-employment and financial decision-making.

Tools for Self-Determination

Coming later this year is the launch of Georgia’s version of Disability Benefits 101 (DB101), an online tool that allows users to make informed choices about employment without jeopardizing healthcare or financial benefits. “It’s going to be a game-changer,” Crandell said. “People can sit at home and model different work scenarios and see what happens to their benefits.”

Spreading Knowledge and Community

Education is central to the Center’s mission. Their spring webinar series — held every Tuesday in May — will feature national experts, including presenters from Rhode Island and The Arc of Massachusetts. Topics range from supporting social connection at work to addressing workforce shortages with strategic hiring strategies that includes people with developmental disabilities.

The Center also hosts a monthly virtual Community of Practice focused on different economic sectors. “One month it’s agriculture, the next it might be green jobs or arts and entertainment,” Crandell explained. “We’re talking directly to practitioners who are placing people in real jobs based on their interests.”

Another major development is the recent certification of over 40 Georgia professionals through the Association for Community Rehabilitation Educators (ACRE). “They’re now part of a growing network that knows how to approach employers and advocate effectively,” Crandell said. That credential helps people get the skills they need to better support individuals with disabilities in finding and keeping jobs.

In addition, the Center will hold its annual celebration aligned with Georgia’s Disability Employment Awareness Month in October. “We use that event to honor progress and plan what’s next. It’s both a celebration and a strategy session,” said Crandell. Details for the celebration will be available in late summer.

Looking Ahead

Whether through webinars, credentialing, or policy reform, the Center continues to build momentum toward a future where employment for people with disabilities is standard, not exceptional. “We’re here for the long haul,” Crandell emphasized. “And we’re doing the work to make sure Georgia leads the way.”

For more information on Advancing Employment’s trainings, webinars, and mission, visit www.advancingemployment.com.