Archived Press Releases

National EEOC Honoree Champions Benefits of Hiring People with Disabilities at Making a Difference Discovery Day on Sept. 27th

ATLANTA, GA (September 26, 2007)— Al Blackwelder, COO, Emory Crawford Long Hospital, will be honored tomorrow at the Governor's Council on Developmental Disabilities (GCDD) Making A Difference Discovery Day for receiving the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) Freedom to Compete Award for hiring people with disabilities through an employment program called Project Search. Emory Crawford Long is the first employer in the State of Georgia to receive this prestigious national award given to companies for implementing practices that promote access and inclusion. Along with Blackwelder's Discovery Day keynote address, business leaders will be introduced to professionals who will provide insight about the benefits of hiring people with disabilities through first-person accounts, project demonstrations, panel discussions and video highlights presented at the seventh annual Making a Difference Discovery Day on Thursday, September 27th, 9:00 AM to 1:30 PM, at The Home Depot corporate headquarters, 2455 Paces Ferry Road in Atlanta.

"The EEOC Freedom to Compete Award recognizes innovative programs that enable people with disabilities to participate freely in the workplace. Lo and behold, Crawford got it!" said Al Blackwelder, COO, Emory Crawford Long Hospital. "This is certainly not charity. This project provided me with a solution to a problem that was cost neutral or cost less. This was financially advantageous. Jobs were not getting done. Project Search employees can do them better and cheaper and faster than the more highly trained people who used to do these jobs," Blackwelder concluded. By performing complex, repetitive tasks with greater precision, Project Search employees make it possible for higher paid technical staff to focus their time and attention on more professional responsibilities.

One hundred corporate executives and business owners are expected for a half-day of interactive multi-media presentations moderated by former CNN Anchor Bobbie Battista, who has first-hand experience with a developmental disability through a family member. This annual event helps corporate executives and human resource managers discover the gifts, talents and skills that people with disabilities can contribute to the workplace. Seventy-five percent of working age Americans with disabilities are overlooked for employment, yet they comprise a $3 trillion consumer market.

Discovery Day corporate partners are The Home Depot, Southern Company, SunTrust Banks Inc. and InterContinental Hotels Group (IHG). "The Governor's Council on Developmental Disabilities is proud that Georgia is becoming a national leader by implementing innovative partnerships that work successfully to place people with developmental disabilities," said GCDD Executive Director Eric Jacobson. "As we work together with corporations and other members of the business community, the true value of Georgia's entire workforce can eventually be realized," concluded Jacobson.

The event's featured speakers include US EEOC Regional Director Bernice Williams-Kimbrough, Emory Crawford Long COO Albert Blackwelder, SunTrust Banks Vice President Katherine McCary, and Booz Allen Hamilton Senior Manager of Community Relations Barbara Haight. Participating organizations include Employment First of Georgia; the Institute of Human Development and Disability (IHDD); The Georgia Advocacy Office (GAO); Georgia Tech University; Briggs and Associates; the Center for the Visually Impaired (CVI) and The Edge Connection of Kennesaw State University.

Opening Keynote: Albert K. Blackwelder is the interim chief operating officer of Emory Crawford Long Hospital and chief operating officer at Wesley Woods Center and Center for Rehabilitation Medicine. Mr. Blackwelder's leadership in developing Project Search, a program that works to hire people with disabilities, has positioned Emory Crawford Long to become the first employer in the state of Georgia to receive the EEOC prestigious Freedom to Compete Award, presented during a ceremony at the Agency's Washington, DC headquarters on September 26th.

Featured Speaker: Bernice Williams-Kimbrough was appointed the director of the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission's Atlanta District Office in 1996. Covering the state of Georgia and parts of South Carolina, Ms. Kimbrough directs the day-to-day operations of one of the largest districts in the country, with approximately 100 employees. The EEOC's Freedom to Compete Awards are part of the Agency's national outreach, education and coalition-building campaign to provide free and unfettered access to employment opportunities for all and to influence positive change in the workplace.

Morning Keynote: Katherine McCary, Vice President, SunTrust Banks Inc, has responsibility for the Accessing Community (ACT) Program, an initiative that seeks to increase the employment of people with disabilities in SunTrust's workforce and to increase awareness of marketing opportunities for customers with disabilities. She also manages the Corporate Disability Resource Center which provides disability information internally to employees and managers.

Afternoon Keynote: Barbara Haight. As the senior manager for corporate community relations for Booz Allen Hamilton, Ms. Haight is involved in all aspects of the firm's corporate citizenship, philanthropy and community impact programs. She has played a key role in the creation and implementation of the Emerging leaders internship and leadership development program for college students with disabilities. The program has been recognized by the Department of Labor/Office of Disability Employment Policy as an exemplary corporate effort. Booz Allen Hamilton received the Department of Labor's New Freedom Initiative Award for its efforts supporting the employment of individuals with disabilities.

GCDD is a Federally-funded state agency that promotes independence, inclusion, integration, self-determination and productivity for Georgians with developmental disabilities so they can live, learn, work, play and worship where and how they choose. A Developmental Disability is a chronic mental and/or physical disability that occurs before age 22 and is expected to last a lifetime. It may require supports in three or more of the following life activities: self-care, language, learning, mobility, self-direction, independent living and economic self-sufficiency.