Since its inception in 1971, the Georgia Council on Developmental Disabilities (GCDD), formerly known as the Governor’s Council on Developmental Disabilities, has been a powerful advocate for more than 1.7 million Georgians with developmental disabilities (DD) and their families. Our success is driven by the 27-member, Governor-appointed Council and the statewide DD community that have been integral in driving projects, partnerships and policy for Georgia’s DD community.  And to continue our work and impact, GCDD has launched a membership campaign to recruit new applicants interested i…

National Siblings Day, a day that celebrates and strengthens the bond shared by siblings and celebrates siblings’ relationships, is celebrated on April 10th each year. The Georgia Council on Developmental Disabilities (GCDD) wants to recognize sibling advocates in Georgia. A sibling advocate is a sibling of an individual who has a developmental disability. Often times people think of parents as the caretaker or provider, but siblings have also had to step in and take care of their loved ones for life. Mira Patel, who works for the DeKalb Community Service Board is a sibling advocate. Her bro…

Olmstead v. L.C. is the Supreme Court case that provided what is now known as the Olmstead decision. In 1999, Lois Curtis—the L.C. in Olmstead v. L.C.—and Elaine Wilson, two women with disabilities living in Georgia institutions, successfully argued in the Supreme Court that housing people with disabilities in segregated settings who are capable of living in the community constitutes discrimination under the Americans with Disabilities Act. Curtis, who was diagnosed with both an intellectual disability and mental illness at a young age, passed away on November 3, 2022, from pancreatic cancer…

Many Georgians associate the Georgia Council on Developmental Disabilities (GCDD) with serving or working only with the disability community in Metro Atlanta. To make sure that people with developmental disabilities (DD) and their families meet the Council and learn that it serves the entire state of Georgia, GCDD is launching its virtual road tour and campaign, “G is for Georgia!” This new campaign will highlight the DD community and GCDD’s work throughout the state of Georgia in a fun, interactive way. The goal of the campaign will be to introduce the Council to Georgians with DD across th…