GCDD Grant Empowers Family Advocacy

The Georgia Disability Policy Alliance (GDPA) is a statewide coalition that brings families and advocates together to improve disability services. GDPA helps people with intellectual and developmental disabilities (I/DD) and their families learn how to speak up for their needs and find services. The Georgia Council on Developmental Disabilities (GCDD) supports this work through its Family Advocacy Coalition Grant. Crimminz & Associates helps lead and manage the coalition’s work.

GDPA’s goal is to build a lasting network of advocates across Georgia. The coalition wants families and people with I/DD to have the knowledge, skills, and connections to help improve disability services and policies.

GDPA’s Project Director, Stacey Ramirez, leads the coalition’s work across Georgia. Her work includes family outreach, advocacy training, and Advisory Council activities. She works with Daniel Crimmins, who helps set the coalition’s policy goals and manages project finances.

“The mission and work of GDPA is rooted in the simple belief that families and people with disabilities should not just be affected by public policy—they should help shape it,” said Ramirez.

Families of people with I/DD often have to learn how to use complicated service systems to get the support their loved ones need. GDPA wants to help families speak up for their own needs and work with others to improve these systems.

The coalition offers advocacy training, leadership opportunities, and information about disability policies. GDPA also holds community meetings to hear from families. These conversations help advocates identify problems with disability services and work together to solve them.

“The Family Advocacy Coalition Grant supports our vision of working alongside families as they move beyond individually navigating complicated service systems to working collectively to improve those systems,” said Ramirez. “Ultimately, we want to create a lasting advocacy infrastructure where the voices of families and people with I/DD are not just heard but meaningfully included in decisions about Georgia’s disability services, policies, and funding priorities.”

GDPA strives to use families’ experiences to help improve disability policies and create meaningful change for Georgia’s disability community. The grant is still in its early stages, but Ramirez and Crimmins are already seeing a change in how families approach problems with disability services.

“While the project is still in its early stages, our impact is best measured by the advocacy infrastructure, community participation, and leadership opportunities we are working on,” said Ramirez. “We are already seeing families move from asking, ‘How do I solve this problem for my family?’ to asking, ‘How can we work together so other families do not face the same barriers?’ That shift is powerful.”

One of GDPA’s important early wins is forming a 13-member Advisory Council. The Council includes people with I/DD and family advocates from cities, suburbs, and rural communities across Georgia. Each member brings their lived experiences to help improve systems that affect people with I/DD and their families.

The council reflects GDPA’s family-driven approach. Families and self-advocates choose which policy issues matter most to them. These decisions are not made for them by professionals or organizations.

“During our October Advisory Council meeting, members participated in a process to prioritize issues for upcoming statewide listening sessions,” said Crimmins. Council members identified several important issues. These included Medicaid and home-and-community-based services, DBHDD services, healthcare access, special education, and preventing abuse and neglect.

These priorities reflect the real-world challenges families face. They will guide GDPA’s listening sessions, policy education, and advocacy. Crimmins will work with members to turn these priorities into a plan for advocacy and improving disability services.

Previous advocacy experience is not required to join, and GDPA offers several ways to get involved. GDPA Circle is an online community where members can access educational resources, policy updates, discussions, training materials, and opportunities to connect and collaborate with other advocates. VOICE is a newsletter that GDPA is developing. It will offer easy-to-understand information about disability policies, practical advocacy tips, and stories about Georgia advocates.

With support from GCDD’s Family Advocacy Coalition Grant, GDPA and its growing network of advocates are working toward a future in which families and people with I/DD are not simply navigating Georgia’s disability systems but are active partners in improving them.

To stay informed about GDPA news and opportunities, contact .