New Appointments to President's Committee for People with Intellectual Disabilities
January 12, 2012
AUCD Applauds the President's appointments of Jack Brandt and PEter Bell to the President's Committee for People with Intellectual Disabilities (PCPID). Both individuals will be significant contributors to the Committee.
Since it was established in 1966 under President Lyndon B. Johnson, the President's Committee for People with Intellectual Disabilities (PCPID) has sought to serve, and improve the quality of life for, individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities through the promotion of policies and programs that embrace self-determination and independence.
Jack Brandt is the Disability Policy Specialist for the Partnership for People with Disabilities at Virginia Commonwealth University, a position he has held since 2010. In this role, Mr. Brandt's work focuses on developing and promoting evidence-based and person-centered practices to improve outcomes in self-advocacy for people with intellectual and development disabilities. Mr. Brandt is also a valued member of AUCD's Legislative Affairs Committee.
Previously, Mr. Brandt was the Disability Rights Advocate at the Virginia Office for Protection & Advocacy from 2008 to 2010, a Disability Policy Consultant for the State of Virginia from 2006 to 2008, a Virginia Governor's Fellow at the Office of Community Integration for People with Disabilities in 2006, and a Congressional Intern for the U.S. Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pension Committee in 2005. Mr. Brandt serves on the Virginia Community Integration Advisory Commission and the Virginia Statewide Independent Living Council. In 2006, Mr. Brandt received the Jackie Crews Award for Excellence in Leadership from the Virginia Board for People with Disabilities.
Mr. Brandt received a BA from James Madison University and is pursuing a Master of Science degree in Rehabilitation Counseling from Virginia Commonwealth University.
Peter Bell is the Executive Vice President for Programs & Services at Autism Speaks, a position he has held since 2007. Bell, the father of a teenage son with autism, oversees Autism Speaks' government relations and family services activities and also serves as an advisor to the science division. He serves on numerous boards and commissions, including as co-founder and president of Advancing Futures for Adults with Autism (AFAA), chair of the Community Advisory Committee of the International Society for Autism Research (INSAR), and former chair and member of the Integration Panel of the Department of Defense Congressionally Directed Medical Research Programs for autism research.
AUCD has worked closely with Bell and Autism Speaks over the past several years, and believes his understanding of the service and support needs as well as the research and education needs of children and adults with autism and other developmental disabilities across the life span will be very useful on the President's Committee for Persons with Intellectual Disabilities.
