Southeastern Postsecondary Education Alliance Holds Second Annual Capacity Building Institute

June 20, 2016

The Center for Leadership in Disability (CLD), at the Georgia State University School of Public Health, hosted its second annual Southeastern Postsecondary Education Alliance (SEPSEA) Capacity Building Institute on April 4th & 5th, 2016.

The annual event was created to collaborate around the support, creation and expansion of inclusive postsecondary education programs (IPSE) among Southeastern states. The two day agenda drew 80 students and 100 professionals and parents, representing 31 colleges and universities, from 9 Southeastern states to Georgia State University's campus. Seven University Centers for Excellence in Developmental Disabilities (UCEDDs) were represented at the event; the Human Development Institute, Vanderbilt Kennedy Center, Center for Disability Resources, Institute on Human Development and Disability, Carolina Institute on Developmental Disabilities, Institute on Community Inclusion, and the CLD.

Included in the agenda of the more than 25 professional and student breakout sessions and general sessions, Dr. Daniel Crimmins, Director of the CLD, opened the conference adressing ‘Who We Are and What We Want to Accomplish'. The keynote speaker, President Bob Boehmer, of East Georgia State College, spoke about the decision to initiate inclusive postsecondary education programs at a small public access institution. Cate Weir from Think College spoke on national trends in IPSE and the work of Think College.

"SEPSEA has been such a rewarding endeavor. The comradery from across the Southeast has enriched all involved, "said Susanna Miller-Raines, SEPSEA CBI Committee Chair and Community Support Specialist at the CLD. "Advancing inclusive postsecondary education advances our communities, our states, our region and our nation."

SEPSEA promotes resource development, collaboration, peer-to-peer education, and access to quality IPSE opportunities in Alabama, Arkansas, Georgia, Florida, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Tennessee, North Carolina, South Carolina, Virginia & beyond.

The CLD is one of 67 University Centers for Excellence in Developmental Disabilities funded by the Administration on Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities of the Administration on Community Living (USDHHS). It is housed within the Center for Healthy Development and the School of Public Health. The center serves as a bridge between university and community in support of effective practices that improve the lives of people with disabilities and their families. CLD educates current and future advocates and professionals, develops innovative supports and services, promotes systems change, conducts research, and disseminates information.