The Center for Leadership in Disability's 10th Year Anniversary Events (GA UCEDD)

May 28, 2019

Atlanta, GA - The Center for Leadership in Disability at Georgia State University hosted four events to commemorate their 10-year anniversary. The speakers selected are internationally known experts in their fields and all four exude the values of leadership and inclusion that have informed CLD's work over the past 10 years.

Dr. David Satcher, Founding Director of the Satcher Health Leadership Institute at Morehouse School of Medicine - In December 2018, the CLD hosted a lecture by Dr. Satcher who served as the 16th Surgeon General of the United States. Dr. Satcher spoke to the CLD community about his life and his leadership experiences -- from his childhood on an Alabama farm in the segregated south during which he was influenced by his own family doctor, to his advocacy for health equity in medical school, and in his roles as the US Assistant Secretary for Health, the Surgeon General, and the Director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Tawara Goode, Director, National Center for Cultural Competence & Georgetown University UCEDD - In February 2019, Tawara Goode spoke to CLD's community on Cultural Competence & Higher Education: Dilemmas, Policies, and Practices. Goode's presentation reviewed the foundational tenets of cultural competency at all levels in higher education with a specific focus on UCEDDs. Importantly, the gaps and barriers to the implementation and practice of a culturally competent environment were also explored using the examples from Goode's existing projects and professional experience.

Gaelynn Lea, Violinist and Winner of NPR's 2016 Tiny Desk Concert - Over the course of two days in February 2019, Gaelynn Lea performed a solo concert for the CLD community. On day two, Lea spoke about advocacy and the arts, and her personal journey toward becoming a full-time touring musician.

Dan Habib, Film Director, Producer - On March 27, Dan Habib facilitated the screening of his new film, Intelligent Lives. Habib is an award-winning director and film maker based at the Institute on Disability at the University of New Hampshire. The film documents the journey of three individuals with intellectual disabilities as they challenge our culture's narrow definition of intelligence. Following the screening, Habib moderated a panel of students from Georgia's inclusive postsecondary programs at Georgia Tech (Kurt Vogel) and Georgia State University (De'onte Brown, and Nick Uche)

The remaining 10th Anniversary events are upcoming public keynotes by Dr. Mark Durand of the University of South Florida - St. Petersburg for the Autism Conference and Expo in May at GSU, and by Edie Cusack of the College of Charleston at the Georgia Department of Education's Institute Designed for Educating All Students (IDEAS) Conference on St. Simon's Island, GA. CLD will also serve as a co-sponsor of a two-day conference in August on Olmstead at 20: The Past and Future of Community Integration at the GSU Law School.