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FDDC to Host Developmental Disabilities Awareness Day
March 11, 2008
Media Contact:
Rose Coster
(850) 488-4180
TALLAHASSEE -- During what some are saying is the Florida Legislature’s most challenging budget year in the past two decades, Florida’s citizens with developmental disabilities are at greater risk than ever of losing valuable services. To bring these concerns before Floridians and lawmakers, the Florida Developmental Disabilities Council, Inc. (FDDC) will host its 2008 Developmental Disabilities Awareness Day in Tallahassee on Tuesday, March 18.
Self-advocates and their families, along with FDDC members and service providers, will kick off Developmental Disabilities Awareness Day at 8:30 a.m. on the second-floor Rotunda of the Capitol. Partners with the FDDC for this event are the Florida Alliance for Assistive Services and Technology (FAAST) and the Agency for Persons with Disabilities. Governor Charlie Crist and lawmakers have been invited to attend.
“This is a frightening and challenging time for Floridians with developmental disabilities,” said Enrique Escallon, FDDC Chair. “Citizens with disabilities cannot afford additional cuts to services that enable them to live and work in their communities, while improving their quality of life.”
Debra Dowds, Executive Director of FDDC, said she and her staff are working closely with lawmakers to educate them on why they should not cut services. “We believe it is very important to maintain the Developmental Disability Medicaid Waiver services, the Early Steps Early Intervention program and the Exceptional Student Education Guaranteed Allocation for students in grades K-12,” said Dowds.
She explained that these programs enable individuals with developmental disabilities to live independently as contributing members of their communities, provide early intervention services to infants and toddlers with or at risk of developmental delays, and ensure education funds are available to students who need help to succeed in the classroom.
For more information about Developmental Disabilities Awareness Day or FDDC, visit www.FDDC.org, call toll-free at (800) 580-7801 or call TDD at (888) 488-8633.
About the Florida Developmental Disabilities Council, Inc.
The Florida Developmental Disabilities Council, Inc. (FDDC) is a non-profit organization funded through federal assistance from the Department of Health and Human Services Administration on Developmental Disabilities. The Council accomplishes its mission by supporting innovative initiatives that demonstrate new approaches to enhance the independence, productivity, inclusion and self-determination of individuals with developmental disabilities in all facets of community life. Contact the FDDC by visiting its website at www.FDDC.org, call toll-free at (800)-580-7801 or TDD at (888)-488-8633.