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The Dolly Gray Children's Literature Award made TIME Magazine! The article is linked here:
https://time.com/6218859/down-syndrome-childrens-books/ It is exciting to see evidence of the Dolly Gray Award's impact on children's literature! We agree with the author that there isn't enough literature that accurately portrays developmental disabilities, especially down syndrome. The work we do helps encourage authors, illustrators, and publishers to publish books that have high quality characterizations of individuals with developmental disabilities. Your active participation as an award panelist impacts the lives of children and youth with developmental disability. A quote from Jana Stanfield: "I cannot do all the good that the world needs. But the world needs all the good that I can do." The work we are doing is good and making a difference! We encourage each of you to further spread that impact by sharing this article on social media and tagging @dollygrayaward. Best, Allison Villanueva and Hailey Hardy Dolly Gray Children's Literature Award Assistant
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DADD acknowledges there are disproportionate challenges for Indigenous individuals with disabilities and we have a responsibility to better support them. We express solidarity with Indigenous Peoples who continue to grieve the treatment of their communities. We recognize the need to listen to Indigenous Peoples, to learn, and to act. Here are some resources we found helpful:
DADD recognizes its responsibility to extend our research, service, and teaching to fully include students and educators who are a part of the LGBTQ+ community. We denounce homophobic and transphobic attitudes, cultures, practices, and policies that threaten and inflict harm on the LGBTQ+ population. We recognize that systems, policies, practices, and attitudes within education have threatened and harmed transgender and non-binary individuals. Historically trans people have been victimized, brutalized, and murdered. This targeting continues and today there are laws in place or being proposed that strip this population of their rights. DADD seeks to uplift and highlight this community.
Recently President Biden publicly announced his support for the transgender community in the United States. We join this effort by asking our members to leverage their scholarship, platforms, and networks in pursuit of justice for the transgender and non-binary community. We also urge educators to connect with each other, as well as with communities outside of education, in support of the trans and non-binary community. Organizations like ours have the expertise to make a difference, and we hope others will join us as we embrace responsibility for this in our educational system. DADD is deeply saddened for the families and communities affected by last night’s act of senseless violence in Atlanta, GA where eight people, including six women of Asian descent, lost their lives. We stand with the Asian American and Pacific Islander community and unequivocally condemn this act – and all acts – of racially-fueled violence. We also acknowledge that anti-Asian racism has existed in the United States for more than a century and that it has recently increased during the COVID-19 pandemic. Since March 19, 2020, hate incidents towards Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders have risen by as much as 150% in some US cities. According to a coalition that tracks reports of racism and discrimination, Stop AAPI Hate https://stopaapihate.org/about/, there have been over 3,000 anti-Asian incidents since the beginning of the pandemic, and over 500 between January 1 and February 28 of 2021 alone. Women report experiencing hate incidents 2.3 times more than men, and 3 in 10 Asian Americans (31%) report having faced racial slurs or racist jokes during the COVID-19 pandemic (Pew Research Center survey, 2020).
These events impart urgency to our ongoing efforts at DADD to combat bias and advance social justice, equity, and inclusion. We are committed to growing our advocacy and leadership in these areas and we aim to offer resources for impacted community members and for those of us who need to step forward as allies and activists. Please join us in educating yourself, educating others, taking action, or donating: https://anti-asianviolenceresources.carrd.co/?fbclid=IwAR1y-78zlI3WAUTlJ3SOa4QN9H1SyNRoRW7pMQii-BWDYRDXwG1leRVFn_U Sources: https://www.pewresearch.org/socialtrends/2020/07/01/many-black-and-asian-americans-say-they-have-experienced-discrimination-amid-the-covid-19-outbreak/ https://secureservercdn.net/104.238.69.231/a1w.90d.myftpupload.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/03/210312-Stop-AAPI-Hate-National-Report-.pdf The fight for racial justice must continue despite any resistance and setbacks that are encountered. DADD's course of action is clear - we must press forward in supporting Black lives and pursue our impact in dismantling oppressive ideologies. Our responsibility in the fight for social justice in special education is only as strong as our efforts to combat bias and advance social justice, equity, and inclusion.
-Liz Harkins (Diversity Committee Chair) and Ginevra Courtade (President) First and foremost, to DADD’s Black members, Black students and their families, and Black practitioners – your lives matter. We share the outrage and grief and condemn the killings of our Black brothers and sisters, as well as the terrible injustice and bias that continues to dictate their fates. We support the expression of hurt, anger, and outrage that has stemmed from centuries of systemic racism.
The Division on Autism and Developmental Disabilities joins with other organizations and individuals calling for action to end racial injustice and violence to people of color in this country. Children with autism, intellectual disability, and other developmental disabilities and the practitioners who serve them are not immune to racial injustice. Practitioners of color face biases and discrimination every day. Our students of color are referred to special education at higher rates than their white peers and yet do not have access to the same services. These points alone bring another meaning to the words, “I can’t breathe.” These events impart urgency to our ongoing efforts at DADD to combat bias and advance social justice, equity, and inclusion. We acknowledge that the majority of special education practitioners are white, and practitioners are not yet equipped to incorporate racial justice in their daily practices. We recognize our responsibilities to listen to people of color and engage in self-reflection. We commit to educating ourselves and others on how to serve as allies and how to be anti-racist. Please refer to DADD Diversity Tab for anti-racism resources. As you have likely seen, earlier this month the U.S. Secretary of Education released the report to Congress on recommended waivers under IDEA and other education laws. In it, DeVos recommended only minimal waivers under IDEA and the Rehab Act (particularly protecting Section 504). Because her report strongly supports our position, we will remain signed on as one of the supporting organizations for the CCD letter sent May 7th (see April Blog post) to Congress urging them not to support waivers under IDEA and Section 504 of the Rehab Act. We are continuing the #MyIDEAmatters social media campaign and are urging our members to do the same by tweeting at or send letters (electronically) to their Members of Congress. You can use this NCLD Toolkit to help you spread the word! 
Later this month, U.S. Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos will seek permission from Congress to waivers of states’ and districts’ obligations under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) during the COVID-19 pandemic and beyond. This would be a direct attack on the civil rights of students with disabilities. The undersigned members of the Consortium for Citizens with Disabilities (CCD) Education Task Force and allies submit this letter in response to the directive that the Secretary of Education submit, within 30 days of enactment of the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act a report to Congress with recommendations on any additional waivers the Secretary deems necessary under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) and the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 (Rehabilitation Act) and other education laws. The undersigned organizations are unwavering in our pursuit of educational equity and stand unified in the strong conviction that NO ADDITIONAL waivers are necessary under either the IDEA or the Rehabilitation Act.
DADD presented a mini-conference at the University of Arkansas at the end of July for special education professionals. https://news.uark.edu/articles/49590/special-education-professionals-soak-up-knowledge-at-dadd-conference-on-the-u-of-a-campus?fbclid=IwAR3wmTY3ZDATp1lJjo3dyTxyEW3yib6DY55kNivAQ5uM_6SldU9o8sNNcHo
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DADDThis is the Division on Autism and Developmental Disabilities (DADD) blog post Archives
October 2022
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