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DD Programs/Partners

Overview

The Developmental Disabilities Act requires ADD to ensure that people with developmental disabilities and their families receive the services and supports they need and participate in the planning and designing of those services. The DD Act established eight areas of emphasis for ADD programs; Employment, Education, Child Care, Health, Housing, Transportation, Recreation, and Quality Assurance. ADD meets the requirements of the DD Act through the work of its four programs:

  1. State Councils on Developmental Disabilities (SCDD)

    2. Each state has a Developmental Disabilities Council that functions to increase the independence, productivity, inclusion, and community integration of people with developmental disabilities. DDC activities demonstrate new ideas for enhancing people's lives through training activities, through community education and support, by making information available to policy-makers, and by eliminating barriers.

  2. Protection and Advocacy Agencies (P&A)

    3. Each state has a Protection and Advocacy (P&A) System to empower, protect, and advocate on behalf of persons with developmental disabilities. The P&As are independent of service-providing agencies and offer information and referral services for legal, administrative, and other remedies to resolve problems for individuals and groups of clients. P&As enhance the quality of life of people with developmental disabilities by investigating incidents of abuse and neglect and discrimination based on disability. The P&As also provide an annual opportunity for the public to comment on the objectives, priorities, and activities of the system. This gives clients and others in the community an opportunity to voice their concerns and needs to the P&A.

  3. University Centers for Excellence in Developmental Disabilities Education, Research and Services (UCEDD)

    4. UCEDD is a grant program providing support to a national network of University Centers to support interdisciplinary training, exemplary services, technical assistance, and information/ dissemination activities. University Centers positively affect the lives of individuals with developmental disabilities and their families by increasing their independence, productivity, and integration into communities. University Centers have four broad tasks: conduct interdisciplinary training, promote community service programs, provide technical assistance at all levels (from local service delivery to community and state governments), and conduct research and dissemination activities.

  4. Projects of National Significance (PNS)

    5. The PNS program awards grants and contracts that promote and increase the independence, productivity, inclusion and integration into the community of persons with developmental disabilities. These projects focus on the most pressing issues for people with developmental disabilities across the country. These projects may involve research, technical assistance, projects which improving supportive living and quality of life opportunities, projects to educate policymakers, and efforts to create interagency Federal collaboration.

  5. National Associations