Community Members,

I am excited to introduce you to our first newsletter! As chairperson of the Massachusetts Developmental Disabilities Council, I am thrilled to be able to connect with you through this platform. This newsletter will offer important news, events and activities that may interest you.



Our Council is focused on making our community more inclusive and empowering for everyone. This newsletter will keep you informed about the work our staff and Council Members are doing, such as community events, training, and advocating.

In celebration of Disability Pride Month this July, we honor the strength, resilience, and diversity within our community. It is time to recognize and amplify the voices of people with disabilities and advocate for inclusivity and empowerment in every part of society.

As always, we remain committed to achieving these goals not just this month, but every single day.



Thank you for your continued support. Please stay involved by sharing this newsletter and following us on Facebook, X/Twitter, LinkedIn and Instagram.

Together, we can make a real difference and create a more inclusive society.

– Raquel Quezada, Chairperson

Representatives from the MDDC recently attended the 2024 National Association of Councils on Developmental Disabilities Annual Conference! Members in attendance included Asha Abdullahi, Gyasi Burks-Abbott, Cynthia Laine, Raquel Quezada, and Cody Rooney alongside Executive Director Craig Hall, as well as our newly promoted Deputy Director, Jennifer Bertrand! Check out the video recap of our time in Washington, D.C. above or read more below.

Not only were our members able to spread awareness about the work being done in Massachusetts to support people with disabilities, they are also bringing back new knowledge and ideas to better inform our work and goals. During their time in D.C., the MDDC was able to tour the White House, seeing one of America's longest standing symbols of democracy.

Cody and Gyasi were among a small group of attendees to be inducted into the Self-Advocate Leadership Circle. The Circle serves as a ready group of highly qualified and available voices to join every committee and group within NACDD to ensure the voices of self-advocates are included in conversations that impact them. Cody and Gyasi now join previous inductees from Massachusetts Sandy Houghton and Andre Williams as members. Congratulations to Cody and Gyasi on this incredible achievement!

Asha, Cynthia, and Raquel also presented a panel titled "A Mother's Perspective: The Special Education Challenge for Immigrant Families and the Power of Diverse Leadership." The panel was a powerful look into their own experiences as mothers of children with I/DD. This topic was meant to highlight the the struggle that families that come from underrepresented or underserved communities, who too often face barriers when advocating for their children's needs. This is especially difficult for those families who are not native English speaking. Congratulations to all three panelists, and thank you for speaking on such a powerful and important topic. The full panel will be available on our YouTube channel soon!

Administrative Coordinator Christine Joyal and Administrative Services Specialist Patricia Jackson also attended the AGA Professional Development Training (PDT) in Denver, Colorado this month. AGA stands for "Advance, Grow, Accelerate" and is an association that connects and empowers financial related professionals who support government. The PDT provided three days of sessions and activities led by leading government financial management professionals and industry experts. One such session was "The Power of Belonging: Who, Why & How." One key takeaway from this session is that a sense of belonging greatly affects people both as individuals and as part of an organization. Diversity is linked to inclusion. Fostering diversity can greatly make employees feel valued and accepted by creating equal opportunities for all workers.

Executive Director Craig Hall attended the Council of State Governments (CSG) East 63rd Annual Meeting and Regional Policy Forum in Baltimore, Maryland this week. The event is a dynamic gathering of state level leaders across the Eastern region, focused on connecting and fostering intergovernmental relationships. Craig currently serves on CSG East's Executive Committee and holds the role of Budget Chairperson.

Gyasi Burks-Abbott, Policy Committee Chair: "I served on the Autistic Adults Advisory Board for a medical school program called PREPARE, an acronym for Promoting Residents’ Excellence in Patient-Centered Care, which is described in an article in the Autism In Adulthood Journal. I participated in a systematic review of autism interventions designed or adapted for African Americans for the journal Autism. And I wrote an essay called “A Sense of Place & Cyberspace: The Hybrid Way I Live, Work, and Play” for an anthology called Placing Disability: Personal Essays of Embodied Geography published by Palgrave Macmillan."

The 2024 Election is fast approaching! Every vote counts and has the power to create meaningful change. Your participation in elections is vital to shaping a future that reflects the perspectives and needs of every community. Are you ready to vote?

State Primary

Election Day: September 3, 2024

Deadline to Register: August 24, 2024

Vote by Mail Application Deadline: August 26, 2024

General Election

Election Day: November 5, 2024

Deadline to Register: October 26, 2024

Vote by Mail Application Deadline: October 29, 2024

Learn more about the election process and voting:

The Arc Voting Resources

REVUp! Massachusetts

VOTE411

The Massachusetts Developmental Disabilities Council is pleased to announce the appointment of Jennifer Bertrand as Deputy Director, effective July 14th. Jennifer will be responsible for implementing Council policy and program initiatives, working with members, staff, and stakeholders to enhance policies and practices that support community inclusion for people with disabilities. Jennifer previously served as the Council's Disability Policy Specialist.

Andre Williams served as one of two Lead Ambassadors from Massachusetts at the Best Buddies Leadership Conference in Bloomington, Indiana this month. Andre served as an Ambassador for the Mission and Vision Track, meant to help individuals explore their goals and the outcomes, and plan out their steps to achieving them. While there, Andre was surprised with a step towards realizing his own goal of becoming a professional photographer when an event photographer gave him a camera to use and practice with at the event. According to Andre, some key takeaways included realizing that some goals may not be easy and may not happen overnight, but that in order to achieve them you must keep at it and keep working to understand the outcome. Congratulations to Andre on this incredible opportunity!

Last week, Tamara Huntley was appointed to the position of Vice-Chairperson for the Ludlow Commission on Disability! In the wake of this huge professional achievement, Tamara recently faced accessibility issues at an event that she was supposed to be volunteering at when there was no way for her to cross the lawn to get to her table. In an effort to address the issue, Tamara took the initiative to write to Ludlow’s Board of Selectmen to have the issue addressed for future events. Congratulations to Tamara on this achievement, and thank you for using your voice to make a positive change in your community.

The Center for Public Representation (CPR) recently completed a one-year supported decision-making (SDM) grant addressing diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI). CPR successfully conducted an innovative “gap-filling” initiative to make SDM more available to linguistically, ethnically and culturally diverse communities in Massachusetts. CPR’s accomplishments include convening focus groups, developing training modules and toolkits, collaborating with diverse community groups and piloting trainings for family members and youth with DD in underserved communities across the state. Groups trained include Latino, Black, Haitian, Cambodian, LGBTQ+ with DD, and dually diagnosed developmental and mental health disabilities. In addition, CPR worked closely with the MDDC Training Team to create and conduct a pilot SDM training for Spanish-speaking transition-aged youth. 

CPR is finalizing a report with recommendations to replicate SDM trainings in diverse communities. The MDDC applauds CPR for all their great work and collaboration!

There has been an increased number of COVID cases reported in Massachusetts recently as the virus continues to mutate. What can you and your loved ones do to stay safe?

Stay up to date on your vaccinations: People who are up to date on their vaccinations have a lower risk of severe illness, hospitalization, and death. The Centers for Disease

Control (CDC) considers the following to be up to date:

Those ages 5 to 64 are considered up to date after receiving one age-appropriate updated (2023-2024) COVID-19 vaccine. Those ages 65+ are considered up to date after receiving two updated (2023-2024) COVID-19 vaccinations. Children ages 6 months to 4 years are considered up to date when they have received all recommended doses. Stay up to date with the CDC vaccination recommendations here.

Start considering your next booster: The timeline for each person's vaccinations is different. If you are considering whether to schedule your booster now, some experts recommend waiting for the Fall version of the vaccine to be available. For questions or concerns about your vaccinations, always reach out to your primary care physician.

Consider outdoor gatherings versus indoor: Whenever safe amidst the Summer heat, plan any large gatherings in outdoor spaces. If you can't, consider masking indoors or choosing well ventilated venues.

Get tested when you are feeling unwell: The way we are testing is not the same as it was at the height of the pandemic, so not all cases may be accounted for. Consider picking up at home tests to have on hand to check when you are feeling unwell. Some at home tests have extended expiration dates. Learn more from the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) here.

Stay up to date on data and information from the Massachusetts Department of Public Health and stay safe this Summer!

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