Welcome...

The Ohio Developmental Disabilities Council is one of a national network of state councils, committed to self-determination and community inclusion for people with developmental disabilities.

DD Council receives federal funding for innovative advocacy, capacity building and systems change activities. These activities are designed to contribute to a coordinated system of services, supports and other assistance that is centered around and driven by individuals with developmental disabilities and their families.

The Ohio Developmental Disabilities Council consists of at least 30 members appointed by the governor. Members are people with developmental disabilities, parents and guardians of people with developmental disabilities, representatives from concerned state agencies, and nonprofit organizations and agencies that provide services to people with developmental disabilities.

These members bring their unique and varied perspectives to analysis of the system in Ohio and creation of visions and initiatives to insure that individuals with developmental disabilities have access to opportunities and support to:

• Make informed choices and decisions about their lives
• Be included in community life
• Have interdependent relationships
• Live in homes and communities
• Make contributions to their families, communities, states and nations

To carry out its mission, Council develops a state plan, conducts advocacy and systems change activities, and funds projects.

Ohio's State Plan addresses most of the federal areas of emphasis:

• Education and early intervention
• Quality assurance
• Child care
• Health
• Employment
• Housing
• Transportation
• Recreation
• Other services available or offered to individuals in a community

Council operates through committees that deal with the areas identified in the state plan. Professional staff support the committees and handle day-to-day operations, administration, planning, advocacy, and project monitoring.

Council currently administers more than twenty-five projects (grants) that support ideas in the state plan designed to promote systems change. Each year, grant review panels award projects to successful applicants who have submitted proposals.

Projects related to the following topics are currently operating throughout the state:

• Children's issues
• Family support
• Employment
• Health and dental care
• Community living
• Public awareness
• Self-advocacy
• Legislative advocacy
• Personal assistance services
• Quality assurance
• Offenders with developmental disabilities
• Work incentives
• Self-determination

Council members and staff serve on more than forty-five state boards, committees and other bodies to bring issues to Council, serve as advocates for individuals with developmental disabilities and their families, and promote collaboration in improving and expanding services and supports.

The Ohio Department of Mental Retardation and Developmental Disabilities assists Council as the designated state agency.

Position Statements

Philosophy

People with developmental disabilities have the right to be productive, interdependent members of their communities and of society at large.

The ODDC recognizes:

• The fundamental role of families in making choices and decisions for their minor children.

• Needs for training and support so families can meet their children's needs effectively and can be effective advocates for their children.

• The right of adult individuals with developmental disabilities to make choices about where and with whom they will live and how they will spend their time.

  We believe that:

• All people in our society have a basic responsibility to accept and understand people with developmental disabilities

• People with developmental disabilities have the same hopes, aspirations, feelings, desires, experiences, successes, and failures as other people

• It is essential that people with developmental disabilities be viewed first and foremost as ordinary citizens

• People with developmental disabilities have the right to be treated with personal respect and dignity-the same way other members of society are treated

• Individuals with disabilities have the right to make choices and decisions about their lives and to participate fully in community life

• Assistance must be available when it is needed and to the degree necessary, as determined by the individual with the disability or the individual's family

• Family and friends are essential to personal development, happiness, and survival

• No characteristic or feature of people with developmental disabilities requires our basic hopes and aspirations for them to be less than those we have for other people or requires them to be served in settings or ways that set them apart from other citizens.

  Follow the links for specific positions.

• Abuse and Neglect
  
• Aging
  
• Challenging Behavior
  
• Civil Rights
  
• Community Presence and Participation
  
• Early Intervention
  
• Education
  
• Employment and Income
  
• Formal Supports for Individuals and Their Families
  
• Health
  
• Housing
  
• Preventing Developmental Disabilities
  
• Self-Determination
  
• Systems Coordination
  
• Transportation
  
• Withholding Medical Treatment

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