• National Developmental Disabilities Awareness Month is observed throughout March.  It is a nationwide event to raise awareness about the inclusion of people with developmental disabilities and address the barriers that those with disabilities face.  Inclusion is necessary since approximately 15% of the world's population lives with a disability.  Here is a timeline of events that brought us to a greater awareness today:

      • 1950 Concerned parents get organized: Parents all over the country begin refusing to place their family members with disabilities in institutional care and organize into the Arc or what was known as the Association of Mentally Retarded Citizens
      • 1973 Free Appropriate Public Education: the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act is reauthorized, ensuring that all children with disabilities have access to a "free appropriate public education"
      • 1987 Where It All Began: President Reagen designates March as National Developmental Disabilities Awareness Month
      • 1990 Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) signed: The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) is signed into law, prohibiting discrimination against people with disabilities in public life