Families
All children, including children with intensive support needs, deserve the love, care and security of a family. Families must be supported to raise their children at home, for they are the greatest resource their children have. Supports should build on family and social networks and community resources and assist families to meet their unique needs in ways they choose.

Family support is a sound investment that helps families stay together. These are among the Maryland DD Council’s strongest beliefs. The Council has worked for many years to bring these principles to life in Maryland.

Education
Schools must welcome and include all children. When educational supports and accommodations are provided for children with disabilities, they can fully benefit from their educational experience.

Teachers and schools must receive training and support to truly make this happen. Input from parents should be valued so they can be true partners with schools in setting the course for their children’s education. Including children with disabilities early on in all aspects of life instills mutual understanding and respect.

Commonalties and differences are appreciated and all children are valued, building the foundation for future relationships. Laws opened school doors to all children in the 1970s. While this was a critical first step, the DD Council has persisted in working to help children with disabilities move through the door, take their place among classmates and be included in the full life of their schools.

Work
One of the greatest influences on our quality of life is satisfaction with work. Most Americans, including people with significant disabilities, value the freedom to choose their work, earn a living wage, and receive job benefits.

People with developmental disabilities must have opportunities for real jobs in the community with individualized support. Through their jobs, people develop friendships, gain life experiences, build economic self-sufficiency and contribute to society.

Income creates opportunity. The DD Council will continue to break down barriers to employment that individuals with developmental disabilities face through demonstration, innovation, and advocacy activities.

Community
People with developmental disabilities want to live full lives in the community where they have opportunities to experience all that life offers — a wish we all share. This means equality in everyday life.

Society is enriched when it embraces and values all of its diverse members. For this to happen, people with developmental disabilities must have control over their own lives. Community supports and services must honor people’s choices — including risks they wish to take — and assist them to connect with their communities.

Full community participation encompasses all aspects of life — housing, transportation, work, health, recreation, spirituality, and personal relationships. This holds true for all people — including those with the most extensive and challenging needs. DD Council initiatives promote ways to fully include all people with developmental disabilities in all areas of community life.

Voice
Nothing is more powerful and liberating than determining the course of your own life. Self-advocacy is about speaking up for what you believe in and knowing that you are the true expert when it comes to your life. No one should be denied self-determination, even if they need support with making decisions.

Advocacy is also about working collectively to impact issues that are important to all people with disabilities. People with developmental disabilities must be at the table, fully involved as effective advocates and leaders in their own lives and in our communities.

The DD Council believes that people with developmental disabilities and their families must be supported and empowered to speak for themselves — individually and collectively. They must not only be listened to — they must be heard.