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On May 10, 2017, Indiana Governor Eric J. Holcomb signed Senate Enrolled Act (SEA) 390 into law. The passage of Indiana SB 290 “Employment First” legislation made Indiana one of 34 other states promoting employment as the first goal for people with…

This photograph shows Betty Louise Williams (1959-2018) as an infant, wearing a white dress. Betty grew up in Richmond, Indiana in the 1960s and 70s. She became a leader in the self-advocacy movement, serving as president of both Self-Advocates of…

This is a photograph of Betty Louise Williams (1959-2018) as an infant. She is being held in front of an incubator in the hospital. Betty grew up in Richmond, Indiana in the 1960s and 70s. She became a leader in the self-advocacy movement, serving as…

"I'm going to need to go to a college with a very highly rated psychology department." James Martin Cousins, who has autism, was a sophomore at a charter high school in Indianapolis when he was interviewed in 2011. He described his central role in…

"He asked me if I wanted out. I said yeah, do what it takes to get me out." Jamie Beck shared her story about how she ended up living in a nursing home shortly after graduating from high school. She says her father's stage four cancer led to her…

“It was my time to play my part in the circle of life.” On June 13, 2018, Jamie Beck became the first person in Indiana to have her guardianship terminated and a Supported Decision-Making agreement put in place. Jamie had been adjudged as…

"Now disability politics, you know, is not Republican or Democrats, it's really nonpartisan but you still have to be recognized as someone who's reliable and trustworthy," observes Jim Hammond in this 2013 interview. Working with legislators was part…

This is a photograph of Jim McCorkle at his workplace, Indiana Institute on Disability and Community on Indiana University's Bloomington campus in 2007.

"Dickerson, I finally get it," a fiscally conservative State Senator from Hendricks County remarked. "He said, 'I'm on the board of directors of the bank and we hired this fellow with a disability. I don't even know what his disability is, but he's…

“The Arc name is an interesting story in itself,” says John Dickerson of the history of The Arc. It was in the late ‘40s when parents across the country started organizing to discuss opportunities for their children. The first Indiana state…