The NASDDDS Directors Forum: More Than Six Decades of State Leadership

The NASDDDS Directors Forum brings together state leaders responsible for intellectual and developmental disabilities (I/DD) services to focus on the issues shaping state systems. What began as a gathering of state directors has grown to include members of state I/DD leadership teams, expanding opportunities for peer connection and shared learning across states.

The Forum reflects a tradition that reaches back to NASDDDS’ earliest days. In 1963, as national attention to disability services was growing, state officials came together to explore how they could communicate more effectively with one another and with the federal government. The first formal meeting was held in Portland, Oregon, on May 23, 1963, with 75 participants from 38 states. The association was formally incorporated in 1964.

More than six decades later, the Directors Forum continues to serve much the same purpose. The challenges facing state I/DD systems have changed, but the value of bringing state leaders together has not. State IDD Directors and your teams are invited to join NASDDDS and fellow state I/DD leaders from across the country on November 2nd in Chicago for this year’s Directors Forum and be part of this longstanding tradition of collaboration and connection. Others who work or are impacted by the I/DD field are invited to join us for the NASDDDS Annual Conference immediately following the Forum, November 3–5.