State council honors McConnell for lifetime of work
Jan. 16, 2003
KALAMAZOO -- Robert McConnell has received the Lifetime Award from the Michigan Developmental Disabilities Council, a branch of the Michigan Department of Community Health, for the dedication he has shown to the organization. McConnell is an assistant professor in the School of Public Affairs and Administration at Western Michigan University.
McConnell, who contributes time and expertise to the council's employment and program evaluation efforts, specializes in increasing multicultural participation and improving cultural relevance in disability organizations.
In 1992, he represented the council at the Multicultural Institute
for the federal Administration on Developmental Disabilities.
He then went on to create the council's first multicultural work
group.
More recently, McConnell has been instrumental in the establishment
of a multicultural standing committee. The committee now is responsible
for multicultural outreach and cultural competence within the
council.
According to the Michigan Developmental Disabilities Council, McConnell's guidance and support has been key, not only in policy and planning, but also in implementing the details that are needed to put that policy into practice.
Media contact: Mark Schwerin, 269 387-8400, mark.schwerin@wmich.edu