EAGLE Academy Allows Students with Intellectual Disabilities to Soar

The EAGLE Academy is a two-year program within Georgia Southern University that provides individuals with intellectual disabilities a chance to gain independence, skills, knowledge and confidence alongside students who do not have intellectual disabilities. The program currently focuses on years three and four of the college experience, meaning the students have either attended other post-secondary programs for one to two years, worked previously, or have been out of high school for a couple of years. The ‘EAGLE’ in EAGLE Academy stands for Equal Access to Gainful Learning and Employment. It is one of the nine Inclusive Post Secondary Education (IPSE) programs in Georgia. Eagle Academy is rooted in the principles of independent living, meaning that everyone, including people with intellectual disabilities, has the right to make decisions about their own lives. This includes pursuing and participating in post-secondary education.The Georgia Council on Developmental Disabilities (GCDD) is driven by its Five Year Strategic Plan goals to improve services and supports for people with intellectual and other developmental disabilities (I/DD). The Council, charged with creating systems change for individuals with developmental disabilities and family members, will work through various advocacy and capacity building activities to build a more interdependent, self-sufficient, and integrated and included disability community across Georgia.This project was supported, in part by grant number 2001GASCDD-03, from the U.S. Administration for Community Living, Department of Health and Human Services, Washington, D.C. 20201. Grantees undertaking projects with government sponsorship are encouraged to express freely their findings and conclusions. Points of view or opinions do not, therefore, necessarily represent official ACL policy.