The Georgia Leadership Education in Neurodevelopmental Disabilities (LEND) program is an interdisciplinary training course for future professionals, disability advocates and family members. While each LEND program has its own unique focus and expertise, all provide interdisciplinary training, have faculty and trainees from a wide range of disciplines, and include parents or family members as faculty and paid program participants.
This semester, the CLD is proud to announce four new appointments to the LEND Faculty team:
Emily Graybill, PhD, NCSP
GaLEND Director
Dr. Graybill is the Director of the Center for Leadership in Disability (CLD) at the School of Public Health at Georgia State University. Her specific research interests include the delivery of training and technical assistance to schools and community agencies related to cultural competence, individualized positive behavior support, and evaluating the implementation and sustainability of ducational initiatives for underserved populations, including youth with disabilities. Dr. Graybill serves as an internal program evaluator and director for GaLEND.
Angela Miles, CCC-SLP
Neurodevelopmental Disabilities Course Coordinator
Angela M. Miles is clinical faculty in the Department of Communication Sciences and Disorders at Georgia State University. She serves as the faculty liaison for Speech-Language Pathology and helps facilitate the interprofessional training of graduate students in the Georgia Leadership Education in Neurodevelopmental and Related Disabilities (GaLEND) grant. Her clinical practice has been across the lifespan treating adults with swallowing disorders and pediatric clients with speech sound disorders. She is committed to establishing clinical training models that incorporate self-awareness and culturally responsive care that can be generalized across clinical training programs. Angela is passionate about working with students as they become competent practitioners within the discipline of speech pathology. She was also a GaLEND trainee in 2016/2017.
Donna Johnson, MHS
Family Faculty
Donna is the Family Support Director of Development and Partnerships at Bright from the Start: Georgia Department of Early Care and Learning. She also serves as the Family Faculty for the GaLEND program. Donna has also previously worked with the Georgia Department of Public Health, and currently serves on the Council on Children with Disabilities (COCWD) Autism Subcommittee of the American Academy of Pediatrics and the Developmental-Behavioral Pediatrics Research Network (DBPNet) a Parent Representative. Donna is a Doctoral Candidate in Human Services at Walden University where she also received her Masters of Human Services. She was also a GaLEND trainee in 2011-2012.
Raynell Washington, MSW
Interdisciplinary Training Coordinator
Raynell is a Licensed Master Social Worker. She holds a Bachelor of Arts in Sociology from Southeastern Louisiana University, and a Master of Social Work from Tulane University. Raynell is a Community Services Specialist at the Center for Leadership in Disability (CLD) at Georgia State University. In this role, she organizes and delivers educational activities for individuals with disabilities, families, and providers in Georgia. She is a PEERS Certified Provider, providing evidence-based social skills intervention for youth and young adults with social challenges. Raynell also serves as the Social Worker on the Adult Disability Medical Healthcare (ADMH) interdisciplinary team, in partnership with the CLD, providing comprehensive, person-centered healthcare and social service supports for adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities.