2025 SELPA ADR Conference - Synergy in Action!

The story of Willowbrook State School is told by the daughter of the social worker who, with Dr. Mike Wilkins, blew the whistle to the local press in 1972. Lee organized parents to demand changes at Willowbrook. Lee and Dr. Mike Wilkins were fired for their activism.  A beat reporter, Geraldo Rivera, interviewed Elizabeth Lee and Dr. Mike Wilkins and the coverage was seen nationally. Deinstitutionalization followed and in 1975 congress passed IDEA. Jennifer's grandmother, Lillian Hall whose son had Down syndrome, fought for group homes on Staten Island despite immense resistance. Jennifer tells the story of Willowbrook and the role of her mother and grandmother in deinstitutionalization and independent living for people with disabilities with a power point of historical and family photos.