MDSC, a national leader in the Down syndrome landscape, now has four Centers of Excellence, each providing a unique and invaluable service for our members in Massachusetts and beyond.
Legislative Action Center
The Massachusetts Down Syndrome Congress is a national leader in the disability policy arena. Through partnerships with legislators, their constituents and other disability organizations, we work to advance legislation and other policies that benefit people with Down syndrome and their families. On our Action Center, you can learn about our policy priorities and take action on particular bills or funding requests to make a difference for our community.
National Parents First Call Center
The National Parents First Call Center is a first-of-its-kind, comprehensive full-service professional center that serves expectant parents and medical providers as well as Down syndrome organization leaders and parent volunteers. The center includes two branches — the National Prenatal First Call Center and the First Call National Training Center.
Center on Inclusive Education
Our new Center on Inclusive Education provides educators with the full breadth of resources with the latest best practices for educating individuals with Down syndrome in an inclusive classroom. The CIE includes fact sheets, webinars and other trainings, conference sessions, and more to facilitate the sharing of information and resources in effort to best support students at school.
Philip Donahue Your Next Star Employment Center
MDSC’s Your Next Star Employment initiative has been opening the eyes of employers to the benefits of hiring individuals with Down syndrome in the competitive workforce since 2015. Since then, Your Next Star has grown into a full-fledged program, which provides training for aspiring employees with Down syndrome, connects qualified employees with employers and provides support throughout the hiring process.
