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The Elizabeth M. Boggs Center on Developmental Disabilities
Department of Pediatrics
A University Center for Excellence in Developmental Disabilities Education, Research, and Service
News and Archives
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Department of Pediatrics
A University Center for Excellence in Developmental Disabilities Education, Research, and Service
News and Archives
Skip to Main Content
About the Center
About the Center
About the Center
Faculty and Staff
On May 7th, 2021, The Boggs Center celebrated the graduation
of the 2020-2021 NJLEND Fellows at the New Jersey Leadership Education in
Neurodevelopmental Disabilities (NJLEND) program’s 5th annual Maternal and Child
Health Leadership Symposium. Held virtually this year in response to COVID-19,
the event featured a keynote address, “The Meaning of Resilience: Building
Self-Healing Communities,” by Dave Ellis, Founding Executive Director, The Office
of Resilience, New Jersey Department of Children and Families, and was attended
by those from the Rutgers community, New Jersey’s Department of Children and
Families and Department of Health, SPAN Parent Advocacy Network, and other state
and community organizations. There were brief video presentations by each of the
20 graduating NJLEND Fellows sharing their personal definitions of leadership,
the culmination of the year-long Defining Leadership: Charting Your
Trajectory Learning Exercise.
The New Jersey
Department of Human Services and The Boggs Center on Developmental Disabilities
produced a webinar for COVID-19 vaccination sites with considerations for
individuals with disabilities. The webinar serves as a guide to help ensure
COVID-19 vaccines are accessible to all New Jerseyans, including individuals
with disabilities. Together, by ensuring accommodations, we can help promote a
healthier New Jersey for everyone. 
An article on oral health and nutrition concerns for individuals with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) written by an interprofessional group of 
This online symposium will feature a
keynote presentation by Dave Ellis, Founding Executive Director, The Office of
Resilience, New Jersey Department of Children and Families, on The Meaning
of Resilience: Building Self-Healing Communities. Dave Ellis is a national
leader in providing trainings and facilitating conversations on the lasting
impact of Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs) and generational trauma. 
The Act Early COVID-19 Response teams are working to bolster the 4 steps of early identification of developmental delays and disabilities and to improve resiliency among families with young children during COVID-19 response and mitigation efforts. As one strategy to achieve these goals, the New Jersey team leads, Caroline Coffield (The Boggs Center) and Deepa Srinivasavaradan (CDC's Act Early Ambassador to NJ), along with Stephanie Michael (The Boggs Center/NJLEND Trainee), authored an article, 
Rob Kimmel, MAT, BCBA, CESP, Training & Consultation Specialist
COVID-19 Vaccine Facts for the Developmental Disabilities Community provides information about COVID-19 vaccines, including: 
Getting a COVID-19 Vaccine: A Social Story for People with Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities helps readers understand why it’s important to get a COVID-19 vaccine and what to expect before, during, and after vaccination. Direct Support Professionals, family members, and other supporters can use this social story to prepare people with intellectual and developmental disabilities for getting a COVID-19 vaccine by printing or sharing on a computer, tablet, or smartphone. 
The Boggs
Center’s Developmental Disabilities Lecture Series is a community and continuing
education program provided for professionals, policymakers, individuals with
disabilities, and family members to enhance their knowledge and skills in
innovative approaches and state of the art practices for people with
developmental disabilities. The Spring 2021 Developmental Disabilities Lecture
Series features national experts on autism and transition, disability
advocacy, job development, and mental health needs. 
As New
Jersey’s federally designated University Center for Excellence in Developmental
Disabilities (UCEDD) and Leadership Education in Neurodevelopmental and Related
Disabilities (LEND) program, The Boggs Center promotes inclusion of people with
developmental disabilities in all aspects of community life through community
and student training, technical assistance, research, and informational
materials. The Boggs Center’s “Year at a Glance” report provides a snapshot of
the Center’s work in Fiscal Year 2020. 
Each year as I
write to share the contributions of The Boggs Center and our collaborations with
all of you, I appreciate what we have been able to accomplish together and also
am always aware of how much more there is to be done. Looking back on the past
year has, for all of us, been a very different and difficult experience. Little
in any of our collective experience has prepared us for the loss and disruption
in every family and community, things that have been experienced even more
devastatingly in the lives of people with disabilities, their families, and the
supporters and systems that work on their behalf.