President's Committee for People with Intellectual Disabilities

Previous posts have mentioned the National Council on Disability. It is not the only federal advisory body dealing with autism. The president announced appointees to the President's Committee for People with Intellectual Disabilities:

• James T. Brett, Chair,
• Peter V. Berns,
• Clay Boatright,
• Micki Edelsohn,
• Ann Hardiman,
• Alison A. Hillman de Velásquez,
• Carl M. La Mell,
• Annette McKenzie Anderson,
• Carol Quirk,
• Susana Ramirez,
• Deborah M. Spitalnik,
• Lillian Sugarman,
• Liz Weintraub,
• Carol Wheeler,
• Sheryl White-Scott,

These members have an autism connection:

• Clay Boatright is the President of the Board of Directors for The Arc of Texas, a non-profit organization which creates opportunities for people with intellectual and developmental disabilities to be included in their communities and to make the necessary decisions on issues that affect their lives. In addition, Mr. Boatright serves on the Easter Seals North Texas Autism Advisory Board, the Mosaic-Dallas Business Advisory Committee, the Childrenfirst! Collin County Coalition, and the Long Term Care subcommittee of the Texas Taskforce for Children with Special Needs. Previously he served as Board President for The Arc of Dallas and campus chair for the Special and Gifted Education committee in the Plano Independent School District. Mr. Boatright is employed as a Vice President with the Dean Foods Company in Dallas, and has previously worked with The Coca-Cola Company, Ralston Purina, and Maybelline. Mr. Boatright is a father of three children, including identical twins with intellectual disabilities and autism. He holds a B.A. in Communications and M.S. in Marketing from the University of Memphis.
• Carl M. La Mell is the President and CEO of Clearbrook, a service provider for individuals with developmental disabilities in Illinois. Previously, Mr. La Mell held senior positions at Victor C. Neumann Association as Chief Financial Officer, Associate Executive Director, and CEO. Most recently, he chaired the Finance Committee of the Illinois Statewide Early Intervention Task Force. Mr. La Mell is also a member of the Illinois Association of Rehabilitation Facilities, the Illinois Department of Human Services State Task Force on Autism, and the American Association of Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities. He is the past recipient of various distinguished awards, including the Executive of the Year Award from the Illinois Association of Rehabilitation Facilities, the Community Leader of the Year Award given by the City of Rolling Meadows, and the Claude D. Pepper Distinguished Service Award. Mr. La Mell holds a B.S. from DePaul University