Development of the DCR

The Directory of Community Resources for People with Disabilities website was first developed at the Center of Disability and Development at Texas A&M University in 2006. Faculty, students, and staff at the Center of Disability and Development, as well as at the Texas Center for Disability Studies at the University of Texas, have contributed to The Directory of Community Resources for People with Disabilities (DCR). The original template for the directory came from graduate students enrolled in the College of Education at Texas A&M University, under the direction of Dr. Laura M. Stough. The original web-based DCR was created by Drs. Lauren Cifuentes and Sander Bulu as a project for the Center on Disability and Development.

Through the collaboration of researchers, website developers and designers, accessibility officers, study participants, and others, the DCR was developed and available to the community in two years, launching in September of 2008. Since the Directory went public, there have been many individuals tasked with constructing and maintaining the content to ensure the relevance and accuracy of resources for individuals with disabilities, their families, as well as disability-related individuals and organizations.

Development of the REDDy Directories

Extensions of the DCR, the REsources for Disaster and Disability (REDDy) Directories were created to assist long-term recovery committees, case managers, disability-related organizations, emergency managers, and individuals with disabilities in locating resources and services provided for survivors following disaster. The first REDDy Directory was created in 2017 over the six-week period following the landfall of Hurricane Harvey, to assist survivors of that disaster. The REDDy Directories were developed so that they may be used as a template for other states and organizations to use in creating resource directories.

Funding from the Center on Disability and Development, through the U.S. Administration on Community Living, has enabled the development and maintenance of the Directory of Community Resources and the REDDy Directory. The REDDy Directory was also supported through the Association of University Centers on Disability, the Administration on Community Living, the American Red Cross, the Center for Disaster Philanthropy, and Rebuild Texas.

The collaboration of researchers, website developers and designers, accessibility officers, study participants, staff, and students have been essential to the development of both the DCR and the REDDy Directories. We acknowledge here the valuable contributions these individuals have made to further access that individuals with disabilities have to resources and services in the State of Texas:

Jonathan Hall
Arlen Strader
Amy N. Sharp, Ph.D.
Kayla S. Sweet, Ph.D.
Jackie Pacha, Ph.D.
Lauren Cifuentes, Ph.D.
Sanser Bulu, Ph.D.
Isabella R. Miracle
Tanya Baker
Laura M. Stough, Ph.D.
Grace Brannon
Jeffrey Opaleye
Melina Cavazos
Karina Reyes Rodriguez
Stephanie Ingram, B.S.