Council Members
The Council on Developmental Disabilities is made up of Governor-appointed private citizens who either have a disability or are family members of a person with a disability. Council members represent the cultural and geographic diversity of Tennessee. The Council also has representatives of State agencies that are connected with disability policy and services in the state.
Interested in learning more or becoming a Council member? Please use the link below to share your connection to disability, leadership experience, and availability.
- Ryan Durham, Chair - Lawrenceburg
- Bliss Welch, Vice Chair - Harrison
- Edward Mitchell, Communications Committee Chair - Jackson
- Kim Boyd, Leadership Development Committee Chair - Martin
- Courtney Johnson, Public Policy Committee Chair - Johnson City
- Evelyn Roach - Johnson City
- Kezia Cox - Knoxville
- Katie Moore - Henderson
- Will Edwards - Knoxville
- Jennifer Rose - Knoxville
- Faith Henshaw - Gainesboro
- Rick Skillington - Lawrenceburg
- Molly Anderson - Chattanooga
- Diamond Grigsby - Murfreesboro
- Debbie Miller - Murfreesboro
- Keona Gwinn - Nashville
- Carrie Hardin - Cookeville
- Brigham Scallion - Bells
- Kelsie Layman - Jackson
- Donna Nasso - Memphis
- Shontie Brown - Memphis
Commissioners/Representatives of State Government Departments and Agencies and their designees in parentheses
- Commissioner Brad Turner (Lauren Legate) Department of Disability and Aging
- Commissioner Lizzette Gonzalez Reynolds, (Alison Gauld) Department of Education
- Commissioner Clarence Carter, (Kevin Wright/Julie Johnson) Department of Human Services: Vocational Rehabilitation Services
- Commissioner Marie Williams, (Mark Liverman) Department of Mental Health and Substance Abuse Services
- Commissioner John Dunn, DVM, PhD, EMBA (Jacqueline Johnson) Department of Health
- Chief of Long-Term Services and Supports Katie Evans, (Shannon Nehus) Division of TennCare
- Executive Director Richard Kennedy, (Russette Marcum-Embry) Commission on Children and Youth
- Executive Director Ralph Perrey, (Don Watt) Tennessee Housing Development Agency
- Pablo Juarez, Co-Director, Vanderbilt Kennedy Center for Excellence in Developmental Disabilities
- Bruce Keisling, Ph.D., Executive Director, UT Health Science Center for Developmental Disabilities
- Anna Bass, Executive Director, Disability Rights Tennessee