Do you know an employer, entrepreneur, volunteer, or local disability organization that has gone above and beyond the legal requirements to ensure full inclusion of people with disabilities in your community and in the workplace? If so, please help us acknowledge them by nominating them for a Texas Governor’s Committee on People with Disabilities’ Lex Frieden Employment Award as we celebrate National Disability Employment Awareness Month (NDEAM). This year’s NDEAM theme is “America’s Recovery: Powered by Inclusion.” Each year the GCPD partners with the Texas Workforce Commission and Texas Workforce Solutions promoting the Texas HireAbility campaign to raise awareness about the benefits of hiring people with disabilities and to highlight the contributions of people with disabilities in the workforce. The DEADLINE has been extended to September 24, 2021, close of business.

We are seeking nominations to recognize employers who have consistently exceeded requirements to ensure full inclusion of people with disabilities in the workplace. Submission Guidelines and entry forms are available on the Governor's Committee on People with Disabilities (GCPD) website.

Awards categories include:

• Employer Awards (Small, Medium or Large or Non-Profit Employer) recognize employers in Texas who have fostered a diverse and accessible workplace.
• The Entrepreneurship Award recognizes a living entrepreneur with a disability with a drive to create and sustain a successful business.
• The Martha Arbuckle Award recognizes the most innovative local committee project.
• The Governor's Trophy is the highest honor to an individual for lifetime achievement in support of Texans with disabilities.

There is NO FEE for submissions. Self-nominations by employers are encouraged. Please help us with our outreach efforts by sharing this call for nominations with contacts in your network so that we may ensure that exemplary efforts in Texas are acknowledged. For information or questions about the annual Lex Frieden Employment Awards contact the GCPD staff by email at: gcpd@gov.texas.gov or by phone at: (512) 463-5739.

About the Awards

The Governor’s Committee on People with Disabilities annual employment awards are named after disability rights champion and independent living movement leader Lex Frieden, one of the architects of the landmark Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990. Frieden is the UT Chancellor's Health Fellow on Disability, a professor of biomedical informatics and rehabilitation at the UT Health Science Center at Houston and director of the Independent Living Research Utilization Program (ILRU) at TIRR Memorial Hermann Rehabilitation Hospital. President George W. Bush appointed Frieden as chair of the National Council on Disability in 2002 and he served an eight-year term on the United Nations Panel of Experts on the Standard Rules for Disability. Frieden has received two Presidential Citations for his work in the field of disability and was awarded an honorary doctorate in law by the National University of Ireland in 2004.

Since 1979, the Governor's Committee has worked to highlight the efforts of employers to hire and retain employees with disabilities and to recognize best practices that positively affect employees with disabilities within the workplace. Employers whose philosophy is to support employment opportunities for all Texans, including people with disabilities, benefits the local community as well as the entire state. The attitude of working as a partner in the community is considered a strength to be highlighted and encouraged by the presentation of our annual Employment Awards. The active and enthusiastic promotion of business opportunities for people with disabilities is also an important element in the consideration of the award.