KCDD's staff is dedicated to serving the intellectual and developmental disabilities (I/DD) community through advocacy, leadership development and education. They work closely with Council Members and state agencies to make a difference in the lives of people with I/DD.

Please feel free to contact the staff members listed below:

Sara Weir
Executive Director
785.296.2609
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Sara is a national nonprofit executive, disability policy expert and a proud Kansan. She is the former President & C.E.O. of the National Down Syndrome Society (NDSS), where during her tenure at NDSS, she led the passage of the landmark, bipartisan Stephen Beck Jr., Achieving a Better Life Experience (ABLE) Act in 2014 (P.L.113-295). The legislation garnered the support of 85% of the entire US Congress in 2014 (381 of 435 US Representatives and 78 of 100 US Senators). Weir also supported a majority of the enactment of ABLE state laws, assisted with over 40 state ABLE plan launches as well as led advocacy campaigns on two important provisions in the 2017 Tax Reform Package including the ABLE to Work Act and the ABLE Financial Planning Act.

Weir's life has been about leading differently, serving others and delivering results with the leadership philosophy of "if you're not at the table, you are on the menu". Sara deploys an “in the trenches” leadership style by engaging directly with constituents - in local communities, in the classroom, on the job site or around kitchen tables. Weir’s passion for “giving a voice to the voiceless” was inspired by Kasey, her late best friend of twenty years from Kansas who had Down Syndrome. Sara quickly realized that the disability community did not have high-powered lobbyists, wealthy corporations or influential political action committees working for them - they relied on the strength of passionate voices outside the political spectrum who were willing to speak up for them. Weir went on to change that, and dedicated her career and service to allow everyone to have a fair shot at the “American Dream” by promoting solutions that give all Americans with disabilities access to a better life.

Weir established the first-ever national employment program for the Down Syndrome community, the #DSWORKS® Program, which partnered with companies, from Main Street to Wall Street, to create career opportunities for people with disabilities. Weir also co-founded The U.S. Future of Work For People with Disabilities Commission" - Tapping People with Disabilities who are Ready, Willing and ABLE to Work with fellow CEOs from Voya Financial and the Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM) and continues to be called upon by employers to help build successful employment and workforce development programs across the country.

Most recently, Weir served as a senior advisor to Missouri’s Department of Health & Senior Services on disability inclusion throughout its COVID-19 plan and response and co-chaired the state’s health equity committee. Weir was also the primary runner up for U.S. Congress in Kansas' Third Congressional district in 2020. Weir has a Bachelor of Arts in Psychology and Political Leadership from Westminster College, a Master of Science in Public Policy and Management from Carnegie Mellon University’s Heinz College and and a certificate of completion from the Emerging Leaders Program of Harvard University’s John F. Kennedy School of Government. Weir has been featured in USA Today, NY Times, Wall Street Journal, NPR, Washington Post, CNN, Fox News, The Hill, Money Magazine, Al Jazeera and many others.

Callie Simmons
Policy & Program Analyst
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Callie Simmons serves as a Policy and Program Analyst for the Kansas Council on Developmental Disabilities. Before joining the Council in May, Calle was responsible for overseeing the disbursement and utilization of the American Rescue Plan Act dollars allocated to the State on behalf of the Office of Recovery. Prior to her work in the Office of Recovery, Callie focused on supporting individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities in many capacities, including service coordination with Aetna Better Health of Kansas, program coordination at TARC Industries, and targeted case management at TARC. As a program and policy analyst for the Council, Callie’s work is dedicated to ensuring that Kansans with disabilities will have increased protections from abuse, neglect and exploitation and increasing the utilization of Supported Decision Making. Throughout her varied roles, advocacy has always been the driving force behind Callie’s work and she looks forward to continuing these efforts to help ensure everyone can make choices impacting their participation in society and overall quality of life.