Baylor’s Erik W. Carter, Ph.D., to Receive AAIDD’s 2026 Leadership Award
Leading voice on disability, faith & flourishing will be honored for leadership, lasting contributions to the field of intellectual and developmental disabilities
Erik W. Carter, Ph.D., FAAIDD, The Luther Sweet Endowed Chair in Disabilities and executive director of the Baylor Center for Disability and Flourishing. (Robert Rogers/Baylor University)
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Baylor University’s Erik W. Carter, Ph.D., FAAIDD, The Luther Sweet Endowed Chair in Disabilities in the Moody School of Education and a leading voice on disability, faith and flourishing, will receive the 2026 Leadership Award from the American Association on Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities (AAIDD) during the 150th AAIDD Annual Meeting in June in Chicago.
Founded in 1876, AAIDD is the oldest and largest interdisciplinary membership organization of professionals and others focused on the thriving of people with intellectual and developmental disabilities. This national award from AAIDD recognizes Carter’s outstanding leadership and lasting contributions to the field by advancing research, shaping practice and championing inclusive communities where people with and without disabilities can truly belong and flourish.
“I’m deeply grateful to work alongside extraordinary colleagues—within AAIDD and at Baylor—who are committed to the faithful and often challenging work of equipping schools, congregations, and communities to more fully embrace people with intellectual disabilities and their families,” said Carter, who serves as executive director of the Baylor Center for Disability and Flourishing, which invests in research, training, outreach and clinical services that promote the flourishing of people with disabilities, their families and communities.
A Bold Pursuit
Carter leads the transformational multidisciplinary initiative “Disability, Faith and Flourishing,” one of the high-impact, high-priority Bold Pursuits in the University’s Baylor in Deeds strategic plan. Bold Pursuits initiatives at Baylor tackle societal challenges and are led by a visible and active champions, like Carter, with a demonstrated record of success. Before joining the Baylor faculty in 2023, Carter held the Cornelius Vanderbilt Chair in Special Education at Vanderbilt University and co-directed the Vanderbilt Kennedy Center for Excellence in Developmental Disabilities.
“Baylor University’s Disability, Faith and Flourishing initiative is a Bold Pursuit that will transform how schools, churches and communities include and support people with disabilities,” Provost Nancy Brickhouse, Ph.D., said. “As the inaugural holder of The Luther Sweet Chair in Disabilities, Dr. Carter is a prime example of the faculty who come to Baylor to conduct research with heart and passion as we all strive to elevate Baylor University and transform the world.”
The Whole Body Project
Carter’s AAIDD Leadership Award comes after the Disability, Faith and Flourishing initiative was bolstered by a $5 million grant from Lilly Endowment Inc. for “The Whole Body Project: Flourishing Together in Faith and Life.” Funded through Lilly Endowment’s National Storytelling Initiative on Christian Faith and Life and housed in the Baylor Center for Disability and Flourishing, “The Whole Body Project” will highlight the powerful stories of faith and mutual flourishing that emerge when people – with and without disabilities or mental health challenges – move from exclusion and isolation to true belonging through shared worship, learning, service, leadership and life together.
“The stories from ‘The Whole Body Project’ will portray the goodness and hope of Christian faith and life by highlighting faith communities that invite the whole Body of Christ to envision and practice a more accessible and connected common life,” Carter said. “Through a first-of-its-kind national campaign – rooted in research, supported by deep partnerships and sustained through practical resource pathways – we will inspire and equip tens of thousands of church leaders, members and families to reimagine and pursue faithful life together.”
For more information, visit the Baylor Center for Disability and Flourishing website.
ABOUT BAYLOR UNIVERSITY
Baylor University is a private Christian University and a nationally ranked Research 1 institution. The University provides a vibrant campus community for 20,000 students by blending interdisciplinary research with an international reputation for educational excellence and a faculty commitment to teaching and scholarship. Chartered in 1845 by the Republic of Texas through the efforts of Baptist pioneers, Baylor is the oldest continually operating University in Texas. Located in Waco, Baylor welcomes students from all 50 states and more than 100 countries to study a broad range of degrees among its 12 nationally recognized academic divisions. Learn more about Baylor University at www.baylor.edu.
ABOUT THE MOODY SCHOOL OF EDUCATION AT BAYLOR UNIVERSITY
For more than 100 years, the Moody School of Education has advanced Baylor University’s mission across the globe while preparing students for a range of careers focused on education, leadership and human development. With more than 70 full-time faculty members, the School’s growing research portfolio complements its long-standing commitment to excellence in teaching and student mentoring. Baylor’s undergraduate program in teacher education has earned national distinction for innovative partnerships with local schools that provide future teachers deep clinical preparation. Likewise, the Moody School of Education’s graduate programs have attained national recognition for their exemplary preparation of research scholars, educational leaders, innovators, and clinicians. Visit the Moody School of Education website to learn more.