Need the quick details? We have you covered! Here is a summary:

• Happy New Year 🎆! We hope this message finds you in great spirits and well-refreshed for Spring 2025! January’s theme is all about useful planning tools and resources. Check us out below!

• SAVE THE DATE: The Best Buddies Leadership Conference (BBLC) 🧩 is taking place on Friday, July 18th through Sunday, July 21st at Indiana University. BBLC is a life changing experience that offers incredible opportunities to develop leadership skills, networking, and useful chapter resources, all while having fun! Please note that it is a mandatory requirement for each high school and college chapter to send at least one member (student leader or faculty advisor) to Leadership Conference. The cost associated with attendance is $400 plus travel. Please click HERE for more info!

• Best Buddies in Georgia is proud to launch our first-ever Student Advisory Board 📢! The BBGA SAB is a competitive, student led board of high school and college students that will assist our reach throughout the state in the areas of BBGA event planning, mission growth, social media, and fundraising. Applications will open in March, so please be on the lookout and send to your chapter members!

• You asked and we listened! We are proud to bring back our Kings and Queens 👑Workshops in the month of February featuring Miss Georgia South USA 2024, Irielle Duncan! Kings and Queens is a motivational experience on self-love, where participants embrace their inner royalty through affirmations. To request Irielle’s appearance to your school, please email Doug Peters at [email protected].

• To extend our support to our chapters, we will begin sharing chapter fundraisers 💵 on our social media pages to our broader community! If you want us to promote your chapter’s fundraisers, please reach out to Doug Peters at [email protected] and copy Catherine Justice at [email protected].

• Back to Best Buddies Atlanta 🤝 will take place on Saturday, February 8, 2025 from 11:00 a.m.-2:00 p.m. at the Microsoft Office, 200 17th St NW, Atlanta, GA 30363. You don’t want to miss this fun, in-person training experience to ensure that your chapter has a successful spring semester. Click HERE to register.

• Back to Best Buddies Effingham County 🤝 will take place on Saturday, February 22, 2025 from 11:00 a.m.-2:00 p.m. at Ebenezer Middle School, 1100 Ebenezer Rd, Rincon, GA 31326. Click HERE to register.

• Are you interested in becoming a public speaker with Best Buddies 📣? We are excited to host our next Best Buddies in Georgia Ambassador’s Training on Saturday, February 1st at The Standard Atlanta from 11:00 a.m.-1:00 p.m., hosted by Miss Georgia South USA 2024, Irielle Duncan! Register HERE.

  • We are also interested in bringing the Ambassador Trainings to your school! If you have a group of students who would love to serve as Ambassador speakers with Best Buddies in Georgia, we would love to come to you! Please reach out to Doug Peters at [email protected]!

• We truly enjoy reading your updates and staying connected! Click HERE for the Chapter Check-In Form Link.

• Not an email person? Join our community on Remind to get updates there!

  • Faculty Advisors Remind Group - https://www.remind.com/join/764kgf2

  • Student Leaders Remind Group - https://www.remind.com/join/g8868e7

• Get excited about Spring 2025, and most importantly, have fun!

Hello, 2025! Happy New Year!

Greetings and Happy New Year! As we welcome a year we have never seen before, we are filled with hope and excitement as we continue to building meaningful friendships for students with IDD, redefining leadership, and growing as inclusion advocates. We accomplished so much in 2024, and we look forward to continuing the momentum with you!

Faculty advisors, your unwavering guidance inspires and empowers students to thrive, while student leaders, your passion, dedication, and creativity continue to shape vibrant, inclusive communities. I learn so much from you all, and it is an honor to do this work with you! Let’s embrace this fresh start with bold ideas, collaborative spirit, and a shared commitment to achieving extraordinary things. Here’s to a year of learning, leading, and making a difference for people with disabilities — Let’s go Team Best Buddies in Georgia!

Event Planning Made Easy: Useful and Effective Tools

Gif by JustStartInvesting on Giphy

Here are a few useful tools and ideas to assist in your planning process!

• Best Buddies University

  Best Buddies University has a ton of resources to run your chapter! We know that the website might be information overload, so here are a few helpful planning resources to start:

  • Spring Planning Guide

    • https://www.bestbuddies.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/09/BBI-Spring-Semester-Planning-Guide.pdf

  • New Schools Chapter Guide

    •  https://www.bestbuddies.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/09/BBI-New-Schools-Chapter-Guide.pdf

  • Planning Chapter Activities Video

    • https://youtu.be/s90D6NZmF94?si=O1NcanAK0QAC97Lc

  • School Program Deadlines

    • https://www.bestbuddies.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/09/BBI-Program-Dates-and-Deadlines.pdf

  • Chapter Recruitment Guide

    • https://www.bestbuddies.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/BBI-Chapter-Recruitment-Engagement-Guide.pdf

  • Chapter Leader Checklist

    • https://www.bestbuddies.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/BBI-Chapter-Leader-Checklist.pdf

  • Host Site Partnerships Guide (For Colleges and Promoter Chapters)

    • https://www.bestbuddies.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/BBI-Host-Site-Partnerships-Guide.pdf

  • Harmony Games and Activities (for Elementary Chapters)

    • Games - Harmony Academy

  • BB360 Guide

    • https://www.bestbuddies.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/09/BB360-Quick-Reference-Guide.pdf

  • BBLC Fundraising Guide

    • https://www.bestbuddies.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/BBLC2023-Fundraising-Guide.pdf

  • Sample Fundraising Letters

    • https://www.bestbuddies.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/09/BBI-Sample-Solicitation-Letters.pdf

• Best Buddies in Georgia Toolkit

  The BBGA Toolkit is a Google Drive with additional resources to run your chapter! There are several folders separated by subject area. Take a look here: https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1A8VwxgMr5Lbe4oIvidO44Kyl56lnqHW8?usp=drive_link

  • I’ve also added a “Leaders Idea Share” folder where chapters can upload ideas and resources that work with your chapter with other schools! I’ve already added a few resources that schools have graciously shared, but check us out here: https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1M7Wik39MUtUR6KySP0OeYTmiHwQhc7uH?usp=sharing

• Canva

  While Best Buddies University has a few simple editing flyers available to assist with designing flyers, Canva is also a good alternative. With easy text application features, free QR code/bitly link creations, and the ability to add different elements, your flyers will shine like no other!
  

• Event Planning Checklists (K-12 and College)

  • Swoogo has a neat event planning checklist that covers school event planning from start to finish for our K-12 chapters, and Georgia Tech has a solid event planning checklist for our college chapters.
    

• Accessibility Checklist

  • OSHU has this excellent guide on planning accessible events for people with disabilities. It highlights best practices for intellectual and developmental disabilities, along with visual, sensory, and auditory - https://www.ohsu.edu/sites/default/files/2022-05/DisabilityBestPracticesGuide05132022.pdf

Best Buddies Leadership Conference 2025

We look forward to seeing you at the Best Buddies Leadership Conference this year! The Best Buddies Leadership Conference (BBLC) brings together leaders, volunteers, and community advocates from around the world to envision, create, and lead the future of the disability rights and inclusion movement.

For over 30 years, BBLC has empowered thousands of individuals to become passionate advocates for Best Buddies, driving meaningful social change within their communities.

While all are welcomed for this conference experience, Leadership Conference attendance is mandatory for our high schools and colleges.

Please check out this video from our stellar Chapter President, Izzie Keaton, about her Leadership Conference experience!

For more information, please visit https://www.bestbuddies.org/bblc/. Registration info coming soon!

Register TODAY for Back to Best Buddies 2025!

We look forward to seeing you at Back to Best Buddies this year! Back to Best Buddies is our mandatory training sessions for all elementary, high school, and college chapter leaders. While this experience is open to all executive board members, at least one leader is required to attend.

There will be FREE food, fun giveaways, and tons of information at our in-person sessions! While virtual and recorded options will be available, we would love to see you at the in-person session to meet other chapter leaders across the state! Each chapter is only required to attend one session. Please register using the links below; we look forward to seeing you there!

January is the start of Back to Best Buddies Season!

As you continue to plan meetings and events, recruit new members, host fundraisers, don’t forget to make Best Buddies fun! Consider hosting your own Back to Best Buddies with a few resources from our training folder in our BBGA Toolkit.

We have many resources on Best Buddies University and our Best Buddies in Georgia Chapter Toolkit, including match party ideas, recruitment items, training materials from previous years, and other helpful documents. For more questions, please feel free to contact me at [email protected]. Thank you!

Upcoming Events