National Leadership Program, Fall 2021
Georgia Carr
Georgia Carr (she/her) was a Philanthropy Fellow in RespectAbility’s National Leadership Program, a paid Fellowship funded by the MacArthur Foundation that provides young professionals with disabilities the tools to thrive in the philanthropic sector. RespectAbility’s mission is to fight stigmas and advance opportunities so people with disabilities can fully participate in all aspects of community.
Carr’s birthplace, Gaffney, South Carolina, is known for its iconic peach water tower constructed on the side of the highway. After making her home in the arts district of Charlotte, North Carolina over the past five years, Carr can rest easy knowing that she fulfilled her childhood dream of making it to the big city.
Carr will earn her Master of Public Administration with a concentration in nonprofit management from the University of North Carolina at Charlotte in 2022. Carr earned a bachelor’s degree in political science with a minor in women and gender studies from the University of North Carolina at Charlotte as well. Additionally, Carr has over seven years of experience in working with children in both educational and care settings.
Carr was drawn to RespectAbility because she appreciates the value of intersectionality. She acknowledges the lack of understanding surrounding disability issues within society and is committed to educating herself on the ways that disability intersects with other aspects of a person’s identity. The National Leadership Program will empower her to effectively advocate for and with the disabled community within the philanthropic sector. As a person with ADHD and cardiovascular conditions, the mission of RespectAbility is incredibly meaningful to Carr’s life.
With the skills Carr gains from the philanthropy Fellowship, she hopes to begin her career in a nonprofit or foundation that advocates for the rights of the LGBTQ community in the southeastern United States. She has a special interest in improving the lives of queer youth. Carr plans to use her education from RespectAbility to diminish the accessibility challenges that can arise for folks who are members of both the LGBTQ and disabled community.
When Carr is not researching nonprofits or interviewing NC officials for her capstone project, she can be found binge-watching Shameless or exploring the rail trail of Charlotte. As a huge Clemson football fan, Carr spends most Saturdays in the fall lamenting the loss of Trevor Lawrence, furiously texting her parents about the incompetency of the refs, and explaining what the yellow line on the field means to her fiancée.
