The WUIDDRC, with its partner St. Louis Children’s Hospital, is the latest center to receive funding in order to expand the Centers of Excellence for research in mental retardation and developmental disabilities established by Congress in 1963. The IDDRCs are the nation’s first and foremost sustained effort to prevent and treat developmental disabilities through biomedical and behavioral research. In addition to WUIDDRC, there are 15 nationally funded IDDRCs located at the nation’s top universities and children’s hospitals. As a new center, the WUIDDRC is dedicated to improving the lives of children with developmental disabilities through a collaborative, interdisciplinary environment that enhances research, clinical care and community coordination.