This Atlanta executive went from corporate lawyer to nonprofit CEO
Meg Blackwood often calls InCommunity the “largest nonprofit no one has ever heard of,” despite being based in metro Atlanta for 46 years.
It was started by a group of parents who were looking for inclusive support for family members with intellectual and developmental disabilities in the 1970s, a time when the go-to solution was institutionalizing disabled people.
Today, the nonprofit serves about 2,500 individuals and their families across the state, primarily in Clayton, Cobb, DeKalb, Douglas, Fulton, Gwinnett, Newton and Rockdale counties. The organization’s services range from crisis support to matching adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities to housing, caregivers and employment.
Blackwood was named CEO of InCommunity in 2024. After more than 20 years as a corporate lawyer, the mother of three said the career change was a “leap of faith” and an opportunity to take the skills she developed navigating highly regulated environments and building relationships and put them to work for a meaningful mission.
This interview has been edited for length and clarity.
Q: Are there common misconceptions about the individuals you work with?
A: Almost all of us know someone who fits into our community. (The intellectual and developmental disabilities) population becomes a bit invisible as they age. If you support Special Olympics or you support autistic youth charities or foundations for cystic fibrosis or cerebral palsy, these are the same individuals with the same disabilities.
When they’re children, there seems to be more support. As they age, their needs sometimes become more complex because of their comorbidities, but at the same time their natural support networks — meaning their families, extended families, friends — they age as well, and sometimes that network shrinks.
For us, it’s really a matter of getting people to understand who we are and what we do and that these disabled individuals are here and they need support.
Q: How has stepping into the CEO role at InCommunity challenged you?
A: I’m challenged every day, and that’s one of the things I love about it. It’s a great example of learning when to step back and listen and to empower people. I’m a problem solver. I could jump feetfirst into everything, and I have to remind myself: Build your teams and encourage them to collaborate and solve problems. Don’t always give them the solution, but be the guardrail.
Q: How has the way you think about success evolved throughout your career?
A: I think most lawyers are type A people right out of school, and success is a win for your client. I had an amazing opposing counsel teach me a lesson early on. It was an employment case, and I represented employers. He said: “You might win this case, but I’m going to teach you a skill that I think will apply for you long term, which is: Encourage your clients to treat people well on the way in and on the way out.”
Because a lot of these disputes that we end up with as employment lawyers come about from people not feeling like they were treated well or heard on the way out the door when something went south.
I’ve tried to apply that in my life and as a leader, too. What’s the long-term solution for my organization? I think that was a big change for me.
You come in young and want to win, win, win all the time. But what is a win? Is it a win in the moment and a loss in the long term? It’s about how you treat people and how you do your business in the long term.
Q: Were there women in your life that inspired you when you were growing up?
A: My maternal grandmother was a force to be reckoned with. I had so much admiration for her. She grew up in a very small town in East Tennessee. She was the daughter of a very poor family — carbide lights, no electricity. She attended a one-room school, and her teacher was her older sister.
So my grandmother came up in this life, and then she was one of the first airline stewardesses for American Airlines. She married an engineer right after World War II, and they had two daughters. And then when her children were grown, she became a librarian and worked in a junior college library. Then my mom and she started a children’s clothing store.
My grandmother was just a kind, wonderful woman. Every Sunday night she had my whole family over for dinner. I think at that very early age, surrounded by that model, I was inspired to know that you can have a lot of different experiences. You can have a career, you can have a family, you can do a lot of different things. And where you start doesn’t define where you end.
Q: Do you have any career advice for young women?
A: You can set your own destiny. Don’t let someone else define what success is for you. Remember that someone else’s opinion is just their opinion. Never let someone else limit you. That’s what we talk about here at InCommunity. We say it’s limitless.
Don’t define somebody by that resume or that diagnosis. If you think you can do something, do it.
I made a change of career when I was 46. Probably most people would say statistically that’s not going to happen to you at that point of your life, especially if you’ve only done one thing. And who cares? If the opportunity comes your way and you want to do it, go do it. It might be what leads you to the next 25 years of your career.
AJC Her+Story is a series in The Atlanta Journal-Constitution highlighting women founders, creators, executives and professionals. It is about building a community. Know someone the AJC should feature in AJC Her+Story? Email us at herstory@ajc.com with your suggestions. Check out all of our AJC Her+Story coverage at ajc.com/herstory.
