Since 1998, Melissa Jacobus has been actively advocating for her children’s best interests and the rights of all individuals with FASD. She is an FASD parent advocate for FASD United, serves on the advisory Committee for FASD Communities and served as a member the Speakers Bureau for the CDC’s Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders Southeast Regional Training Center. In 2019 Melissa was inducted into FASD United’s, Tom and Linda Daschel FASD Hall of Fame.
In 2012, she presented at the Department of Behavioral Health and Developmental Disabilities, Suicide Prevention Program and The Supreme Court of Georgia’s Committee on Justice for Children. In 2013, her work led Georgia Governor Deal to designate September 9th as FASD Awareness Day, which has continued under the current Georgia governor, Brian Kemp. In 2018 she co-lead The Atlanta FASD training at the State Bar of Georgia.
To bring greater awareness to FASD, in May of 2021, she published a book about FASD advocacy titled, The Accomplice. The Accomplice: Jacobus, Melissa: 9781665300032: Amazon.com: Books.
