Resource and Links for Families

Nonprofit Resources / National Agencies / Parent Groups

Rush University Medical Center — The Autism Resource Center

The Autism Resource Center at Rush University Medical Center provides referrals for families who have a child with an Autism Spectrum Disorder. There are many areas that can be impacted by Autism, including language, social skills and behavior. Our mission at the Autism Resource Center ("ARC") is to link children and families with appropriate services in order to improve the development of children with Autism and related disorders. The ARC team has developed an on-line resource guide to help families find referrals, from evaluations to summer programs to therapeutic day schools. To find an appropriate referral, please visit us at www.rush.edu/autism.

Answers for Special Kids

ASK is a non-profit organization created to support and educate families of children with special needs or learning differences.

Child Care Association of Illinois

CCA provides services to abused, neglected and troubled children, youth and families of Illinois.

Family Matters

Family Matters was funded as a Family Support Program, in 1989, by the Illinois Department of Human Services in order to assist families to keep their children with disabilities living at home by providing, locating, or creating the needed supports.

Family Resource Center on Disabilities

Family Resource Center on Disabilities provides information and support for families, free seminars, Youth Advocacy Project and Parent-To-Parent Training Project.

Family to Family Statewide Health Information Resource For Families of Children and Youth with Special Needs

The Family to Family Health Information an Education Center is here to answer your questions about health and health care.

IllinoisParents.org

IllinoisParents.org is the information link for Illinois families; linking parents directly to local programs, services, and community agencies, and to help parents find information on raising and educating their children.

The Illinois Provider Directory for Children with Disabilities

The directory includes general pediatricians, family physicians, pediatric specialists, occupational therapists, physical therapists, speech pathologists, audiologists, mental health specialists, pediatric dentists and other health care providers who serve Illinois children with special health care needs.

Illinois Yellow Pages for Kids with Disabilities

National Early Childhood Technical Assistance Center

The National Early Childhood Technical Assistance Center supports the implementation of the early childhood provisions of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA). Our mission is to strengthen service systems to ensure that children with disabilities (birth through 5) and their families receive and benefit from high quality, culturally appropriate, and family-centered supports and services.

National Info Center/Youth with Disabilities

NICHCY stands for the National Dissemination Center for Children with Disabilities serving as a central source of information on disabilities in infants, toddlers, children, and youth, IDEA, which is the law authorizing special education, No Child Left Behind (as it relates to children with disabilities), and research-based information on effective educational practices.

NPN Parents serving the Parent Community

The Northside Parents Network — a not-for-profit organization of neighborhood networks whose members are parents that provide support for each other and share resources and experiences that will better enable them to manage the common daily challenges faced by families everywhere.

Parent Coalitions and Information Groups

A comprehensive Parent Support Group List compiled by The Family Resource Center on Disabilities (FRCD).

Prevent Child Abuse Illinois

Technical Assistance Alliance for Parents

The Technical Assistance Alliance for Parent Centers is an innovative project that supports a unified technical assistance system for the purpose of developing, assisting and coordinating Parent Training and Information Projects and Community Parent Resource Centers under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA).

Voices for Illinois Children

Voices for Illinois Children champions the full development of every child in Illinois to assure the future well-being of everyone in the state. We work with families, communities and policymakers on all issues to help children grow up happy, healthy, nurtured, safe and well-educated.

Zero to Three

We are a national nonprofit multidisciplinary organization that advances our mission by informing, educating and supporting adults who influence the lives of infants and toddlers. ZERO TO THREE's mission is to support the healthy development and well-being of infants, toddlers and their families.