Chapter 16: Helpful Organizations

Introduction: There is national, and state organizations designed to help you navigate the special education and disability services systems. Here are some helpful organizations that can assist you.

Resources:

Center for Parent Information & Resources
The Center for Parent Information & Resources (CPIR) is the central hub of valuable information and products specifically designed for the network of Parent Centers serving families of children with disabilities. The website provides access to the products and resources for families.

PACER Center- Champions for Children with Disabilities
PACER provides individual assistance, workshops, publications, and other resources to help families make decisions about education and other services for their child or young adult with disabilities.

Parent Consultants- Ohio Department of Health
The role of the parent consultants at the Ohio Department of Health (ODH) involves being support to the 30+ programs within the Bureau of Child and Family Health — offering a parent perspective and voice. Parent consultants strive to make sure all ODH efforts are family centered, community-based, and culturally sensitive. Consultants can provide support to families and connect families to additional support.

Parent Mentors of Ohio
A Parent Mentor is the parent of a child with a disability employed by local education agencies and Educational Service Centers to help families and school districts by providing support, information, and training services. A Parent Mentor is a guide and mentor to help the parent navigate the special education process and to develop their skills as an advocate, the best advocate for their child.

Family Centered Practice, American Speech-Language-Hearing Association
The American Speech-Language-Hearing Association (ASHA) is the national professional, scientific, and credentialing association for 234,000 members, certificate holders, and affiliates who are audiologists; speech-language pathologists; speech, language, and hearing scientists; audiology and speech-language pathology assistants; and students. Audiologists specialize in preventing and assessing hearing and balance disorders as well as providing audiologic treatment, including hearing aids. Speech-language pathologists (SLPs) identify, assess, and treat speech, language, and swallowing disorders.

Ohio Family and Children First
Ohio Family and Children First (OFCF) is a partnership of state and local government, communities and families that enhances the well-being of Ohio’s children and families by building community capacity, coordinating systems and services, and engaging families. OFCF's vision is for every child and family to thrive and succeed within healthy communities.

OCALI
The Ohio Center for Autism and Low Incidence informs public policy, develops, and deploys best practices by linking research to real life so that people with disabilities have the opportunity to live their best lives for their whole lives. OCALI provides online learning opportunities, best practices, latest research, innovative resources, and extensive supports, materials, and professional development.

The Ohio Center for Deafblind Education
The Ohio Center for Deafblind Education (OCDBE) is a grant-funded project awarded to the College of Education, Criminal Justice, and Human Services, University of Cincinnati, by the U.S. Department of Education with support from the Ohio Department of Education. The project provides services in Ohio to individuals with deafblindness, birth through 21 years including collaborative technical assistance to families, educational personnel and services providers through training and information dissemination. The OCDBE is dedicated to offering innovative approaches to improving the education of children and youth with deafblindness.

Ohio Developmental Disabilities Council
The ODDC funds specific grant projects to create systems change and promote independent living in an inclusive community for Ohioans with developmental disabilities.

Ohio Hands and Voices
Hands & Voices is dedicated to supporting families with children who are Deaf or Hard of Hearing without a bias around communication modes or methodology. We’re a parent-driven, non-profit organization providing families with the resources, networks, and information they need to improve communication access and educational outcomes for their children. Our outreach activities, parent/professional collaboration, and advocacy efforts are focused on enabling Deaf and Hard-of-Hearing children to reach their highest potential.

The Ohio Department of Developmental Disabilities
The Ohio Department of Developmental Disabilities oversees a statewide system of supportive services that focus on ensuring health and safety, supporting access to community participation, and increasing opportunities for meaningful employment for people with developmental disabilities.

County Boards of Developmental Disabilities
The Ohio Association of County Boards of DD (OACB) provides advocacy, communications, professional development, and technical assistance to all 88 of Ohio's county boards of developmental disabilities. Founded in 1984, OACB has evolved along with the needs of its diverse membership. Today, we provide a host of services and supports to the 616 volunteer board members and thousands of career professionals in Ohio's DD service delivery system.

Opportunities for Ohioans with Disabilities
OOD helps Ohioans with disabilities find resources, support, and opportunities that fit their unique needs, abilities, and interests so they can gain and retain meaningful employment.

Help Me Grow
Help Me Grow is a system of supports for pregnant women, caregivers with new babies, and families with young children with developmental delays and disabilities. Services and supports are provided through Home Visiting and Early Intervention. Home Visiting is a voluntary, home-based service offered at no cost to the family. Trained professionals offer information, support during pregnancy, and empower parents with skills, tools, and confidence to nurture the healthy growth of their child throughout the child’s earliest years. Early Intervention supports families of young children birth to age three with developmental delays and disabilities. These services are typically provided in the home or other places where the family spends time and builds on their ability to enhance the child’s learning and development.

Ohio Department of Children and Youth
The Ohio Department of Children and Youth's mission is to promote positive, lifelong outcomes for Ohio youth through early intervention, quality education, and family support programs.

Ohio Department of Medicaid
Ohio Medicaid provides healthcare coverage for about 3.55 million Ohioans with low incomes, most of whom are children, older adults, people with disabilities and low-income adults who could not otherwise afford private or employer-sponsored health insurance.

OhioRISE
The OhioRISE (Resilience through Integrated Systems and Excellence) plan is a Medicaid managed care program that provides, and coordinates specialized behavioral health care for eligible children and youth. OhioRISE provides support to children and youth, families/caregivers and their circles of support. It’s a whole-family approach to care for Ohio that aims to keep kids and families together by providing specialized behavioral health services and supports close to home.

Disability Rights Ohio
Disability Rights Ohio is a nonprofit corporation with a mission to advocate for an equitable Ohio for people with disabilities. DRO provides free legal advocacy to people with disabilities in a variety of areas including special education, employment, community integration, abuse, and neglect.

Ohio Coalition for the Education of Children with Disabilities
The Ohio Coalition for the Education of Children with Disabilities (OCECD) is a statewide nonprofit organization that serves families of infants, toddlers, and youth with disabilities in Ohio, educators and agencies who provide services to them. OCECD’s programs help parents become informed and effective representatives for their children in all educational settings. In addition, youth are assisted to advocate for themselves. Through knowledge about laws, resources, rights and responsibilities, families are better able to work with agencies to ensure that appropriate services are received for the benefit of their children.

University of Cincinnati Center for Excellence in Developmental Disabilities
UCCEDD is a leader in working with and on behalf of children and adults with disabilities and their families so they can lead the lives they want. UCCEDD accomplishes its mission through education, training, research, impacting on policy, and sharing information.

Nisonger Center
The Nisonger Center has a variety of programs for individuals with developmental disabilities, including Down syndrome and autism spectrum disorders. Services include clinical support services, specialized dental programs, inclusive childcare and early childhood education, social programs for teens, TOPS post-secondary education and transitional skills program for adult students at OSU, psychiatric services, and more.