Financial Support Resources

The following information is provided by parents regarding public funding to attend a NODCC conference. If you know of resources in your local area, please email the information to the Central Office at info@nodcc.org for us to add to this section.

• Information from a Texas parent...

In Texas, you can apply for conference funds under the heading of “In home and family support” that will provide parent training (e.g.
conference) funded at the county level. You must meet some criteria:

• be a resident of the county in which you’re applying
• meet the financial eligibility requirement
• have a diagnosis of autism, PDD or mental retardation
• diagnosis must be in a written report (must say mental retardation) and done
  by a MD, psychologist or educational diagnostician

Go to www.dads.state.tx.us, click on “Resources for DADS service providers,” click on “In home and family support services.” To apply, call your county mental retardation authority (MRA) and tell them you want to use In home and family support services for parent training. I was told by my county MRA that you don’t have to be currently receiving services to take advantage of this as long as you meet the eligibility criteria.

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• Information from a New Jersey parent...

In 2005 I attended the conference completely free of charge thanks to the New Jersey Dept. of Developmental Disabilities. Someone posted on the ListServ that most states have these agencies and that they have money set aside for people to attend conferences that usually goes unused. I wrote to them and all I had to do was fill out a form and we were granted approval. We did have to pay up front for the airfare and registration, but they reimbursed us fairly quickly. Here is a link to various state developmental disability agencies for you to investigate: http://www.ddrcco.com/states.htm

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• Information from a Maryland parent...

Here in Maryland we have the DDA Developmental Disabilities Administration. It does not go by income and anyone determined to have a developmental disability is entitled to $2,000 (I think it’s $2,000) a year. They won’t give you money, but they will reimburse for things like conferences, fences, equipment, etc. I used them to get boardmaker (PECs software). Most people are unaware of these funds.

Again, we sincerely appreciate your fundraising efforts on behalf of the NODCC!

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