Neurodiversity at the Library: Organizations and Resources

This handbook was designed to help people with disabilities find and use resources that empower us to live and be in charge of our own lives in our own homes and communities with the supports that we need.

This is a collection of resources from various sources on the topic of mental health for individuals with autism. Topics range from general mental health resources to anxiety, depression, behavioral concerns, services and assessment, psychopharmacology, and crisis intervention.

Creates connections, empowering everyone in the Autism community with the resources needed to live fully.

The Autistic Self Advocacy Network is a nonprofit organization run by and for autistic people. ASAN fights for disability rights, works to make sure autistic people are included in policy-making, and supports all forms of self-advocacy in order to change the way people think about autism.

The ECHO Autism: Advocates Program aims to equip family and self-advocates with the knowledge and skills necessary to navigate complex support systems, actively connect people on the spectrum and their families to high-quality, best-practice resources, services and supports, as well as influence policy.

OAR is an organization founded and led by parents and grandparents of autistic children, who serve as the Board of Directors providing leadership, life experience, and heart. They strive to use science to address the social, educational, and treatment concerns of autistic people, parents, autism professionals, and caregivers.

Support for families from the Organization for Autism Research

The Center for Autism Advocacy: Research, Education, and Supports (CAARES) conducts research, provides education, and delivers supports to better serve autistic and neurodiverse individuals in the classroom, workplace, and beyond

DRNY provides free legal and advocacy services to individuals with disabilities. We work tirelessly to protect and advance the rights of children and adults with disabilities. DRNY is committed to enabling those we serve to exercise their own life choices and fully participate in community life.

Assisting individuals with disabilities to achieve and maintain employment and to support independent living

The Arc promotes and protects the human rights of people with intellectual and developmental disabilities and actively supports their full inclusion and participation in the community throughout their lifetimes.

The Office of Special Education provides assistance related to services and programs for students with disabilities. Staff work to provide the most up to date policy and guidance, technical assistance, professional development, and monitoring to attain equal opportunities and positive results for students with disabilities across New York State.

The New York State Office for People With Developmental Disabilities (OPWDD) is responsible for coordinating services for New Yorkers with developmental disabilities, including intellectual disabilities, cerebral palsy, Down syndrome, autism spectrum disorders, Prader-Willi syndrome and other neurological impairments. It provides services directly and through a network of approximately 500 nonprofit service providing agencies, with about 80 percent of services provided by the private nonprofits and 20 percent provided by state-run services.

The State University of New York is committed to ensuring welcoming and inclusive living and learning environments for all students, including students with disabilities. SUNY understands that disability services and campus accessibility is a critical factor in informing campus choice. Each of our 64 campuses offers an array of services for students with various disabilities. Every campus has a designated coordinator ready to assist in your journey through higher education.

The WNY Collegiate Consortium and Disability Advocates, better known as CCDA, is comprised of a group of post-secondary and secondary education professionals, and community and government agency representatives who are directly involved in working with students with disabilities.

Free database from the College Autism Network to help find college programs that could work for you.

Resource provided by the DO-IT (Disabilities, Opportunities, Internetworking, and Technology) Center with information on scholarships, awards, and funding available,

Supports for College Students from the Organization for Autism Research

Self-Advocacy for College Students from the Organization for Autism Research

Primary Care Resources for Adults on the Autism Spectrum and their Primary Care Providers

This resource provides information about Medicaid for individuals with autism, including a visual, easy to read version as well as a plain text version.

Got Transition aims to help youth and young adults move from pediatric to adult health care.

Helping adults to navigate the health care system as well as communicate and advocate for high-quality care in collaboration with their clinical providers.

Helps Autistic and Neurodivergent adults make friends and connect with others in dating and romantic relationships.

Adulthood represents a time in one’s life where there are increased levels of independence, choice, and personal control. These are all qualities that can and should be part of any autistic adult’s life. For many young autistic people and their families, the transition to adulthood is a daunting one, marked by significant changes in available services. Proper planning can ease this difficult transition, however, and ensure that all autistic individuals build the skills and establish the supports that will allow them to take advantage of all that adulthood has to offer.

Vocational rehabilitation, or VR, is a service offered and provided in each state and territory in the United States. VR aims to support people with disabilities to find and keep competitive, integrated employment.