A Cheat Sheet to the NICHCY State Resource Sheet

This cheat sheet is intended to help our readers make efficient use of NICHCY's State Resource Sheets.

There are a lot of organizations on the state sheets---which are the ones you might call or contact first, given your needs and concerns? Here are our suggestions, and a quick guide to what's what and who's who on the typical state sheet.

How the State Sheet is Organized

In general, each state sheet has four sections, as follows: 

• State agencies serving or concerned with children with disabilities.
  The list starts off with governors, senators, and the official State Web site, but goes on to the state agencies overseeing services to infants and toddlers with disabilities (birth through 2), children aged 3-5, school-aged children, and adults who have disabilities. You'll find special interest agencies here, too---such as those who can tell you about state services to children who have visual impairments, hearing impairments, special health care needs, and so on.
• Disability-specific organizations.
  This typically means private organizations formed with interest in a particular disability. If you're looking for a local chapter of a learning disabilities group, or a group focused on autism, or some other disability, here is where you'd look.
• Organizations especially for parents.
  A great place for parents to look and connect with resources---the parent training and information center, the parent to parent group in the state, the PTA, and others.
• Other disability organizations.
  Here you'd find a real variety of organizations that don't really fit in the other three categories but that are involved with and concerned about children with disabilities.

You'll find a Table of Contents at the start of each State Sheet to help you jump right to the section of your choice.

Finding What You Need: NICHCY Recommends

If you don't know what you're looking for on a state sheet, then here are some questions to ask yourself and some suggestions about where to look, depending on your answer. Skip over the ones that don't pertain to you.

• Are you a parent new to the disability network?
  Using the Table of Contents on the state sheet, jump to Organizations Especially for Parents. Here are groups designed to assist parents in the disability experience. They can tell you about disability and education laws, state and local services to children with disabilities, how to get your child evaluated to see if he or she has a disability, and much more. If you want to get connected to the disability network, these organizations can really help. NICHCY especially recommends contacting the Parent Training and Information Center (PTI) for your state. It's listed first in the section of Organizations Especially for Parents. (Want to know more about what PTIs do for parents? Read our Parent Training and Information Center brief.)
• Looking for where to have your baby or toddler evaluated to see if he or she has a disability?
  Using the Table of Contents on the state sheet, jump to the first section, State Agencies and Organizations. Scroll down until you see the heading, "Programs for Infants and Toddlers with Disabilities: Ages Birth through 2." There, you'll find the agency taking the lead on providing services to infants and toddlers with disabilities---known as the early intervention system. Give them a call. Tell them you're concerned about your little one, and ask how to contact the early intervention system in your neighbhorhood so that you can have your child evaluated for a disability.
• Looking for where to have your preschooler evaluated to see if he or she has a disability?
  Using the Table of Contents on the state sheet, jump to the first section, State Agencies and Organizations. Scroll down until you see the heading, "Programs for Children with Disabilities: Ages 3 through 5." There, you'll find the agency responsible for how the state provides services to children ages 3 through 5 (the preschoolers). This is generally done through the public education system, even if your child is not currently enrolled in public school. Give them a call. Tell them you're concerned about your preschooler, and ask how to contact the special education system in your area so that you can have your child evaluated for a disability.
• And where do you connect to have your school-aged child evaluated to see if he or she has a disability?
  Services for school-aged children, including initial evaluations, are handled through the public school system. Get in touch with your child's school. Tell them you're concerned about your child's progress and would like to have your child evaluated to see if he or she has a disability. They will be able to tell you the process the school or district follows to see that this is done.
• Looking for information about a specific disability?
  Using the Table of Contents on the state sheet, jump to the second section, Disability-Specific Organizations. This section lists specific disabilities in alphabetical order. If you see a listing for the disability of your concern, you've found the state level chapter of parents (and professionals, too) focused on that disability. Lots of support, suggestions, information, and networking can come your way by giving them a call.
  
  Note: NICHCY has a lot of free information about specific disabilities. We can also refer you to the national and state organizations that that concentrate on providing information and guidance on specific disabilities. To find reliable disability information provided by experts, take a look at these two resources on our Web site:
  
  • NICHCY Connections... to the Disability Community.
    www.nichcy.org/resources/disability1.htm
  • Disability Fact Sheets.
    www.nichcy.org/disabinf.asp
    NICHCY offers 14 fact sheets and 3 briefing papers on specific disabilities. Each defines the disability, describes its characteristics, and offers tips for parents and teachers.
• Would you like to talk to another parent whose child has the same disability as yours?
  Using the Table of Contents on the state sheet, jump to Organizations Especially for Parents. See if there's a listing for Parent to Parent in your state. They can put you in touch with another parent in a similar situations and connect you in all sorts of ways to the disability community. (Want to know more about Parent to Parent? Read our Parent to Parent Support brief.)
• Would you like to talk to a group of parents concerned with the same disability as you are?
  Using the Table of Contents on the state sheet, jump to the second section, Disability-Specific Organizations. This section lists specific disabilities in alphabetical order. If you see a listing for the disability of your concern, you've found the state level chapter of parents (and professionals, too) focused on that disability. Lots of support, suggestions, and networking can come your way by giving them a call. They can also refer you to local chapters, if there are any.