Special Needs Resource Directory

When you have a child with special health needs, you face the constant challenge of finding information and resources. The Special Needs Resource Directory, supported by the Family Resource Center at Cincinnati Children's, can assist parents, caregivers and healthcare providers identify, evaluate and access necessary services and supports. Focused on children and youth with special health needs who have physical, developmental, behavioral or emotional conditions, the directory connects to local, regional and national websites to help you:

• Find information about your child’s diagnosis or condition
• Identify strategies to help you advocate for your child
• Develop community connections for resources and support
• Locate information and resources to assist you with special education, healthcare, financial, transition, recreation, networking and future planning needs
• Overcome barriers to access healthcare resources

Finding Information and Resources

Click on the topics to the left to browse topics and find more specific sections and pages. Or type keyword(s) into the Resource Directory search box at the top of the page.

Quick Links to a few of our most searched pages:

• Transition: Employment and Day Programs
• Homecare: Residential Options
• Child Care: Day Care and Respite
• Mental Health and Behavior Providers
• Camps and Recreation
• Education: Section 504
• Education: Private and Charter Schools
• Support Groups

New Special Education Procedural Safeguards Guide Just Released!

A new special education procedural safeguards notice, A Guide to Parent Rights in Special Education, is now available for district and parent use. This publication replaces the earlier procedural safeguards notice, Whose IDEA Is This? As of August 1, 2017, districts must no longer use that publication. The Office for Exceptional Children is working to translate A Guide to Parent Rights in Special Education in several languages. The Department will post those versions on its website when they are available.

Read about the ABLE Act

Learn about the law that will allow eligible individuals with disabilities have more individual choice and control over spending. The ABLE National Resource Center (ANRC), founded and managed by the National Disability Institute (NDI), provides information concerning the benefits of an ABLE account. ABLE accounts are tax-advantaged savings accounts for individuals with disabilities and their families, to be created as a result of the passage of the Stephen Beck Jr., Achieving a Better Life Experience (ABLE) Act of 2014. The ANRC aims to educate individuals with disabilities and their families and other stakeholders about ABLE’s potential positive impact on the lives of millions of Americans with disabilities.

• ABLE National Resource Center
• The Ohio State Treasurer's Office has created a site for information related to ABLE Accounts. You can sign up and stay informed. 

The account will not affect important federal benefits. Read more.