The Center for Autism and Related Disorders (CARD) recently received a grant from First Things First of the Northeast Maricopa County, which allows them to provide services to families in need of help with their child’s behavioral problems at no cost to the family.

If the child is eligible, he or she will receive short-term, focused intervention that includes an individualized assessment conducted by a behavior specialist, an individualized intervention plan, implementation and caregiver training on how to implement the child’s intervention plan, and group caregiver training and support meetings. CARD Specialized Outpatient Services provides the assessment and intervention in the child’s home.

The group parent training sessions and support meetings will be held once every other week and will cover topics such as childhood development, common childhood issues, and parenting strategies. Each session is 2 hours long and free child care is provided by CARD staff.

In order to be eligible for this service, the child must:

Be 5 years of age or younger, and live within one of sixteen specified zip codes in the Northeast Maricopa region (zip codes include: 85250, 85251, 85253, 85254, 85255, 85257, 85258, 85259, 85260, 85262, 85263, 85264, 85268, 85269, 85331, and 85377).

Please note that the child does NOT need to have a diagnosis (i.e. autism) to be eligible.