Nya’s Smile Fund for Children with Autism

05/21/2023

Had a great day at Eagles Huddle Up for Autism

01/07/2023

Fight for your services!! School districts will try to remove or decrease services your child desperately needs. You are your child’s only unconditional advocate. No matter what the administrators say or how they make you feel, you are doing the right thing. This is a good article that reflects what many families are going through.

By all means, the odds are stacked against me, but what they don’t know is that I will never stop fighting. {A glimpse of what Due Process is like}

03/23/2022

Nya’s Smile Fund is supporting Eagles Huddle Up for Autism. Visit our fundraising page https://fundraisers.hakuapp.com/ian-gant

03/17/2022

It’s great that they passed this bill, but special education programs in schools are still underfunded. When there aren’t enough funds it leads to inequities in services. Stay strong and try your best to advocate for your child’s services.

A $1.5 trillion spending bill signed by President Joe Biden will mean more money for special education and other programs for people with disabilities, but advocates say it's not enough.

03/13/2022

Families with children with autism struggle in many different ways. One that is particularly important to us is ensuring that children and parents rights are protected when dealing with the education system. It is very difficult to navigate through the legal process as parents. We want to ensure that parents understand and know their rights to fight for all services that are due to their child under the law. Parents are many times required to use paid advocates or attorneys to help them through this rigorous process. The cost for such services can range well above $5,000 which is just not feasible for many families. There are charity organizations that provide advocates free of charge, and our goal to raise enough money to help fund some of these charities to provide advocate services to families with children with autism.

Please Donate Today!!!

https://donatenow.networkforgood.org/themontgomerycountyfoundationinc/mobile
(select Nya’s Smile Fund as the designee)

03/13/2022

Education Services for Children with Autism:
The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) allows for children with autism who are eligible for special education services to receive:

Specially Designed Instruction: This is instruction designed for an individual child, which can include academic instruction, and teaching a child with autism social and behavioral skills to help them interact with peers and teachers.

Related Services: These services assist a child to benefit from special education. They may include transportation, speech-language services, psychological services, physical therapy, occupational therapy, therapeutic recreation, assistive technology, social work services, counseling services, and school nurse services.

Supplementary Aids and Services: These are supports that are provided in regular education classes or other education settings to allow the child to be educated with nondisabled peers. They may include modifications to the regular curriculum, assistance of an itinerant teacher or teacher’s assistant, training for teachers, visual supports, preferred seating and frequent breaks.

Services will be different for each child, but parents want to ensure that they are getting all appropriate services for their child. The goal of Nya’s Smile Fund is to donate to nonprofit organizations that help families identify and receive all appropriate services. Please Donate Today!!!

https://donatenow.networkforgood.org/themontgomerycountyfoundationinc/mobile
(select Nya’s Smile Fund as the designee)

03/12/2022

What is an Education Advocate?
A special education advocate supports parents in receiving appropriate services and accommodations. An advocate informs parents about their rights regarding the special education process, and helps parents understand and navigate the education processes and system. Advocates gather valuable information from the parents about their child, reviews the Individualized Education Program (IEP) and other pertinent documents, and can accompany the parents to school meetings. The cost of an advocate can range from $150-$300 hour or more. The goal of Nya’s Smile Fund is to donate to nonprofit organizations that provide advocates free of charge. Please Donate Today!!!

https://donatenow.networkforgood.org/themontgomerycountyfoundationinc/mobile

03/12/2022

Nya stars in this video created to highlight the important role the medical field can play in helping families get the services they need.

Nemours duPont Pediatrics Behavioral Health and Developmental Medicine/Swank Autism Center is now open. This new comprehensive center of excellence provides ...

03/12/2022

The focus on education services for children with autism is mainly focused on K-12, but universities are becoming more and more involved.

St. Joseph's will be among the first traditional college campuses in the country to offer such an option. A large three-story house on campus, it can accommodate up to 17 students.

02/24/2022

Join us in helping families receive funds to advocate for special education services.

https://donatenow.networkforgood.org/themontgomerycountyfoundationinc/mobile

02/22/2022

Our goal is to donate to charitable organizations dedicated to protecting the rights of families dealing with the unique challenges of autism.

Our hope is to strengthen resiliency in other families, just as Nya’s bright smile, in the face of her disorder, empowers her family to help the autism community.

The struggles Nya’s family faced and the unfortunate inequities they witnessed, drove their desire to help children with autism. Please help us support their mission.

For contributions, please make checks payable to:
The Montgomery County Foundation, Inc. (memo Nya’s Smile Fund for Children with Autism)
4 Sentry Parkway East, Suite 320
Blue Bell, PA 19422
or visit

The Montgomery County Foundation is a non-governmental, non-profit community organization whose purpose is to help donors achieve their philanthropic ideals.