Helping Your Child with
Disabilities Find Success


mother helps daughter with homework

Having a child with a disability can be daunting – and there are so many decisions to think about as you navigate the many stages of life. 

Fortunately, there are resources in this community to help you along the way. Here are some suggestions from The Associated and its network of agencies.

Early Diagnosis 

MDSNAP: Maryland Special Needs Advocacy Project, a Macks Center for
Jewish Connections program, works with families of children with disabilities from early diagnosis to the age of 21. Free for Jewish families, they help match them with community resources and advocate for services, particularly in the education system.  

Here are a few of their suggestions.

• According to Martha Goodman of MDSNAP, when you get a diagnosis, seek out early intervention training. Coaches meet with parents and work with them, offering expertise on how to support your child’s therapy goals in the home. 

• Each family is different, and therefore the coaches will talk to you about your lifestyle, family habits, home life and more. Recognizing that parents are a child’s first teachers, they will provide you with therapies tailored specifically for your family. 

 • Check out the books at the Jewish Library of Baltimore. The library features an entire section of books devoted to disabilities to support parents and their children. 

• If you have healthcare-related expenses and have a child with autism, mental illness or obesity, the Jill Fox Memorial Fund, administered by the Macks Center for Jewish Connections, provides grants to help alleviate the costs. 

Early and Middle School Years

• You don’t have to do everything alone. MDSNAP is there to advocate on behalf of families with children of disabilities. They can help you create your infant and toddler plan or consult on IEPs (Individualized Education Plans) or 504 service plans so that your child receives the best services available. 

• Concurrently, MDSNAP can help you think through what schools and camps will best meet your child’s needs to ensure that they are successful. 

• Paying for education is costly, yet 529 accounts can help. Money can be used for K-12 education, college or trade programs. Set one up early.

• Participate in one of the many support groups in the community for parents. Currently, Jewish Educational Services (JES)/SHEMESH, working with CHADD of Greater Baltimore, offers monthly sessions for parents of children with ADHD and executive function disorder. Topics range from supporting siblings of children with special needs to everything you need to know about medicine.

• JES/SHEMESH also holds a bi-monthly support group for  parents of children with autism.

High School and Beyond  

It’s never too early to think about your child’s future. The earlier you begin to make plans, the better prepared you will be when your child graduates from high school. 

Here are a few tips from Jewish Community Services (JCS), which helps individuals with disabilities find jobs.  

• Students with special needs can stay in school until age 21. But you can begin the transition process as early as age 14. Speak with a transition coordinator at school as early as 9th grade.  

• Look into work-based learning experiences through the Division Of Rehabilitation Services (DORS). Your teen should begin to explore various work options through an internship.  

• Attend transition fairs and gain information on employment, housing and community engagement.  

• Apply for Medicaid coverage, social security benefits, identification cards with the MVA and more for your teen.  

• Participate in programs that provide opportunities to learn valuable social and work skills. As part of their Community Development Services program, JCS incorporates fun activities like cooking and art with job readiness skills in Job Club.

Job club sessions offer skills such as resume building, combined with social opportunities that build communication skills, which will help in the work world. Internship and volunteer experiences are
also available.

The Associated’s Baltimore Jewish Abilities Alliance links individuals with disabilities, and their families, to resources, services, support groups, workshops and more. Go to baltimore.jewishabilities.org.


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The Associated is a home for everyone in the Baltimore Jewish community. We offer several email lists to help people find a community, engage with their peers and support Jewish journeys around the world.

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