Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD), commonly known as autism, is a complicated developmental disorder, which affects all ethnic and socioeconomic groups of all ages, and has no known singular cause or cure. 





According to the CDC, autism affects 1 in 88 children; 1 in 54 boys and 1 in 252 girls. At current rates, more children worldwide will be diagnosed with autism this year than with AIDS, diabetes, and cancer combined - making it the fastest growing developmental disability in the United States.

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The National Autism Network is the largest online resource for the autism community providing a social network, nationwide provider directory, events calendar, discussion forums, autism news, expert written content and thousands of resources. Our mission is to unite and empower parents, providers, family members and individuals on the autism spectrum by providing a growing community rich in knowledge and expertise with a common goal of working together to make a difference in the lives of those affected by autism. We are all in this together as one community!

Membership to NationalAutismNetwork.com provides access to the largest online resource for the autism community.  We've dedicated thousands of hours researching and compiling the most credible, up to date information and resources available so you can spend time on the more important things in your life.  

All in one place. Everything you need surrounding autism can be found on our site. From a social network made for the autism community, a nationwide provider directory to events in your area, expert written content, and much more. We have all of the resources you need to remain connected and up-to-date with anything and everything related to autism.

Connect with others. The unique features of the social network allows parents to not only connect with other parents, family members or individuals on the spectrum, but also allows them to create a HIPAA secure private network for their child where they can invite the therapy providers and caregivers their child works with to access real time updates along with files and therapy notes.

Integrated provider networks. We realize that in order for this community to truly thrive, we need to facilitate interactions with industry professionals. Providers have the ability to create a business profile page where they can build a following of members, provide updates, network with other professionals, provide insight on key topics and have the ability to be listed as a preferred provider by parents.

Our niche social network provides the autism community with features not currently available on any social network.

HIPAA secure child private network allowing parents to connect with providers and caregivers and share real time status updates

HIPAA secure file sharing between parents, providers and caregivers

Preferred Provider network allows parents the ability to easily see which Providers other parents entrust with the care of their child.

Provider pages allows businesses the opportunity to create a following and disseminate updates which are received by everyone who is following them, as opposed to a small percentage of updates being shown in other social networks.

Built in protocols limit the liability of Providers by implementing a professional standard which doesn't allow certain types of connections to be made that may be deemed unethical in a social network setting.

In addition, there are all of the social features you'd expect to see. 

Real Time Updates. Stay up-to-date with everyone within your personally selected network.

Custom Privacy Settings. Set up your profile to be as open or closed as you want. 

User-friendly features to share photos and videos. Share the things you are passionate about with those in your network, such as links to inspiring stories that you've discovered.

Messaging. Built-in messaging makes connecting with your friends, family and providers easy and accessible. 

Advanced Search Engine. Find who or what you're searching for through our user-friendly search engine. 

Follow what matters to you. You're not limited to just following social networks; you can easily follow forum posts, news articles and comments that are important to you. 

Be a part of the fastest growing community - learn, share and network within the autism community. 

The top 3 similar autism organizations are: 

• My Autism Team is a social network specifically targeted toward parents of children on the autism spectrum. Their offering is limited in that they are only a social network with generic social features designed to be duplicated across multiple types of disabilities and illnesses. 
• Autism Speaks focuses on research, fundraising and autism awareness.  They provide a great deal of information and resources for the autism community and are instrumental in creating new research initiatives.
• Autism Society focuses on increasing autism awareness about the day to day challenges faced by individuals on the spectrum, advocating for appropriate services as well as a source of information. They have local chapters throughout the United States.

While there is no shortage of resources and information online, jumping from site to site and researching what information is from credible sources can be incredibly time consuming.  National Autism Network saw a need to provide a comprehensive site for the autism community where a user can access a wide variety of resources and interactive communications.  A few examples of these are:

Always updated.  New information and resources are added to the site daily including news articles, events in your area, research that is being done and more.

Our Social Network provides a HIPAA-secure environment allowing members to easily communicate with each other.  Both parents and providers have unique features available to them not offered on any other social network.  

Discussion Forums allow members an opportunity to ask questions to experts within the field, connect locally with other members, as well as participate in an array of topics.
 

Our Provider Directory is the most up-to-date interactive directory showcasing provider information, maps and the number of members who prefer that provider. 
 

Our Webinar series provides a unique approach to learning a wide variety of topics from experts within the autism field.
 

Our robust Nationwide Events Calendar allows members to search for events through a variety of filters such as by date, location, and event type.

With the funds raised, we will:

   Continue to add features within our Social Network

   Provide more expert written articles, webinars and podcasts to our members

   Create a mobile application which will allow members to access discussion forums and their social network. 

Our goals in the first 12 months after fundraising are to have 2,000 Annual Provider Memberships and 10,000 Annual Parent/Individual Memberships.

The following are the rewards for pledging the respective minimum amounts.

T-shirt Designs