About the Nonprofit
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F2FN creates success for children with disabilities by empowering their families with information, training, referrals and support as they navigate the complex education, health care & social service systems as they try to obtain supports for their children. Family to Family Network believes that ALL children should be included and supported in our schools and community in order to ensure the future success of children with disabilities.
When a family receives a disability diagnosis for their child, whether at birth or later in life, it can be devastating. Families often feel lost and alone. They are fearful because they don’t understand the disability, nor do they know what to do next. Every agency has their own rules and regulations that must be followed in order to gain services or supports for their children.
There are over 127,000 students with disabilities receiving special education services in the greater Houston Region 4 Education Service Center area. This does not include those receiving accommodations only through 504 plans or children with disability labels who are home schooled or in private school placements.
Education is the only FREE service available to children with disabilities. Adult services are not free, and there are over 150,000 Texans with disabilities waiting over 12 years for long term services & supports. That is why it is imperative for children with disabilities to receive the necessary supports and services at school so that they can become contributing members of our community and live meaningful lives after high school.
Family to Family helps families understand their rights & responsibilities, while also aiding them in understanding the right words to use, right place to look, right person to connect with when trying to find services & supports for their children with disabilities.
Last year, Family to Family served over 1500 families with the primary disability labels of:
59% Autism Spectrum Disorder
16% Intellectual Disability
10% Other Health Impairment
7% Orthopedic Impairment
6 % Deaf/Hard of Hearing, Blind Visual Disability, Deaf Blind
2% Learning Disability
The age ranges of the children in the families that we serve are:
2% Age 0-3
10% Age 3-5
22% Age 5-11 (elementary)
12% Age 12-15 (junior high/middle school)
19% Age 16 – 18 (High School)
8% Age 18+ (18+ High School)
27% Adults (Out of School)
The ethnic diversity of the families served are 19% Black, 31%White, 33% Hispanic/Latinx, 15% Asian and 2% identified as Two or More races.
29% request help with the Individualized Education Program (IEP) special education process,
28% request help finding resources in the community and
39% needed help navigating Adult Service systems, Medicaid Managed Care or Social Security.
F2FN transforms lives by helping people discover possibilities, see potential when others see barriers, and advocate for what their children need to achieve their dreams.
By changing attitudes and mindsets about disabilities, our organization changes lives to make sure every individual gets to live THEIR best life.
By 2031, Our Goal is to Help 25,000 Families See Possibilities in their children with disabilities!
Your donation to our event will help support:
1) the development of a bilingual learning platform where families can access training at their own pace;
2) intensive case management to families in underserved communities, especially our communities of color and those that are non-English speaking;
3) the update & maintenance of our bilingual website that provides accurate & consistent information on the special education process; and
4) our annual conference & resource fair for 300 family members & youth with disabilities.
Thank you!
