For Families

A smiling child plays with a bead toy on a table as a woman sitting next to him smiles back

Clinical Assessment, Intervention and Treatment

When a child has trouble learning, speaking or acting, parents want answers and help. At the University of Kansas Center for Child Health and Development (CCHD), the staff work as a team of experts to diagnose your child. Recommendations help families know where to begin. CCHD staff have expertise in child development, autism spectrum disorders, Fragile X syndrome, and other developmental disabilities.

Public Engagement

The KIDDRC and affiliated Life Span Institute partners such as the Kansas University Center on Developmental Disabilities and the Kansas Center for Autism Research and Training are involved in activities that promote the best and most effective services for individuals with disabilities and their families while keeping in mind the diverse population and culture in Kansas. We collaborate with multiple agencies and engage with the public through a broad spectrum of activities. Some of these include: 

  • Autism Speaks Walk
  • Autism Society Walks and events
  • Self-Advocate Coalition of Kansas conference and events
  • New Directions in Fragile X Conference
  • Fragile X Links Walk
  • Families Together
  • Family Employment Awareness Training (FEAT)
  • JCCC Autism Spectrum Support Club
  • Family Education Series
  • First Responder Training (last year with Leavenworth base first responders)
  • Kansas City League of Autistics
  • Resource Fairs and speaking engagements

Research Participation

Every day, our investigators conduct research that has the potential to change people’s lives. Often we seek volunteers for those research programs. Some children and adults who volunteer may have specific conditions, while others volunteer to serve as controls, or people who don’t have those conditions. We seek a variety of participants across age, gender, disability, race and other criteria. We are so grateful to have families share their experiences, time and knowledge with us.