Greenville, SC Area Autism Resources
Greenville, SC Area Autism Resources
Additional local Greenville area resources for your family.
Our sole passion here at ABLE Kids is to provide your child or loved one the skills he/she needs to live a full and meaningful life. We have collected additional local Greenville area resources for your family, including local autism testing centers, mentoring & development opportunities, sensory friendly programs and activities, and options for assistance in paying for ABA Therapy services near you.
Autism Testing Centers
Since 1948, Clarity, the Speech, Hearing, and Learning Center, a non-profit, free standing, community based clinic, has been entrusted by the people of Upstate South Carolina to help them overcome their hearing, speech and learning disorders.
Autism Spectrum Evaluation Team
ASET is a multidisciplinary team of professionals who work together to provide children with a truly comprehensive evaluation. Team members include experts in autism spectrum disorders from the following fields: psychology, speech-language pathology, and occupational therapy. Depending on the needs of the client, sometimes an audiologist is also part of the team.
How does an evaluation work?
Evaluators from multiple disciplines observe and interact with you at the same time to provide a collaborative and comprehensive evaluation of your child’s strengths and weaknesses. Specific information is provided in the following areas: cognitive abilities, adaptive behaviors, social/emotional functioning, communication, fine motor skills, and sensory processing.
Benefits of ASET:
- Time Efficiency of seeing multiple providers at one time allows for quicker access to resources and interventions
- Child friendly, play-based assessments help you feel comfortable during the evaluation
- Flexibility during the evaluation allows for additional assessments as needed.
- All professionals observe the same behaviors/skills and formulate conclusions and diagnoses as a team.
- Evaluation results from all domains are integrated into one comprehensive report.
- Comprehensive treatment recommendations ensure all of your child’s needs are addressed.
Clarity
29 North Academy Street
Greenville, SC 29601
(864) 331-1400
(864) 331-1416 Fax
info@clarityupstate.org
PRISMA Health Children’s Hospital
Prisma Health Children’s Hospital-in the Upstate established the multidisciplinary Autism Wonders program in 2008 to provide families of children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) in the upstate of South Carolina a coordinated evaluation and care program of the highest quality.
Our program provides multidisciplinary diagnostic and follow-up treatment services. The core members of this program include our developmental-behavioral pediatricians, pediatric psychologists, nurse practitioners, and nurses. We also routinely collaborate with other subspecialists and ancillary care providers to provide comprehensive care for our patients.
Developmental-Behavioral Pediatrics
200 Patewood Dr., Building A, Suite A200
Greenville, SC 29615
(864) 454-5115
SC Healthy Connections Medicaid – ASD Services
Get an ASD Diagnosis
In order to meet medical necessity for autism spectrum disorder (ASD) services, beneficiaries age 0-21 will have to have a diagnosis of ASD based on a comprehensive psychological assessment/testing from a licensed psychologist, licensed psychoeducational specialist (LPES) or developmental pediatrician that indicates that ASD treatment services are necessary for their behavioral health care.
View the Comprehensive Psychological Assessment Provider Directory for a listing of providers who can complete a comprehensive psychological assessment for an ASD diagnosis.
Psychologists, LPES or developmental pediatricians providers can also be found using the SCDHHS website, http://www1.scdhhs.gov/search4aprovider/, and searching for the provider type “Medical Professional.” Once in the search engine, psychologists, LPES and developmental pediatricians providers can be found.
Psychology Services Center – Autism Assessment
Mission and Goals
In recognition of community needs, faculty within the University of South Carolina psychology department have created an Autism Diagnostic Clinic through the Psychology Services Center. The goal of the Autism Diagnostic Clinic is to provide comprehensive, evidence-based and affordable assessment services for autism to the greater Columbia area.
Our Services
Autism Diagnostic Clinic assessment services include the evaluation of cognitive, behavioral and adaptive areas of development as well as specific autism-focused measures such as the Autism Diagnostic Observation Schedule (ADOS). A comprehensive written report is provided to parents that include recommendations regarding appropriate intervention and treatment services.
Diagnosticians
Diagnosticians are post-doctoral fellows and advanced doctoral students in clinical-community or school psychology at the University of South Carolina. All diagnosticians are under the supervision of a licensed psychologist.
Scheduling Appointments
To make an appointment for the initial consultation for your child, please call the Psychology Services Center at (803) 777-7302. We will assess your needs at the consultation.
Fees
Fees vary depending on the service provided. A sliding scale is available based on income and family size. Please contact the center for details about specific fees.
Psychology Services Center
University of South Carolina
1331 Elmwood Avenue, Suite 140
Columbia, SC 29201
Phone/Fax:
(803) 777-7302 / (803) 777-7363
PSYCPSC@mailbox.sc.edu
Mentoring & Development
Mission
Best Buddies International is a nonprofit 501(c)(3) organization dedicated to establishing a global volunteer movement that creates opportunities for one-to-one friendships, integrated employment, leadership development, and inclusive living for individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD).
Who We Serve
The IDD community that Best Buddies serves includes, but is not limited to, people with Down syndrome, autism, Fragile X, Williams syndrome, cerebral palsy, traumatic brain injury, and other undiagnosed disabilities.
Programs
Best Buddies is the world’s largest organization dedicated to ending the social, physical, and economic isolation of the 200 million people with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD). Our programs empower the special abilities of people with IDD by helping them form meaningful friendships with their peers, secure successful jobs, live independently, improve public speaking, self-advocacy and communication skills, and feel valued by society.
- One-To-One Friendships
- Builds friendships between people with and without IDD, offering social mentoring while improving the quality of life and level of inclusion.
- Integrated Employment
- Secures jobs for people with IDD, allowing them to earn an income, pay taxes, and support themselves.
- Leadership Development
- Educates and empowers people with and without IDD, to be leaders, public speakers, and advocates.
- Inclusive Living
- Providing a vibrant, integrated living opportunity for people with and without IDD.
Bloom Behavioral Therapy is the only certified providers of Parent-Child Interaction Therapy (PCIT) in the Upstate for children with behavior problems. PCIT is used to treat disruptive behavior in children ages 2-7 years old. Disruptive behavior includes, but is not limited to the following: inattention, hyperactivity, tantrums, anger outbursts, lying, poor communication, aggression, defiance, oppositional attitude, poor social skills, and disobedience. PCIT can be used to target one or all of these negative behaviors simultaneously.
Parents who enroll in PCIT get their own personal trainer: a therapist who guides the parent-child interaction through a wireless earpiece. In a typical session, the therapist stays behind a one-way mirror and instructs parents through the earpiece as they play with and learn to discipline their child in an adjacent playroom. The live coaching catches ineffective parenting habits and helps parents practice “superparenting” skills, which combine frequent praise and attention for good behavior with a clear system of ignoring, warnings, and timeouts for bad.
Bloom Behavioral Therapy
6705 White Horse Road
Greenville, SC 29611
(864) 383-0384
Sensory Friendly Programs
Chuck E. Cheese’s is proud to support families who have children with autism and special needs. We now offers a sensory-friendly experience on the first Sunday of every month opening 2 hours early. Our trained and caring staff is there to make sure each guest has a fun-filled visit. The Sensory Sensitive Sundays experience includes:
- Less crowding and noise
- Dimmed lighting
- Show and music turned off or down
- Limited appearances by Chuck E.
- Food and games are offered
Chuck E. Cheese
253 Congaree Rd
Greenville, SC 29607
(864) 297-4250
YOGA-2-GO brings fun, multi-sensory children’s yoga classes to schools, day cares, after school programs, libraries, troop meetings, parties, homes and more. Miss Amy specializes in yoga for ALL children, customizing therapeutic, educational and sensory-based yoga classes for children of all ages and ability levels.
(864) 300-2152
Mosaic Kids is part of Grace Church kids, our children’s program for ages birth through 5th grade. We desire to partner with parents and include children with disabilities in the life of our church through accommodations and supports. Depending on your child’s needs, we will develop a plan to help make the classroom and the gospel accessible. We can provide a range of inclusive supports from simple accommodations to one-on-one assistance. Our Clubhouse space, at some of our locations, offer a sensory room and/or a tailored classroom environment. Mosaic Kids supports are offered at varying levels on Sunday mornings across all our locations. Our church families can also take advantage of our Mosaic Respite nights throughout the year.
New here? Let us know you are coming by filling out this form.
Thyme and Play offers safe and inclusive events for atypical families to tell their story, connect, engage and receive help navigating through resources. The goal is to increase the quality of life of “disabled”, “atypical” or “special need” families by offering them a hand. We create social opportunities for the disabled community by connecting veterans, adults, and children with disabilities through a social integration platform that helps them feel like they are a part of a community again. Our social integration platform utilizes four Strategies to connect and encourage a feeling of community that we call C.A.F.E.
https://www.thymeandplay.org/contact-us-new
Regal’s My Way Matinee gives everyone the opportunity to experience a movie with the lights turned up and the volume turned down. This becomes a safe space where our guests are free to express themselves by singing, crying, dancing, walking around, talking or shouting while enjoying Hollywood’s latest films! All screenings for our sensory friendly movies will begin at 10:30am on the second and fourth Saturday of the month for a special discounted ticket price!
Regal Hollywood & RPX
1029 Woodruff Rd
Greenville, SC 29607
Join Shock Dance Center starting Sept. 9 on Thursdays from 7:45 pm to 8:30 pm to dance, make friendships, exercise, help with motor skills, and more! All ages welcome that is designed for kids with special needs and is free for all dancers. There is a performance at the end of the year as well.
Shock Dance Center
406 E Butler Rd. Suite B
Mauldin, SC 29662
(864) 420-0216
Shockdancebylindley@gmail.com
From their website: “We Rock the Spectrum Kids Gyms was founded to provide a place for children of all ability levels to play and grow together. As the only kids gym that offers an inclusive philosophy, we have found all children can benefit from our uniquely designed sensory equipment that is specifically designed to aid children with sensory processing disorders. However, in our experience, all children are able to benefit greatly from this equipment and by allowing children of all ability levels to play together they are able to learn a great deal from each other and become the best motivation for success on every level.
We Rock the Spectrum Kid’s Gym
2607 Woodruff Rd, Suite A
Simpsonville, SC 29681
(864) 243-8419
Support Groups
Family Connection of South Carolina, Inc. is a network of parents working with community professionals to provide parent-to-parent support and assurance to families with children of all ages who have special needs. Programs and services are centered around parent-to-parent networking, a program based on the principle that families with shared experiences are uniquely qualified to help each other. Parents of children with disabilities are matched with Support Parents who have children with similar conditions. These trained veteran Support Parents are an invaluable source of support and encouragement because they have faced similar challenges and celebrations. There are Support Parents in all counties of South Carolina.
Family Connection of South Carolina
1800 St. Julian Place, Suite 104
Columbia, SC 29204
800-578-8750 (Toll Free)
info@familyconnectionsc.org
The South Carolina Autism Society is a statewide 501(c) (3) non-profit charitable organization that has been in existence for forty-six years. It relies on donations and sponsorships to provide quality of life assistance and training for persons affected by an autism spectrum disorder. The South Carolina Autism Society’s non-profit federal Tax ID number is 23-735-0663.
Mission:
The mission of the South Carolina Autism Society (SCAS) is to equip those affected by Autism Spectrum Disorders with knowledge and support to maximize their quality of life.
Vision and Values:
SCAS envisions individuals and families living with autism to be able to improve their quality of life, independence, and to be treated with the highest level of dignity, and to live in a society in which their talents and skills are appreciated and valued.
SCAS believes:
- Individuals with autism spectrum disorders (ASD) have a right to fully participate in all of society
- Individuals with ASD and their families deserve high quality information on autism
- Individuals with ASD and their families have the right to information on all treatment options, the ability to evaluate each option and to make a selection of the treatment option that best fit their needs
- Children with ASD have the right to a free appropriate public education
- Individuals with ASD have the right to receive appropriate and quality services
- Individuals with ASD who are receiving services have the right to receive those services without fear of abuse, neglect and exploitation
- Individuals with ASD have the right to make decisions concerning their own lives
803-750-6988
scas@scautism.org
Paying For Services
This program provides coverage for Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD) services for individuals under the age of 21. ASD coverage is provided for assessment and treatment services according to the severity and is based on medical necessity.
*We also work with South Carolina Medicaid CMO’s: Select Health, Absolute Total Care, Blue Choice Healthy Plan and more…
