The Ohio State University Nisonger Center

“The Nisonger Center has helped my brother by providing his autism diagnosis as well as guiding us through the journey of saving his oral health. Without the Nisonger Center, my brother would have difficulty doing his daily tasks, from eating food with comfort, to getting help finding a job. Research and practice in this field is crucial for our nation. People come long and far to this center because it may be the only resource they have to help their children, family, and friends with developmental disabilities. Not only has this center directly impacted my brother, but it’s made my life so much easier as his sister. Before going to the Nisonger center Woodward dental suite, he was too scared and uncomfortable to receive dental care not adjusted for him. As one of his care givers, the previous dentist office was difficult for me to handle him. At the Nisonger center they provide any assistance needed to allow my brother the best comfort he can have. People like my brother need this space for their well-being.” -Sister of a Nisonger Center client
The Ohio State University Nisonger Center has been in existence since 1966, among the first group of federally-funded University Centers for Excellence in Developmental Disabilities (UCEDD). The Nisonger Center enjoys an enviable reputation for its interdisciplinary research, education / training, clinical services and dissemination activities. With a strong and dynamic interdisciplinary team of researchers, clinicians, teachers, staff and trainees, the faculty and staff of the Nisonger Center strive to improve the lives of people with intellectual and neurodevelopmental disabilities across their lifespan.

To learn more about the many programs and services The Nisonger Center provides, please visit: https://nisonger.osu.edu/?utm_campaign=med_marketing-activity_fy26&utm_content=1781196181&utm_medium=social&utm_source=facebook

The Ohio State University Nisonger Center (https://bit.ly/4lRVLnu) has been in existence since 1966 and was established among the first group of federally funded University Centers for Excellence in Developmental Disabilities (UCEDD). The Nisonger Center boasts an enviable reputation for its interdisciplinary education and training, clinical and community-based services, research, and dissemination activities. We have a strong and dynamic team of 120 clinicians, teachers, researchers, staff, and trainees from more than a dozen professional disciplines who work together to empower and support all people with developmental disabilities and their families through interdisciplinary training, service, and research.

The U.S. Administration for Community Living (ACL), authorized under the Developmental Disabilities and Bill of Rights Act, funds the Nisonger Center to support its mission of serving/supporting individuals with developmental disabilities and their families through a federal grant to UCEDDs. The Nisonger Center has successfully leveraged its ACL UCEDD annual grant to compete for more than $13 million in additional funding from gifts, foundation, industry, county, state, and federal sources. These funds enable us to deliver essential clinical services, education, and training, as well as conduct life-enhancing research. Through these clinical services, educational and training activities, and interdisciplinary research, we serve each year more than 36,000 individuals with developmental disabilities, their families, students, and professionals from across all 88 Ohio counties in 2024-2025.

“The National Core Indicators Survey is helpful to my clients, who are adults with developmental disabilities, because it provides an outside review of their services and supports. Outside review can help to provide suggestions of things to try out for my clients. It helps to ensure a good quality of life for people with developmental disabilities who have been neglected so much in the past.”
- Service and Support Administrator at Butler County Board of Developmental Disabilities

The National Core Indicators (NCI) is a way for state developmental disabilities agencies to track and measure their own performance in the form of an in-person survey or conversation with at least 400 randomly selected individuals. 48 states including Ohio are participating in the NCI project. This allows state-by-state comparisons. The core indicators are Community Inclusion, Satisfaction, Choice and Decision-Making, Self-determination, and Employment. The Nisonger Center makes it a priority to hire self-advocates and family members of individuals with disabilities as interviewers. These interviewers come from across the state of Ohio.

For more information about the NCI Project, visit: https://nisonger.osu.edu/adult/adult-clinics-services/national-core-indicators-project/?utm_campaign=med_marketing-activity_fy26&utm_content=1781017174&utm_medium=social&utm_source=facebook

The Ohio State University Nisonger Center (https://bit.ly/4lRVLnu) has been in existence since 1966 and was established among the first group of federally funded University Centers for Excellence in Developmental Disabilities (UCEDD). The Nisonger Center boasts an enviable reputation for its interdisciplinary education and training, clinical and community-based services, research, and dissemination activities. We have a strong and dynamic team of 120 clinicians, teachers, researchers, staff, and trainees from more than a dozen professional disciplines who work together to empower and support all people with developmental disabilities and their families through interdisciplinary training, service, and research.

The U.S. Administration for Community Living (ACL), authorized under the Developmental Disabilities and Bill of Rights Act, funds the Nisonger Center to support its mission of serving/supporting individuals with developmental disabilities and their families through a federal grant to UCEDDs. The Nisonger Center has successfully leveraged its ACL UCEDD annual grant to compete for more than $13 million in additional funding from gifts, foundation, industry, county, state, and federal sources. These funds enable us to deliver essential clinical services, education, and training, as well as conduct life-enhancing research. Through these clinical services, educational and training activities, and interdisciplinary research, we serve each year more than 36,000 individuals with developmental disabilities, their families, students, and professionals from across all 88 Ohio counties in 2024-2025.