Sharon Leon, MBA
Executive Director
National Foundation for Autism Research

Since our son was first diagnosed with autism in 1996, we've watched the incidence rate for autism jump from 1 in 2,500 children to a staggering 1 out of every 36 children in the US today. At the time, we kept asking ourselves, "Is anyone paying attention to these statistics?"

But the truth is these aren't statistics. These are young children, and their families whose lives have been changed by a diagnosis of autism. And, whose opportunities and quality of life could be severely limited without the right programs, treatments and services.

Autism affects one in every 36 children in the United States, making it more prevalent than childhood cancers, juvenile diabetes and Down Syndrome COMBINED.

NFAR is here to help!

MISSION: At NFAR, we are dedicated to improving the lives of those with autism.

Established in 2003, the National Foundation for Autism Research (NFAR) is dedicated to improving the lives of those with autism. We are a local nonprofit organization that directly serves 2,200+ individuals with autism spectrum disorders and their families in San Diego County yearly and nearly 6,000 community members through our annual Race for Autism. As an organization, we have always sought to create programs that fill a much-needed gap in services for autistic individuals and improve their learning, social, and employment opportunities.

We do this in a variety of ways and programs such as our NFAR Parent Groups, Educational Workshops, Engage and Connect, and Vocational Training. Others ways that we fulfill our missions is through funds raised at our annual Race for Autism in Balboa Park. These funds also help to support community initiatives and to date NFAR has funded hundreds of initiatives in the areas of:

• early identification
• educational programs, materials, and equipment
• enrichment programs
• educational workshops and parent trainings
• college based initiatives

These programs are helping those with autism by creating new learning and social opportunities, supporting outreach to underserved populations and providing for the immediate needs at the classroom level.

NFAR PROGRAMS

Through our vocational training programs, and industry outreach initiatives, we are helping those with autism take that next step toward employment. Employment is much more than earning a paycheck. It provides an individual with a way to become more self-reliant and start realizing their dreams, it provides structure and purpose to their day to day, and opens up opportunities for growth and for developing relationships.

Since 2015, NFAR has been providing comprehensive, autism-specific training for high-demand jobs of the 21st century in areas such as software quality assurance testing, light manufacturing, data entry, document management, product fulfillment, and now, in cyber security!  You can learn more about our programs here: NFAR Tech, NFAR Cyber, and NFAR Works, At the same time NFAR is partnering with companies across a wide range of industries to open the doors to employment for more people with autism, and helping to ensure a higher probability of long-term employment success. To date, NFAR has successfully placed the majority of its graduates in industry work internships.

To learn more about NFAR and its other programs, please check out our others programs such as our Autism Parent Groups, NFAR Teacher's Grants, and Community Projects, etc