County resource guide
Autism Resources in Porter County, Indiana
Local providers, school contacts, and support services for autism families in Porter County. Indiana statewide resources also apply.
Porter County — home to Valparaiso, Portage, and Chesterton — is in northwestern Indiana, part of the Chicago-Gary metro. Valparaiso's medical resources and proximity to Chicago give families strong provider access. Duneland School Corporation and Portage Township Schools provide special education. Indiana's First Steps is available countywide, and IN*SOURCE provides free IEP advocacy statewide.
Provider directory
Local Providers13 providers in Porter County
About our listings
Provider listings on Autism Parent Club are submitted by practices or researched from public sources. All listings are reviewed for accuracy before publication. To suggest a correction, use the “Suggest a correction” link below.
Diagnostic clinics
Formal autism evaluations by developmental pediatricians, psychologists, or neuropsychologists.
Munster · multi-county
Franciscan Health — Pediatric Developmental Services
Franciscan Health's pediatric services in Munster and Crown Point provide developmental evaluations and autism screenings for Lake County families. As the largest county in northwest Indiana, Lake County families also have access to Chicago-area specialists across the state line. Franciscan coordinates referrals to Riley Hospital and Chicago-area academic centers.
Northwest Indiana's proximity to Chicago gives Lake County families access to Ann & Robert H. Lurie Children's Hospital and other major Chicago autism centers.
Michigan City · multi-county
Franciscan Health Michigan City — Developmental Pediatrics
Franciscan Health Michigan City provides pediatric developmental evaluations for LaPorte County. Part of the Northwest Indiana Franciscan Health network with referral pathways to Riley Hospital in Indianapolis and Chicago-area pediatric centers via the I-94 corridor.
Northwest Indiana location — Chicago-area specialists are accessible. Confirm insurance network.
Valparaiso · multi-county
Franciscan Health Valparaiso — Pediatric Developmental Services
Franciscan Health's Valparaiso campus provides pediatric developmental evaluations for Porter County. Part of the Northwest Indiana health corridor with access to Chicago-area specialists via the I-65/I-94 corridor. Porter County families can also access Advocate Children's in the Chicago suburbs.
Northwest Indiana location — Chicago-area specialists are accessible. Confirm insurance network (Indiana vs. Illinois).
Early Intervention (0–3)
Free services for children under 3 under IDEA Part C.
Valparaiso
First Steps — Porter County Early Intervention
Indiana's First Steps program provides free early intervention for infants and toddlers with developmental delays in Porter County. Services include speech, OT, PT, and developmental therapy under IDEA Part C. Serves Valparaiso, Portage, and surrounding communities.
FREE for eligible children.
ABA therapy
Applied Behavior Analysis therapy — typically requires insurance authorization.
La Porte · multi-county
Centria Autism — LaPorte County
Centria Autism provides in-home and center-based ABA therapy for LaPorte County children. BCBA-supervised individualized programs. Accepts commercial insurance under Indiana's ABA insurance mandate and Medicaid waiver.
Indiana requires all commercial insurers to cover ABA therapy.
Valparaiso · multi-county
Centria Autism — Valparaiso / Porter County
Centria Autism provides in-home and center-based ABA therapy for Porter County children in Valparaiso and surrounding communities. BCBA-supervised. Accepts commercial insurance under Indiana's ABA mandate and Medicaid waiver.
Indiana requires all commercial insurers to cover ABA therapy.
Merrillville · multi-county
Centria Healthcare — Merrillville
Center-based and in-home ABA therapy in Merrillville serving Lake County families. BCBA-supervised with naturalistic developmental approaches. Accepts Indiana Medicaid (Hoosier Healthwise) and most commercial insurance under Indiana's ABA insurance mandate.
Indiana's ABA insurance mandate applies to all commercial plans. Chicago-area ABA providers are also accessible from Hammond and Gary.
Parent & family support
Parent groups, sibling programs, and family peer support.
La Porte · multi-county
Autism Society of Indiana — LaPorte County
Autism Society of Indiana family support for LaPorte County. Support groups, resource navigation, and community events for Michigan City and La Porte families in Northwest Indiana.
Valparaiso · multi-county
Autism Society of Indiana — Northwest Indiana
Autism Society of Indiana support for Porter County and Northwest Indiana. Support groups, resource navigation, and community events for Valparaiso, Portage, and the Lake-Porter County autism community.
Merrillville · multi-county
Autism Society of Indiana — Northwest Indiana Chapter
The Autism Society of Indiana's northwest chapter provides peer support groups, family resource events, and advocacy connections for Lake County and surrounding northwest Indiana communities. Lake County's proximity to Chicago also means families have access to Illinois Autism Society programming across the border.
Chicago-area Autism Society of Illinois programming is also accessible from Lake County.
Advocacy & legal
Legal advocates, special education advocates, and disability rights organizations.
La Porte · multi-county
IN*SOURCE — IEP Advocacy (LaPorte County)
Indiana's federally funded PTI provides free special education advocacy for LaPorte County families covering La Porte Community Schools and Michigan City Area Schools.
FREE statewide PTI.
Valparaiso · multi-county
IN*SOURCE — IEP Advocacy (Porter County)
Indiana's federally funded PTI provides free special education advocacy for Porter County families. Covers Valparaiso Community Schools, Portage Township, and surrounding Northwest Indiana districts.
FREE statewide PTI.
Crown Point · multi-county
IN*SOURCE — IEP Advocacy for Lake County
Indiana's federally funded Parent Training and Information Center providing free IEP advocacy, special education rights training, and one-on-one support for Lake County families. Bilingual services available — important in a diverse county with large Spanish-speaking and other immigrant communities.
FREE. Federally funded PTI. Bilingual support available. Essential before any IEP meeting or dispute.
For providers
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Helpful guides
Guides for Porter County families
Step-by-step help on the topics that matter most.
School & IEP
Navigating the IEP process
Your rights under IDEA, how evaluations work, and what every IEP section means.
Finding help
ABA, OT, speech and waitlists
How to find qualified providers, navigate insurance, and get off waitlists faster.
Getting started
Where to start after diagnosis
A week-by-week checklist for the first 90 days — from evaluation to early intervention.
Benefits & money
SSI, Medicaid waivers, ABLE accounts
Federal benefits your child may qualify for and how to apply without losing your spot.
Mental health
Co-occurring conditions and support
Managing anxiety, ADHD, and depression alongside an autism diagnosis.
Daily life
Sensory processing and OT
Understanding sensory needs, sensory diets, and how occupational therapy helps.
Adulthood
Employment, housing, legal planning
Supported employment, housing options, guardianship alternatives, and ABLE accounts.
See all Indiana resources
Waivers, PTI centers, and state programs apply to all families in Indiana.
Indiana state guide →Nearby counties in Indiana
See something that needs fixing?
Providers move, phone numbers change, and links break — it happens. If anything on this page is out of date, wrong, or no longer working, please tell us and we’ll fix it. Keeping this accurate for autism families is the whole reason we’re here.
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