History and Mission

Providing information, services and programs to children with autism and related disorders, their families and those who live and work with them.

Marcus Autism Center is a not-for-profit organization with a mission to provide information, services and programs to children with autism and related disorders, their families and those who live and work with them. We offer integrated research opportunities, advanced clinical, behavioral, educational and family support services through a single organization to reduce the stress for families that use our services.

With the appointment of Ami Klin, Ph.D., Director of Marcus Autism Center, we are pursuing an overarching research strategy, with two main areas of focus—early detection and early intervention. This will be accomplished, in part, by Dr. Klin’s eye-tracking software, which has been shown to diagnose children as young as 6 months old. But none of this would be possible without the generous support of our community of donors and Billi and Bernie Marcus.

Marcus Autism Center had its beginnings as The Marcus Developmental Resource Center at Emory University in 1991. Marcus Autism Center has become a nationally recognized center for excellence for the provision of coordinated and comprehensive services for children and adolescents with developmental disabilities.

Since its inception, Marcus Autism Center has provided services to more than 37,000 individuals, conducted ground breaking research, and provided education and training programs. Children with conditions, such as autism, mental illness, cerebral palsy, learning disabilities and disruptive behaviors, are afforded some of the highest quality services by one of the largest teams of professionals and support staff solely dedicated to child development in Georgia.

Together with families, support groups, government agencies, research enterprises and foundations, we are strengthening the community through advocacy at the local and state level. We strive for fuller integration of individuals with developmental disabilities into school and community life, better access for families to appropriate clinical and educational services, and enhanced funding for research and training.