Company Profile
Eden Autism Services
Company Overview
Welcome to Eden Autism Services. We are a recognized leader in treating children and adults with autism, with more than four decades of best practice experience. Unique among our peers, Eden provides a lifetime of support—from the point of diagnosis through the school years and into adulthood. We are a community of children and adults with autism, teachers, job coaches, direct care-givers, parents, guardians, and friends—a diverse group of people with a passion for Eden and all that we accomplish together.
Company History
Our story begins in the mid-seventies, when autism was a relatively unknown disorder with an incidence rate of just 1 in 10,000 individuals.
Frustrated by the limited services available through local school districts, and determined to find an appropriate program for their children with autism, a group of parents joined forces with a renowned clinician who was working in the Princeton area. In 1975, the Eden Institute opened as a day school.
As Eden developed, the need for adult services grew and soon Eden expanded its mission—to improve the lives of children and adults with autism and their families by providing a range of community-based services to meet specific needs throughout the lifespan. In a rented church basement in Princeton, NJ, the founding families and staff worked hard to ensure that individuals who attended Eden were provided with the highest quality services available.
Today, one is hard pressed to find anyone who has not heard of autism. Nationally, the incidence of autism is reported to affect 1 in 44 (1 in 35 in New Jersey) children and the numbers keep growing. As the rate of autism continues to increase, so do the programs and services provided by Eden. In 1980, Eden opened its first residential group home and in 1983, Eden established its adult employment program. Eden’s early intervention program, named in honor of Wawa for its major start-up support, began in 1992.
It’s been many years since Eden’s days in the church basement. In 2011, we opened our model education and outreach center in the Princeton Forrestal Village. Grounded in the principles of Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA), we currently support more than 200 individuals ranging in age from 12 months to 75 years old, providing early intervention, educational, residential and employment services.
Though much has changed over the years, Eden’s goal remains the same—to provide a comprehensive spectrum of services designed to enable individuals with autism to lead fulfilling, productive and engaged lives in their communities, to the full extent of their abilities.
Notable Accomplishments / Recognition
Eden Autism is proud to announce that the organization has been accredited by the National Commission for the Accreditation of Special Education Services (NCASES). While this is the fifth time the Eden School has earned accreditation, this marks the first time for the Adult Services program. Eden remains part of the elite group of fewer than 30 special education programs across the country that have earned NCASES accreditation and an even smaller group of providers whose adult services are now accredited.