Alana Hadley

Professor Malcolm Campbell

English 1103
9/27/15
Topic Proposal: Where does the money go?
Introduction/Overview
I will be examining the breakdown of where the money our government puts aside for
helping those with autism. I will be looking at how much of the money actually makes it to
helping once it goes to the organizations and other places.
When a child is diagnosed with autism there is automatically a financial strain added
upon the families expenses. According to a study on the cost of Autism Spectrum Disorder
(ASD), The reported annual out-of-pocket costs to families in relation to ASD were specific
medical, therapeutic and complimentary/alternative treatment services. That same study found
that the median family cost of ASD was estimated to be $24,430 per year. This shows that
money is needed in helping families to take of expenses and not be placed in such a heavy
financial burden.
The US Government Accountability Office (GAO) did a study back in 2006 and found,
According to estimates from NIH, the agency increased funding for autism from about $51.5
million in fiscal year 2000 to about $101.6 million in fiscal year 2005. So obviously there is
money out there meant to help people with autism but what I want to know is where all the
money going. The GAO also found, Education and HHSs Administration for Children and
Families support services for children with autism through education programs for children with

disabilities. If there are programs like this for children with autism being funded, are there
programs for adults as well, if so are they funded just as much?
In order to learn what I need to about my topic I will need to learn just how much the
government spends each year in funding for autism. I will also need to learn the breakdown of
where the money is distributed, such as how much goes to programs and how much goes to
research. I had no clue where to start in finding this information so I used the Librarian Chat
feature on the UNC Charlotte library website and had a librarian help me find some government
articles and science articles about my topic on the librarys database.
My topic can branch out into many different directions. It can take me along the debate
that more money should go towards research or more should go towards programs. Then once
you get into the idea of programs it becomes should there be more programs for children or
adults. Many organizations start to get involved at that point, such as Autism Speaks (national)
or The Autism Society (each state has its own). I feel like this topic will take me on a very
interesting intellectual journey and adventure on where does the money go and who really needs
it the most.
Initial Inquiry Question(s)

Where does the money designated by the government for autism go?

How much of money for autism goes towards children, how much towards adults?

What is the money used for?

How much of the money will go towards schools?

How much money is given by the government?

My Interest in this Topic

I am interested in where the money for autism goes because my little sister is autistic and
I want to know if there are areas that she will not be getting a lot of help in in the future. I know

plenty about what autism is and what help people with autism need, however I dont know if
people are actually getting the help itself. I want to make a difference in the world of autism and
there are plenty of things I need to know in order to be able to make the biggest difference I can.
In this project I hope to learn what areas are getting the least amount of funding and help so I
can find a place that needs my help.
Next Steps
I will be using the wonderful online resource database from UNC Charlottes library for
my research. I will be using the articles and government papers available online to found out the
information I am looking for, such as how the government distributes the money and where it
goes, as well as if it makes a difference. I will also talk to reference librarians to help me with
the government documents I will be trying to find. I will also be looking at the websites from
different autism organizations to see what they are doing with the money they are given. While
the websites will be biased it will give me a solid idea of what they spend all the money on.
Comments: This is a really interesting topic! I think there is a lot of ways you can go with this. I
know what youre generally trying to find out; I think it might be helpful and more concise if you
researched ways autism can be further studied or specific needs of autism that are not
aided/funded by the government. I just think some of your questions might be hard to research.
Also, sometimes your phrasing it a little confusing, maybe turn complex or compound sentences
into simple sentences sometimes.
What made my comments valuable?
I suggested that Alana narrowed her research because the original topic was very broad. The
broadness would likely cause problems because it is simply difficult to trace where all money for
autism funding goes. I also suggested that she break down some of her long sentences, which
makes her writing flow more smoothly.