Developmental Disabilities Institute

Developmental Disabilities Institute We help children and adults with autism and other developmental disabilities experience personal growth and fulfillment.

For more than 60 years, Developmental Disabilities Institute (DDI) has provided compassionate personal care to meet the emotional, educational, therapeutic, and vocational needs of children and adults with autism and other developmental disabilities. Founded by parents of children with developmental disabilities, DDI has grown into a dynamic, nonprofit, multi-site agency serving more than 1600 children and adults in our care each day. The parental influence continues with several of our board members being mothers and fathers of the people we serve. DDI recognizes that each person in our care has unique needs and deserves every opportunity to live a rich and meaningful life. Over six decades, we have built a strong reputation for providing exceptional services for all people in our programs, and in particular those who present with the most significant challenges. With a workforce made up of people inspired by purposeยฎ, DDI provides the highest standards of individualized services from expertly trained, caring, and competent staff. For more information, visit www.ddiny.org.

โญDSP SPOTLIGHTโญ๐–๐ž ๐š๐ซ๐ž ๐ž๐ฑ๐œ๐ข๐ญ๐ž๐ ๐ญ๐จ ๐ข๐ง๐ญ๐ซ๐จ๐๐ฎ๐œ๐ž ๐Œ๐ข๐ค๐š๐ฒ๐ฅ๐š, ๐ฐ๐ก๐จ ๐ฌ๐ก๐š๐ซ๐ž๐ฌ ๐ฐ๐ก๐š๐ญ ๐ข๐ง๐ฌ๐ฉ๐ข๐ซ๐ž๐ฌ ๐ก๐ž๐ซ ๐š๐ฌ ๐š ๐ƒ๐’๐."I was inspired to become a DS...
09/26/2025

โญDSP SPOTLIGHTโญ

๐–๐ž ๐š๐ซ๐ž ๐ž๐ฑ๐œ๐ข๐ญ๐ž๐ ๐ญ๐จ ๐ข๐ง๐ญ๐ซ๐จ๐๐ฎ๐œ๐ž ๐Œ๐ข๐ค๐š๐ฒ๐ฅ๐š, ๐ฐ๐ก๐จ ๐ฌ๐ก๐š๐ซ๐ž๐ฌ ๐ฐ๐ก๐š๐ญ ๐ข๐ง๐ฌ๐ฉ๐ข๐ซ๐ž๐ฌ ๐ก๐ž๐ซ ๐š๐ฌ ๐š ๐ƒ๐’๐.

"I was inspired to become a DSP because I enjoy taking care of people and love all the different personalities. I feel proud when I see the person supported improve and accomplish their goals." โ€”Mikayla

Rosh Hashanah was observed with smiles and creativity this week at our Children's Residential Program. Those who celebra...
09/25/2025

Rosh Hashanah was observed with smiles and creativity this week at our Children's Residential Program. Those who celebrate came together to craft symbolic apples and honey art, share hopes for the new year, and learn about the traditions that make this holiday so meaningful.

โญDSP SPOTLIGHTโญ๐–๐ž ๐š๐ซ๐ž ๐ž๐ฑ๐œ๐ข๐ญ๐ž๐ ๐ญ๐จ ๐ข๐ง๐ญ๐ซ๐จ๐๐ฎ๐œ๐ž ๐ƒ๐š๐œ๐ก๐š๐ฎ๐ง, ๐ฐ๐ก๐จ ๐ฌ๐ก๐š๐ซ๐ž๐ฌ ๐ฐ๐ก๐ฒ ๐ก๐ž ๐›๐ž๐œ๐š๐ฆ๐ž ๐š ๐ƒ๐’๐.โ€œI became a DSP because I enjoy helpi...
09/24/2025

โญDSP SPOTLIGHTโญ

๐–๐ž ๐š๐ซ๐ž ๐ž๐ฑ๐œ๐ข๐ญ๐ž๐ ๐ญ๐จ ๐ข๐ง๐ญ๐ซ๐จ๐๐ฎ๐œ๐ž ๐ƒ๐š๐œ๐ก๐š๐ฎ๐ง, ๐ฐ๐ก๐จ ๐ฌ๐ก๐š๐ซ๐ž๐ฌ ๐ฐ๐ก๐ฒ ๐ก๐ž ๐›๐ž๐œ๐š๐ฆ๐ž ๐š ๐ƒ๐’๐.

โ€œI became a DSP because I enjoy helping people! I love how unique they are and enjoy being with them. I feel proud and happy when I see the guys complete their goals on their own.โ€ โ€”Dachaun

โญDSP SPOTLIGHTโญ๐–๐ž ๐š๐ซ๐ž ๐ž๐ฑ๐œ๐ข๐ญ๐ž๐ ๐ญ๐จ ๐ข๐ง๐ญ๐ซ๐จ๐๐ฎ๐œ๐ž ๐˜๐š๐ซ๐ข๐ž๐ฅ๐ข๐ณ๐š, ๐ฐ๐ก๐จ ๐ฌ๐ก๐š๐ซ๐ž๐ฌ ๐ฐ๐ก๐š๐ญ ๐ฆ๐š๐ค๐ž๐ฌ ๐ก๐ž๐ซ ๐ฉ๐ซ๐จ๐ฎ๐ ๐จ๐Ÿ ๐›๐ž๐ข๐ง๐  ๐š ๐ƒ๐’๐.โ€œI wanted to help p...
09/23/2025

โญDSP SPOTLIGHTโญ

๐–๐ž ๐š๐ซ๐ž ๐ž๐ฑ๐œ๐ข๐ญ๐ž๐ ๐ญ๐จ ๐ข๐ง๐ญ๐ซ๐จ๐๐ฎ๐œ๐ž ๐˜๐š๐ซ๐ข๐ž๐ฅ๐ข๐ณ๐š, ๐ฐ๐ก๐จ ๐ฌ๐ก๐š๐ซ๐ž๐ฌ ๐ฐ๐ก๐š๐ญ ๐ฆ๐š๐ค๐ž๐ฌ ๐ก๐ž๐ซ ๐ฉ๐ซ๐จ๐ฎ๐ ๐จ๐Ÿ ๐›๐ž๐ข๐ง๐  ๐š ๐ƒ๐’๐.

โ€œI wanted to help people, so I became a DSP! I really enjoy meeting new people and seeing all the different personalities. I also enjoy being a part of their life and assisting them every day. I feel proud when I see them being able to communicate their needs and complete their goals.โ€ โ€”Yarieliza

Tonight, begins the holiday of Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish New Year. On this day we are reminded that our diversity is our...
09/22/2025

Tonight, begins the holiday of Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish New Year. On this day we are reminded that our diversity is our true strength. Here at DDI, we wish all who celebrate a Happy New Year โ€“ L'Shanah Tovah.

โญDSP SPOTLIGHTโญ๐–๐ž ๐š๐ซ๐ž ๐ž๐ฑ๐œ๐ข๐ญ๐ž๐ ๐ญ๐จ ๐ข๐ง๐ญ๐ซ๐จ๐๐ฎ๐œ๐ž ๐๐š๐ณ๐š๐ซ๐ข๐จ, ๐ฐ๐ก๐จ ๐ฌ๐ก๐š๐ซ๐ž๐ฌ ๐ก๐ข๐ฌ ๐ฉ๐ž๐ซ๐ฌ๐จ๐ง๐š๐ฅ ๐ž๐ฑ๐ฉ๐ž๐ซ๐ข๐ž๐ง๐œ๐ž ๐›๐ž๐ข๐ง๐  ๐š ๐ƒ๐’๐.All the kids I consid...
09/22/2025

โญDSP SPOTLIGHTโญ

๐–๐ž ๐š๐ซ๐ž ๐ž๐ฑ๐œ๐ข๐ญ๐ž๐ ๐ญ๐จ ๐ข๐ง๐ญ๐ซ๐จ๐๐ฎ๐œ๐ž ๐๐š๐ณ๐š๐ซ๐ข๐จ, ๐ฐ๐ก๐จ ๐ฌ๐ก๐š๐ซ๐ž๐ฌ ๐ก๐ข๐ฌ ๐ฉ๐ž๐ซ๐ฌ๐จ๐ง๐š๐ฅ ๐ž๐ฑ๐ฉ๐ž๐ซ๐ข๐ž๐ง๐œ๐ž ๐›๐ž๐ข๐ง๐  ๐š ๐ƒ๐’๐.

All the kids I consider my family, my best friends, my children. I want to show them love the way I was shown love in my life. Personally, I was very shy when I started, but I have since become more outgoing. I know now that I can work with people with disabilities and that I have the skills to understand their needs.โ€ โ€”Nazario

๐ŸฉธSAVE THE DATE!๐ŸฉธJoin DDI and the New York Blood Center this October during Breast Cancer Awareness Month for our upcomin...
09/20/2025

๐ŸฉธSAVE THE DATE!๐Ÿฉธ

Join DDI and the New York Blood Center this October during Breast Cancer Awareness Month for our upcoming Blood Drive. Together we can save a life!

๐Ÿ—“๏ธDate: Tuesday, October 7, 2025
๐Ÿ“Location: 99 Hollywood Drive, Smithtown

โญDSP Spotlightโญ๐–๐ž ๐š๐ซ๐ž ๐ž๐ฑ๐œ๐ข๐ญ๐ž๐ ๐ญ๐จ ๐ข๐ง๐ญ๐ซ๐จ๐๐ฎ๐œ๐ž ๐‚๐š๐ข๐ญ๐ฅ๐ฒ๐ง, ๐ฐ๐ก๐จ ๐ฌ๐ก๐š๐ซ๐ž๐ฌ ๐ฐ๐ก๐š๐ญ ๐ฌ๐ก๐ž ๐ฅ๐จ๐ฏ๐ž๐ฌ ๐ฆ๐จ๐ฌ๐ญ ๐š๐›๐จ๐ฎ๐ญ ๐›๐ž๐ข๐ง๐  ๐š ๐ƒ๐’๐:"I love working wit...
09/19/2025

โญDSP Spotlightโญ

๐–๐ž ๐š๐ซ๐ž ๐ž๐ฑ๐œ๐ข๐ญ๐ž๐ ๐ญ๐จ ๐ข๐ง๐ญ๐ซ๐จ๐๐ฎ๐œ๐ž ๐‚๐š๐ข๐ญ๐ฅ๐ฒ๐ง, ๐ฐ๐ก๐จ ๐ฌ๐ก๐š๐ซ๐ž๐ฌ ๐ฐ๐ก๐š๐ญ ๐ฌ๐ก๐ž ๐ฅ๐จ๐ฏ๐ž๐ฌ ๐ฆ๐จ๐ฌ๐ญ ๐š๐›๐จ๐ฎ๐ญ ๐›๐ž๐ข๐ง๐  ๐š ๐ƒ๐’๐:

"I love working with people and have been caregiving most of my life. The freedom to explore and experience their potential alongside them is what I love most about working with people with disabilities. I am proud that I am able to teach people to communicate efficiently and watch them utilize the skills." โ€”Caitlyn

โญDSP SPOTLIGHTโญ๐–๐ž ๐š๐ซ๐ž ๐ก๐š๐ฉ๐ฉ๐ฒ ๐ญ๐จ ๐ข๐ง๐ญ๐ซ๐จ๐๐ฎ๐œ๐ž ๐๐š๐ง๐ค๐จ๐ฅ๐ž ๐š๐ฌ ๐ก๐ž ๐ฌ๐ก๐š๐ซ๐ž๐ฌ ๐ฐ๐ก๐š๐ญ ๐ก๐ž ๐ฅ๐จ๐ฏ๐ž๐ฌ ๐š๐›๐จ๐ฎ๐ญ ๐›๐ž๐ข๐ง๐  ๐š ๐ƒ๐’๐.โ€œI like to help people wit...
09/18/2025

โญDSP SPOTLIGHTโญ

๐–๐ž ๐š๐ซ๐ž ๐ก๐š๐ฉ๐ฉ๐ฒ ๐ญ๐จ ๐ข๐ง๐ญ๐ซ๐จ๐๐ฎ๐œ๐ž ๐๐š๐ง๐ค๐จ๐ฅ๐ž ๐š๐ฌ ๐ก๐ž ๐ฌ๐ก๐š๐ซ๐ž๐ฌ ๐ฐ๐ก๐š๐ญ ๐ก๐ž ๐ฅ๐จ๐ฏ๐ž๐ฌ ๐š๐›๐จ๐ฎ๐ญ ๐›๐ž๐ข๐ง๐  ๐š ๐ƒ๐’๐.

โ€œI like to help people with disabilities. It is my passion to work with the people I supportโ€”putting smiles on their faces, helping them achieve their goals, and taking them out to enjoy community outings. I love it when someone achieves their goals independently after working on the goal with them for some time.โ€ โ€”Bankole

Please enjoy DDI's Agency News for September 2025. It's full of important updates, exciting highlights, and vivid pictur...
09/17/2025

Please enjoy DDI's Agency News for September 2025. It's full of important updates, exciting highlights, and vivid picturesโ€”all to help ensure the stays connected! Click โžก๏ธ https://bit.ly/46iuULk

Join us in wishing Simon a ๐Ÿฅณ"Happy Birthday!" He celebrated his special day with a basketball-themed dinner party filled...
09/16/2025

Join us in wishing Simon a ๐Ÿฅณ"Happy Birthday!" He celebrated his special day with a basketball-themed dinner party filled with many friends, laughter, singing and plenty of cake. The celebration truly was a slam dunk! ๐Ÿ€๐ŸŽ‚๐ŸŽต

Direct Support Professional (DSP) Recognition Week may be officially over, but at DDI, we believe our DSPs deserve to be...
09/15/2025

Direct Support Professional (DSP) Recognition Week may be officially over, but at DDI, we believe our DSPs deserve to be celebrated all the time. So, we're extending the week to keep the appreciation and recognition going! ๐ŸŽ‰

โญDSP Spotlightโญ

๐–๐žโ€™๐ซ๐ž ๐ž๐ฑ๐œ๐ข๐ญ๐ž๐ ๐ญ๐จ ๐ฌ๐ฉ๐จ๐ญ๐ฅ๐ข๐ ๐ก๐ญ ๐‹๐š๐ฎ๐ซ๐ž๐ง, ๐ฐ๐ก๐จ ๐ฌ๐ก๐š๐ซ๐ž๐ฌ ๐ฐ๐ก๐š๐ญ ๐ฌ๐ก๐ž ๐ก๐š๐ฌ ๐ฅ๐ž๐š๐ซ๐ง๐ž๐ ๐š๐ฌ ๐š ๐ƒ๐’๐:

"A small success that felt like a big win was when the person I support was able to accomplish what they worked on. It might seem like just a simple step to others, but for me, it showed growth, confidence and determination. Personally, I've become more patient, understanding and empathetic as I've learned to support others through their challenges and celebrate their progress.โ€ โ€”Lauren

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99 Hollywood Drive
Smithtown, NY
11787

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Our Story

Developmental Disabilities Institute (DDI) was founded in 1961, to address the special needs of children with Autism and other developmental disabilities, and provide therapeutic intervention. Today, DDI is a non-profit, multi-site agency serving over 1,500 children and adults with autism and related disorders, providing educational, residential, day habilitation and vocational services across Long Island, NY. DDIโ€™s educational, residential day habilitation and vocational offerings are as diverse as the people we serve. Due to this, we have grown to include 5 main campuses located in Smithtown, Huntington, Medford, Riverhead and Ronkonkoma, NY, as well as 30 residential and day habilitation sites.

Through almost 60 years of sustained effort, DDI has become widely known in our area. Today, we are the largest provider of services and programs for children and adults with autism on Long Island. The goal of our agency is to recognize the needs of each individual while maintaining the highest standards of teaching and training for our children, their families, and our staff. DDI prides itself on being in the forefront of the most effective methods in use today for the treatment of autism and related disorders.

Our Purpose: โ€œWe help children and adults with autism and other developmental disabilities experience personal growth and fulfillment.โ€