AZA United Opens New North Valley Center

Families seeking autism evaluations and specialized support often face a frustrating reality. Demand is high and wait times can be long—especially for adolescents and adults who face additional barriers to care. 

That’s why AZA United is expanding in the North Valley with a new North Valley Center in Glendale, designed to increase access to best-practice diagnostic evaluations and mental health services, while also helping grow Arizona’s future clinician workforce through university training partnerships. 

Below, we’re answering some of the most common questions we’ve received about the North Valley Center—what it will offer, who it will serve, and how it supports AZA United’s mission to help as many families as possible with individualized supports. 

Q: What is the North Valley Center, and what services will it offer? 

A: The North Valley Center is AZA United’s newest location in the North Valley, expanding access to high-demand autism services—especially diagnostic evaluations and mental health supports.

• Services at the center will include: 
• Comprehensive diagnostic evaluations for individuals of all ages 
• Re-evaluations and second opinions 
• Coordinated support from Family Support Specialists 
• Individual and family counseling 

In addition, the center will create more space for group-based supports and trainings that help individuals and families navigate next steps. 

 

Q: How will the North Valley Center affect wait times for diagnostic evaluations? 

A: Our goal is to significantly reduce wait times for diagnostic evaluations. Based on current projections, we estimate that wait times could be reduced by about 50% in the first year of operations. 

This expansion is also intended to help AZA United begin chipping away at the large number of families currently waiting for autism services. 

 

Q: Who will the center serve? 

A: While children will continue to be a major focus, adolescents and adults are particularly underserved when it comes to comprehensive developmental evaluations and specialized autism services and supports. 

The North Valley Center will provide space for: 

• Additional adolescent and adult evaluations 
• Social and life skills training 
• Parent training and support 
• Mental health therapy and group offerings 

 

Q: What makes AZA United’s evaluations different? 

A: AZA United’s evaluations and mental health services follow best practices designed specifically for individuals with developmental disabilities. 

A key part of this approach is conducting comprehensive evaluations for people of all ages and paying close attention to co-occurring conditions. Many diagnoses can share overlapping traits, and it’s important that evaluations look holistically—so families have a clear, accurate understanding and a plan forward. 

We also prioritize support before, during, and after the evaluation process—because an evaluation is not the finish line. It’s the beginning of a path that should help guide individuals and families toward autism services and supports that improve day-to-day functioning and quality of life. 

 

Q: How does the North Valley Center elevate the standard of care for Arizona’s autism community? 

A: The center expands access to best-practice evaluations and mental health services—and just as importantly, it helps AZA United increase capacity for the long term through formal training affiliations with Northern Arizona University and Midwestern University.  

These partnerships help create a pipeline of future psychologists who gain hands-on experience in developmental disability evaluation and care, an area where workforce shortages are especially significant.  

 

Q: What makes this training site unique? 

A: Most training environments focus only on young children or only up to age 18. The North Valley Center is designed to support inclusive training across the lifespan, helping trainees better understand how developmental disabilities can present differently in early childhood, adolescence, adulthood, and later life. 

The long-term vision is a comprehensive training center that supports multiple training levels (such as practicum students, interns, and post-doctoral residents), with the potential to expand to additional disciplines over time. 

 

Q: How does this help address Arizona’s clinician workforce gap? 

A: Arizona faces a major shortage in mental health care overall and an even larger shortage of clinicians experienced in developmental disabilities, particularly for adults seeking comprehensive evaluations. 

By training future psychologists early—while they’re still building their clinical confidence—AZA United aims to “demystify” this specialty area and encourage more clinicians to enter the developmental disability field after graduation. Over time, that means shorter wait times and better access to care for families seeking autism services. 

 

Q: Why Glendale and the North Valley? 

A: The North Valley was selected to make AZA United’s services and resources accessible to more families across the metro Phoenix area. 

With centers already serving other regions of the Valley, this location helps round out AZA United’s footprint—so families and providers in the North Valley can access autism services, including diagnostic, mental health services, and additional supports such as trainings and support groups. 

 

Q: What impact do you hope the new North Valley Center will have on the community? 

A: Simply put, we hope it helps us reach more individuals and families. And we hope families and partners continue to see AZA United as an organization that: 

• Puts clients and families first 
• Provides high-quality services that make a real difference day to day 
• Listens to the community and keeps evolving to meet what’s needed most 
• Stays focused on helping as many families as possible—and working with partners who share that goal 

AZA United is grateful to the individuals and partners who helped make the North Valley Center a reality, including the Virginia G. Piper Charitable Trust, Diane & Bruce Halle Foundation, The Board of Visitors, Thunderbirds Charities, Season for Sharing and The Abbett Family Foundation. 

Watch the North Valley Center Grand Opening Highlight Video & Interviews Here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oK88N-n65YM