Built by a Family Who Lived This
SpectrumPathways exists because Joe and Leona Snyder spent years fighting a system that was supposed to help their son Cole — and decided no other family should have to figure it out alone.
§ 01 — The origin story
When Cole was diagnosed with autism at age 3, Joe and Leona thought the hard part was over. They had a name for what they were seeing. They had a path forward. What they didn't have was a map.
Ohio, where the Snyders were living then, has seven Medicaid HCBS waivers. Each has different eligibility rules, different agencies, different waitlists. The Snyders applied to the wrong one first. Then the right one — but missed a document deadline because nobody told them it existed. Then they got denied, and learned they had 30 days to appeal. They found out on day 28.
Leona started a binder. Joe started calling other parents. They discovered that every family was reinventing the same wheel — the same frantic Google searches at midnight, the same unanswered calls to state agencies, the same heartbreak of a missed deadline that pushes your child another year down the waitlist.
So they built what they wished existed: a platform that gives families the information, tools, and community they need to navigate the system — before the system buries them.
§ 02 — How we got here
Cole Snyder is diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder at age 3. Joe and Leona begin navigating Ohio's waiver system — seven waivers, 18-month waitlists, and zero clear answers.
After a denied application and a missed appeal deadline, Leona starts a binder system to track every document, call, and deadline. Other parents in their support group start asking for copies.
Joe starts recording conversations with parents, advocates and attorneys about waivers, IEPs and disability services — the interviews that became the knowledge base behind this product. The show is being prepared for public release.
The Snyders co-found Horizons of Hope Foundation, a California nonprofit pairing newly-diagnosed families with veteran caregivers. It received its IRS 501(c)(3) determination in March 2026 (EIN 33-3525422) and works with autistic adults and families on self-determination.
Joe and Leona partner with AI Venture Holdings to turn five years of hard-won knowledge into a platform. Every feature in SpectrumPathways exists because a real family needed it.
SpectrumPathways publishes A–F grades for all 50 states and DC, built from CMS Form 372, T-MSIS, KFF and state waiver filings — with every weight and every source disclosed on the methodology page.
§ 03 — The Waiver Way podcast
Joe Snyder records conversations with parents, advocates, attorneys, and policy experts who have been through the system. No jargon. No sugarcoating. Just the truth about what it takes to get your child what they need.
Where the show stands: episodes are recorded but not yet published to a public feed. When they are, they will live here with an RSS feed and a link from every state page — no episode is being counted as proof of anything until you can listen to it.
§ 04 — Horizons of Hope
When Leona got Cole's diagnosis, the most helpful thing wasn't a website or a government brochure — it was another parent who said “I've been where you are, and here's what I wish I'd known.” Horizons of Hope Foundation exists to make that connection routine. Joe serves as Executive Board President and Leona as Program Director.
The foundation is based in Chino, California and serves families across the Inland Valley, with a focus on California's Self-Determination Program. SpectrumPathways covers all 51 jurisdictions; the foundation is a separate nonprofit organization.
Having navigated two states' systems — Ohio's first, California's now — is a large part of why this product covers all fifty-one rather than one.
- Status
- 501(c)(3) public benefit corporation
- EIN
- 33-3525422
- IRS determination
- March 2026
Community features are coming to SpectrumPathways in 2026.
§ 05 — Team and advisors
Caregiver and community builder. Runs the 501(c)(3) that pairs newly-diagnosed families with veteran caregivers, and records The Waiver Way conversations with families, advocates and policy experts.
Built the family binder and practical workflow that inspired SpectrumPathways' document, deadline, and next-step tools.
Cole's journey keeps the product grounded in what families need at home, at school, and on the phone with agencies.
Partners with the Snyder family to turn public data, caregiver workflows, and responsible AI into a usable platform.
Medical, legal, and state policy advisors will be listed here only after roles and review scope are confirmed.
§ 06 — What we believe
Every feature is designed for a parent at 11pm with a phone, not a policy analyst with a spreadsheet.
We write at an 8th-grade reading level. If your grandmother can't understand it, we rewrite it.
Every grade traces to a named federal or state source, published with its vintage and refresh cycle. We show our work.
Free tier covers research. We will never gate crisis resources, hotlines, or the newly-diagnosed guide behind a paywall.
Ready to see what your state offers? Take the Compass Quiz or read the Newly Diagnosed Guide.
