Low-income African American parents have the potential of not being actively involved with the individualized educational planning for a child with special needs but specifically, one with autism spectrum disorders (ASD). This cohort of parents is particularly at risk of experiencing poor communication with, and disclosure from, the local education agencies arguably, because of poor access to resources associated with their socioeconomic status. The continued observation by researchers that low-income African American parents do not actively participate in the individualized education planning for a child with autism, suggests that the experiences of these parents in the process, specifically with communication and disclosure, need to be understood and mitigated. This generic qualitative research was conducted to document the subjective personal experiences in the IEP process, addressing the gap between parents and local education agencies through the lenses of communication and disclosure. Although the potential for parental participation exists, the response is limited. The population for the study was low-income African American parents who have children identified with autism who attend public schools. The sample of 10 low-income African American parents was diverse and had vast experience with the local education agencies in the individualized education planning process for a child with autism. The audio-recorded interviews were transcribed and inductively analyzed. A coding system was employed to note and synthesize relevant patterns and emergent themes. The analytical findings indicated that low-income African American parents experienced systemic intentional and unintentional barriers associated with communication and disclosure in the individualized education process. Poor, vague, or nonexistent communication and disclosure practices by local education agencies and professionals diminished the motivation of these parents to be actively involved in the process. Further studies may benefit from investigating the impact of a diagnosis or identification of a child with autism on the marriages of low-income African American parents. Considering the feelings of loss and grief expressed by most parents on receiving a diagnosis from a medical doctor or the identification of autism from school professionals, the effectiveness of the provision of counseling services, or the lack of it may also be a crucial area for further studies. [The dissertation citations contained here are published with the permission of ProQuest LLC. Further reproduction is prohibited without permission. Copies of dissertations may be obtained by Telephone (800) 1-800-521-0600. Web page: http://www.proquest.com/en-US/products/dissertations/individuals.shtml.]