The purpose of this study was to develop a family-centered art therapy program and evaluate its effectiveness in improving the communication skills and social adjustment of students with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD). This research employed a quasi-experimental design with a pre-test, post-test, and control group. The statistical population was comprised of all male and female students aged 7–12 with ASD in Jam County, Bushehr Province, during the 2022–2023 academic year. A sample of 30 students was selected via purposive sampling and randomly assigned to an experimental group (n=15) and a control group (n=15). Initially, all participants were assessed using the Rimland and Edelson Autism Treatment Evaluation Checklist (1999) to measure baseline communication skills and social adjustment (pre-test). Participants in the experimental group, accompanied by their mothers, attended 11 sessions of the family-centered art therapy program, while the control group received no intervention. Following the program, the same assessment checklist was completed for both groups (post-test). Analysis of covariance (ANCOVA) using SPSS version 24 indicated that the family-centered art therapy program had a statistically significant positive effect on improving the communication skills and social adjustment of students with ASD (P < 0.01). Consequently, this family-centered art therapy program serves as an effective evidence-based intervention for enhancing the social and communicative functioning of children with autism.