Child Find

Early Childhood Intervention (ECI) provides comprehensive early intervention services to families with infants and toddlers (birth through 36 months of age) who have a medical diagnosis, developmental delays or atypical development.  Early intervention services are provided as required by the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA), Part C as amended in 2004.  ECI supports families to help their children reach their potential through developmental services.  ECI provides evaluations and assessments to determine eligibility and need for services. 

Contact one of the following ECI programs available in Bexar County 

Note that students receiving services through ECI will be transitioned into the public school system starting as early as 120 days prior to their 3rd birthday.

Brighton Center
Brighton School ECI Program
14207 Higgins
San Antonio, TX 78217
Referral Number - (210) 826-4492   
Fax Number - (210) 826-7887
Email: ECIreferrals@brightonsa.org
Web: www.brightonsa.org

Center for Health Care Services
CHCS - ECI
5802 South Presa Street
San Antonio, TX 78223
Referral Number - (210) 261-3300   
Fax Number - (210) 532-6090
Email: zyzaguirre@chcsbc.org
Web: www.chcs-eci.org

Easter Seals Rehabilitation Center
Easter Seals Rehabilitation Center ECI
2203 Babcock Road
San Antonio, TX 78229
Referral Number - (210) 614-3911   
Fax Number - (210) 625-3162
Email: Linda.Tapia@easterseals-satx.org
Web: www.easterseals.com/sanantonio

Judson ISD’s Early Childhood Special Education (ECSE) provides specialized instruction and services to children ages 3 to 5 who have been identified with at least one disability as defined by TEA and who demonstrate a need for specialized instruction.

If you are the parent of a 3 to 5-year-old who is enrolled at a Judson ISD campus, please contact your child’s teacher or administrator to discuss the referral process.

For children attending Judson ISD campuses, information about services for children ages 5-21 is provided through your campus. Contact your child’s teacher or administrator to discuss the referral process. Parents have the right to request a special education evaluation at any time.

Campus Contact Information

I am moving to Judson ISD and my child has special education services through our current district. What is the enrollment process?

• All campuses in Judson ISD are equipped to provide a range of special education services. Some programs are clustered and may only be available at select campuses.
• Begin by enrolling your child at the home campus based on your address.
• Reach out to the campus to let them know your child receives special education services. If you are able to provide the most recent evaluation (Full and Individual Evaluation or FIE) and/or paperwork from the most recent IEP/ARD meeting, that would be very helpful.
• The staff at your child’s home campus will work to determine how Judson ISD can most closely align services to the most recent IEP recommendations from the last school. If a specialized classroom is required, but not available on the home campus, the campus will coordinate with parents to identify the closest available classroom and transportation will be available, if needed.

The districts' Child Find duties also include students with disabilities living within our district boundaries who are not attending public school. This includes access to evaluations (at no cost to the parent) as well as services available to students with disabilities attending private school or homeschool. For additional information, please call (210) 619-0354.

My child is homeschooled or attends a local private school. What services/ support are available?

• Proportionate Share is a program where a student can access a portion of the services indicated in their IEP (Individual Education Program) while continuing to access homeschool or private school. Please contact the Child Find Office for more information (210) 619-0354.

My child attends a charter school and we live within Judson ISD boundaries. What services/ support are available to us?

• Charter schools are public schools that receive federal funding. Special education services are addressed by charter school staff.

A student that experiences exclusionary discipline may have unidentified disabilities that impact their learning. Judson ISD will provide information to a student’s parents regarding the process for requesting a Full and Individual Initial Evaluation (FIIE) when the student is placed in a Disciplinary Alternative Education Program (DAEP) and as part of the student’s personalized transition plan when returning to campus from a DAEP.

Child Find is a process designed to help identify, locate, and evaluate individuals from birth through 21 years of age with suspected disabilities who may need special education services.

A referral for a special education evaluation may be initiated by school personnel, a student’s parents or legal guardian, or another person involved in the education or care of the student.

If a parent makes a written request for an initial evaluation for special education services to the director of special education services or to a district administrative employee of the school district, the district must respond no later than 15 school days after receiving the request. At that time, the district must give the parent prior written notice of whether it agrees or refuses to evaluate the student, along with a copy of the Notice of Procedural Safeguards. If the district agrees to evaluate the student, it must also give the parent the opportunity to give written consent for the evaluation.

A request for a special education evaluation may be made verbally; it does not need to be made in writing. Districts must still comply with all federal prior written notices and procedural safeguard requirements as well as the requirements for identifying, locating, and evaluating children who are suspected of having a disability and in need of special education services. However, a verbal request does not require the district to respond within the 15 school-day timeline.

If the district decides to evaluate the student, it must complete the student’s initial evaluation and evaluation report no later than 45 school days from the day it receives a parent’s written consent. However, if the student is absent from school during the evaluation period for three or more school days, the evaluation period will be extended by the number of school days equal to the number of school days that the student is absent. There is an exception to the 45-school-day timeline. If the district receives a parent’s consent for the initial evaluation at least 35 but less than 45 school days before the last instructional day of the school year. In this situation, the district must complete the written report and provide a copy of the report to the parents by June 30 of that year. However, if the student is absent from school for three or more days during the evaluation period, the June 30 due date no longer applies. Instead, the general timeline of 45 school days plus extensions for absences of three or more days will apply. Upon completing the evaluation, the district must give the parents a copy of the evaluation report at no cost.

The Individuals with Disabilities Act (IDEA) lists and defines thirteen disabilities:

• Autism
• Deaf or Hard of Hearing (birth to 21)
• Deaf-Blindness (birth through 21)
• Emotional Disturbance
• Intellectual Disability
• Multiple Disabilities
• Noncategorical Early Childhood (ages 3 through 5)
• Orthopedic Impairment
• Other Health Impairment
• Speech or Language Impairment
• Traumatic Brain Injury
• Visual Impairment (birth through 21)

Special Education eligibility is dependent on the student meeting the following two criteria:

(1) Does the child have a disability as defined by IDEA? The Full and Individual Evaluation (FIE) report addresses these seven areas:

• Language (Communication
• Physical (Motor Abilities, Health, Vision/Hearing)
• Sociological
• Emotional/Behavioral
• Intellectual/Adaptive Behavior
• Educational Learning Competencies (Academic Performance)
• The need for Assistive Technology (AT)

(2) Does the child need specially designed instruction as a result of his/her disability condition?

There must be a demonstrated need for adapting the content, methodology, or delivery of instruction as appropriate to address the need resulting from the disability and ensure access to the general curriculum so that the child can meet the educational standards that apply to all children. (34 CFR 300.26(b)(3))

The FIE determines whether state disability criteria are met. Eligibility for specially designed instruction as a result of the disability is determined by the ARD committee within 30 calendar days of the date of the FIE. An ARD meeting must be held at least once a year (Annual ARD); however, a review or an amendment can be held at any time if changes to the IEP are necessary.

Once the child begins receiving special education and related services, periodic reevaluations are required. A reevaluation is similar to the initial evaluation. The ARD committee will conduct a review of existing evaluation data (REED) to determine what additional data, if any, is needed to determine whether additions or modifications will be made to your child’s education and related services. The reevaluation must be comprehensive enough to determine whether your child continues to be a child with a disability and the educational needs of your child. Unless you and the school agree otherwise, a reevaluation of your child’s needs must be completed at least every three years. 

If the ARD committee decides that additional formal testing is not needed to determine whether your child continues to need special education and related services, the reason for this decision must be explained to you. After explaining the reasons why, the ARD committee has concluded that existing evaluation data is sufficient, the school does not have to conduct new formal testing to complete a required reevaluation, unless you request that the school do so.

As a parent, you can initiate a conversation about evaluation at any time and request that the ARD committee consider updated evaluations. If any member of the ARD committee suspects that an unidentified disability is present, an evaluation should be considered.

Each child’s individual needs will be addressed on an individualized basis by a team consisting of a local education agency representative, parent(s) or guardian(s), a person who can interpret the evaluation, teacher(s), and the student (if appropriate). The team will review evaluation information, discuss eligibility, identify areas of need for specialized instruction, including related services (such as occupational therapy, physical therapy, or counseling) and develop a plan to meet the needs of the child.