Greater Buffalo–Niagara covers Erie and Niagara counties and far more than downtown: Amherst, Cheektowaga, Tonawanda, West Seneca, Lancaster, Hamburg, and Niagara Falls. This directory is built so a family ANYWHERE in Western New York can find genuinely excellent help nearby, not just options clustered downtown. It's ranked by real credentials (ABPP, BHCOE, Orton-Gillingham/Wilson accreditation, COPAA, board-certification) — never by reviews or who pays. Start with the free New York options (Early Intervention is run by your county health department), then the best evaluators, schools, therapists, doctors, and advocates near you.
✓ Every provider here is vetted by credentials, never pay-to-play. How we choose →
Before a school will write an IEP, your child usually needs a professional evaluation — it's the gateway to everything else. A board-certified pediatric neuropsychologist or psychologist gives you the clearest picture of how your child learns, and the documentation a school can't wave away. These are the people who do it well near you.
The Neuropsychological Evaluation Clinic at Oishei Children's Hospital, with University at Buffalo / UBMD (Director Joy Parrish, PhD), provides comprehensive evaluation of children ages 4–18 with developmental and neurological disorders — learning disabilities, ADHD, and autism. WNY's leading academic pediatric program.
A board-certified neuropsychologist in private practice at DeGraff Hospital in North Tonawanda — comprehensive evaluation north of Buffalo, important coverage for Niagara-side and northern-suburb families. The credential to look for in a private evaluator.
A pediatric neuropsychologist in private practice in Amherst with 20+ years of experience — comprehensive neuropsychological evaluations for children and teens for learning disabilities, ADHD, and autism.
A multidisciplinary diagnostic and treatment center (led by Dr. Ted Andrews, MD/PhD) providing comprehensive psychological and developmental evaluations for learning disorders, ADHD, autism, and developmental disabilities — a strong option south of the city.
The American Board of Professional Psychology's directory lists clinicians who passed board certification in clinical neuropsychology — the credential to verify in any private evaluator (in Amherst, West Seneca, or Niagara Falls), instead of trusting star ratings.
Sometimes the right move is a school built for how your child actually learns — for dyslexia, autism, or developmental needs. Below are the accredited, NYSED-approved special-education schools serving the Buffalo region. And when the public setting truly can't meet your child's needs, the district can be required to fund one of these.
Just outside Buffalo in South Wales, The Gow School is a college-prep day and boarding school (grades 6–12) for students with dyslexia and language-based learning disabilities — founded in 1926 by Peter Gow with neurologist Dr. Samuel T. Orton himself, giving it deep Orton-Gillingham roots.
A New York State Education Department-approved private school, the Cantalician Center for Learning (Buffalo) serves students with autism, intellectual disabilities, Down syndrome, and multiple disabilities — drawing from Erie, Niagara, Cattaraugus, and Genesee counties.
WNY's leading autism-services provider — Summit Academy is a NASET-designated School of Excellence serving children with autism, communication disorders, and developmental disabilities from preschool through age 22, under the NYSED-overseen Summit Educational Resources.
A NYSED-approved special day school operated by Child & Family Services of Erie County, for students with special learning and social/emotional-behavioral needs — with four campuses across Buffalo, Tonawanda, Kenmore, and Cheektowaga.
A long-standing Western New York developmental-disability nonprofit with a purpose-built, fully accessible special-education campus serving children with intellectual and developmental disabilities (plus birth–3 early intervention).
A NYSED-approved program within the historic Baker Victory Services (Our Lady of Victory), serving children with serious emotional and behavioral challenges in Lackawanna.
A NYSED-approved day and residential special-education school for students with behavioral, social, and emotional challenges who need a highly structured setting; the founding agency dates to 1890.
Parent Network of WNY can help you compare additional Buffalo-area school options for dyslexia, autism, and learning differences at no cost — including district special-education programs and NYSED-approved private schools.
If reading is the struggle, the gold standard is structured, Orton-Gillingham–based instruction from a trained specialist — not generic tutoring. Here's where to find it near you, including a genuinely free option for families who need it.
Part of the Scottish Rite-supported national network, the Children's Dyslexia Centers operate in Western New York providing free, multi-year Orton-Gillingham tutoring by certified instructors — one of the best no-cost reading resources for families who can't afford private tutoring.
Jennifer Lynn Hoffman, M.Ed. (Elementary Education & Reading), is the founder of WNY Dyslexia Specialists — Barton Certified with 60 hours of Orton-Gillingham Associate-level training. Her Western New York team delivers structured-literacy dyslexia intervention and also trains other instructors across the Buffalo region.
UB's reading clinic provides diagnostic reading evaluations and one-on-one intensive tutoring (after-school, Saturday, and summer) — a respected, lower-cost university option.
A long-established WNY nonprofit; its Language to Literacy program delivers structured, hierarchical reading intervention — phonological awareness, phonics, and language-based reading — led by speech-language pathologists.
Orton-Gillingham multisensory literacy tutoring by New York State-certified teachers, focused on reading and writing development — in Depew, convenient to the eastern suburbs.
A well-credentialed local practice offering Orton-Gillingham, Wilson Reading System, and Barton instruction by a NYS-certified literacy specialist — serving Western New York by appointment.
The Academy's directory lists accredited Orton-Gillingham practitioners across Western New York — searchable by area so you can find one near Amherst, Tonawanda, or Niagara Falls. The gold-standard credential for a private dyslexia tutor.
A huge audiobook/highlighting library — free for students with a qualifying reading disability, so your child keeps up with grade-level books while they learn to decode.
Speech, occupational therapy, and ABA are the day-to-day supports that move the needle most. Look for the real credentials — CCC-SLP, OTR/L, and BHCOE-accredited ABA — rather than just the closest or loudest option.
A BHCOE-accredited ABA provider serving Buffalo, Amherst, Cheektowaga, West Seneca, and many WNY communities — research-based applied behavior analysis for autistic children, accredited for clinical quality rather than ad spend.
The Behavioral Health Center of Excellence directory lists accredited ABA providers across WNY (including Strides ABA and Double Care serving Amherst, Tonawanda, and Niagara Falls) — searchable by zip so families outside the city find the nearest accredited center.
Hearing & Speech of WNY (Cheektowaga / Buffalo area) is led by Mary Anne Furlani, MS, CCC-SLP (director) with Teresa Marioles, OTR/L (occupational therapy supervisor, 25+ years in pediatrics). Their team provides speech, hearing, feeding, motor, and sensory therapy for young children with speech, communication, and special-education needs.
Center-based applied behavior analysis for autistic children from a BHCOE-accredited national organization, with a Hamburg/Buffalo location serving the southtowns.
A pediatric rehab practice offering speech-language therapy, occupational and physical therapy, and audiology under one roof in Williamsville — credentialed CCC-SLP and OTR/L clinicians.
Pediatric occupational and physical therapy from a respected WNY rehab group, with dedicated pediatric sites in Williamsville and Hamburg.
A pediatric therapy practice in Hamburg providing speech-language, occupational, and physical therapy with a sensory and interactive-metronome focus.
A multidisciplinary pediatric practice in Orchard Park offering speech, occupational, and physical therapy plus psychology — serving Early Intervention, preschool, and private clients.
A pediatric speech-language practice led by CCC-SLP clinicians (gestalt/natural-language-acquisition trained), serving the Williamsville/Amherst area — contact for current location.
The American Speech-Language-Hearing Association's directory lists speech-language pathologists who hold the CCC-SLP — the national mark of a fully qualified clinician, searchable anywhere in WNY.
The American Occupational Therapy Association helps you find licensed occupational therapists (OTR/L) for sensory, fine-motor, and daily-living support — a credential to verify alongside speech and ABA care.
A formal diagnosis from a developmental-behavioral pediatrician opens doors to services, accommodations, and funding. These are the Western New York clinics and doctors who evaluate children for autism, ADHD, and developmental delay.
Oishei Children's Hospital (University at Buffalo) provides developmental-behavioral pediatric diagnosis and care for autism, ADHD, and developmental delay — board-certified specialists at Western New York's leading children's hospital. (ECMC's Pediatric Education & Diagnostic Services is another local evaluation option.)
Diagnostic evaluation and treatment of autism, ADHD, anxiety, and behavioral concerns in children, led by a licensed clinical psychologist — part of WNY’s leading autism-services organization.
Erie County Medical Center's PEDS program provides multidisciplinary developmental evaluations (cognitive, communication, social-emotional, motor, adaptive) for children birth–5 through New York's Early Intervention system.
The American Academy of Pediatrics' directory helps you find board-certified developmental-behavioral pediatricians across Western New York — the credential to verify for a formal autism or ADHD diagnosis.
When meetings get hard or the answers stop making sense, an advocate who knows the law levels the playing field. Below are vetted, credentialed advocates for the Buffalo area — including free advocacy you can use before you ever pay anyone.
The Council of Parent Attorneys and Advocates' directory lists active, vetted special-education advocates and attorneys serving Western New York — the field's real professional standard.
Beyond information, Parent Network's trained staff help you prepare for and understand IEP meetings at no cost — a respected free alternative to hiring a private advocate first.
The Legal Aid Bureau of Buffalo's Education Advocacy Program and Attorneys for Children unit represent children in special-education (IEP/504) and school-discipline matters — WNY's largest, oldest provider of free legal services to vulnerable families.
A nonprofit civil-legal organization whose School Discipline Project represents Buffalo-area students and families in suspension matters, Committee on Special Education (CSE) meetings, and appeals — free help when a child’s rights are on the line.
A full-service Buffalo firm with a dedicated Education team handling special-education matters — IEP programming, services, and disputes — for families who need legal representation.
A special-education practice serving the Buffalo area: IEP development, Section 504 plans, evaluation and classification disputes, discipline, and due-process matters.
A lot of the most important help is free — and yours by right. Start here: Early Intervention for the littlest kids (birth–3), your federally funded Parent Center, and New York's protection & advocacy agency. Many families never hear these exist.
For children birth to 3, New York's Early Intervention Program — run locally by the Erie County Department of Health ((716) 858-6161) and Niagara County for those families — provides free developmental evaluations and services (speech, OT, PT, developmental). The earliest, no-barrier place to start, wherever you live in WNY.
New York's federally mandated protection & advocacy agency — free legal information and advocacy when a child's special-education rights are denied, statewide. A powerful free resource before you pay anyone.
The Buffalo-based Parent Network of Western New York is the region's federally recognized parent center — free training, information, and individual assistance for families of children with disabilities, including the IEP/504 process. A great first call for WNY families.
Cost should never be the reason your child goes without — and free does not mean lesser. Many of these are university clinics and respected nonprofits, staffed by the same credentialed clinicians you would pay full price for elsewhere. Real evaluations and real therapy, on a sliding scale or completely free.
The University at Buffalo's Speech-Language & Hearing Clinic provides low-cost evaluation and therapy for children — including its 'Time to Talk' preschool program — delivered by graduate clinicians under licensed, ASHA-certified speech-language pathologists and audiologists.
SUNY Buffalo State's Speech-Language-Hearing Clinic offers affordable speech, language, and hearing services to the community — a second supervised university clinic option, convenient to the city and west side of the metro.
For children birth to 3, New York's Early Intervention Program (run by your county health department) provides free developmental evaluations and early-intervention therapies — the earliest, no-barrier place to start.
Every state runs free, official resources most parents are never told about. These are New York's — your Parent Center and the statewide disability-rights agency — and they cost nothing to call.
Federally funded and free — they help New York families understand their rights, the IEP/504 process, evaluations, and meetings. A great first call.
New York's protection & advocacy agency — free legal-rights information and help if your child's rights are being denied.
When you’re ready, an expert can review your child’s IEP and build your plan. See how it works →
Everything above is free. When you want more, see exactly what we offer — it starts with a free first reply, no pressure.
See everything we offer →How do I start the special-education process in Buffalo?
Put your request in writing to your child's school, asking for a full special-education evaluation — that is the legal first step. On A New Story you'll find a free, ready-to-send evaluation-request letter you can use today.
How long does a special-education evaluation take?
Once you give written consent, the school generally must complete the evaluation and hold an eligibility meeting within a set timeline (often around 60 days, though it varies by state). Putting your request in writing starts the clock.
Can my school district pay for a private special-education school?
Sometimes. If the public school can't provide an appropriate education, the district can be required to fund a state-approved nonpublic placement. It isn't automatic — it takes the right evaluation and advocacy — but families do it every year, including ones with limited funds.
What's the difference between an IEP and a 504 plan?
An IEP provides specialized instruction and services under IDEA; a 504 plan provides accommodations under civil-rights law. A New Story's free guides walk you through which one fits your child.
Where can I find free special-education help in Buffalo?
A New Story lists credential-vetted schools, evaluators, therapists, advocates, and the free public programs and parent centers in New York — searchable by ZIP, and free forever.