Central Texas — Killeen, Temple, Belton, Harker Heights, Copperas Cove, and the rest of Bell and Coryell counties — is home to Fort Cavazos (formerly Fort Hood), so many families here are military, and the area has solid, credentialed help for kids with special needs, anchored by Baylor Scott & White McLane Children's. If you're a military family, the Army's Exceptional Family Member Program (EFMP) and TRICARE (which covers ABA through the Autism Care Demonstration) are key — and your IDEA special-education rights at your local public school are the same as any family's. Your local districts — Killeen ISD, Temple ISD, Belton ISD, and Copperas Cove ISD — each run special education. This is Central Texas's own yellow pages of the best, most relevant help — named experts and clinics where we can verify them, ranked by real credentials (ABPP, BHCOE, CALT/Orton-Gillingham, COPAA, CCC-SLP, OTR-L, board-certification), never by reviews or who pays. In Texas your free front door is Early Childhood Intervention (ECI) for birth–3 and your school district's Full Individual Evaluation (FIE) for ages 3+ — Texas requires the FIE within 45 school days of your signed consent. Start there, then the best evaluators, schools, reading specialists, therapists, doctors, and advocates near you.
✓ Every provider here is vetted by credentials, never pay-to-play. How we choose →
Nonprofit private school in Killeen serving pre-K through age 21 students who are neurodivergent (about 89% on the autism spectrum), with curriculum aligned to the Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills (TEKS) and accreditation through the Texas Education Agency. Small class sizes, hands-on instruction, and on-site therapies for students with autism, dyslexia, ADHD, Down syndrome, and other learning disabilities.
Each Central Texas district (Killeen ISD, Temple ISD, Belton ISD, Copperas Cove ISD) runs specialized classrooms, autism units, life-skills, and a continuum of placements — confirm your district and ask what specialized options can meet your child's needs.
Texas requires every district to provide dyslexia services and a continuum of special-education placements; the TEA explains your rights and the specialized programs (autism units, resource, life-skills) your district must consider.
A searchable directory for comparing Central Texas private and special-education school options by location, grades, and program — useful if you're seeking a specialized placement.
Nonprofit private K-12 school in Killeen built for exceptional learners, with integrated therapy, a 14-student class cap, and a student body that is roughly three-quarters children on the autism spectrum.
A Cognia-accredited, TEFA-approved private microschool in Killeen serving PreK through 6th grade in small inclusive classrooms with individualized, STEM-forward instruction for developmentally and physically challenged students.
The Killeen ISD special education department provides a full continuum of individualized services, including self-contained autism programs across designated campus locations and dyslexia/reading intervention.
Temple ISD's special education department delivers individualized disability services for resident students and operates a Regional Day School Program for the Deaf alongside autism and dyslexia supports.
A specialized Waco center for students K-8 with dyslexia and related language-based disabilities, delivering evidence-based multisensory programs (Take Flight, BUILD, Turbo Start, Jet) in a low student-teacher ratio.
A licensed ABA provider with clinics in both Killeen and Temple offering individualized behavioral therapy and an Early Start program for young children with autism and developmental delays.
A Killeen ABA therapy center providing individualized, evidence-based programs that build communication, life, and social skills for children diagnosed with autism.
A free, open-enrollment PreK-12 public charter in Waco drawing from Central Texas districts, with a dedicated Special Populations department, small class sizes, and a 98%+ graduation rate.
The Texas regional service center for Bell, McLennan and surrounding counties, providing autism, dyslexia, deaf/hard-of-hearing and behavior technical assistance to the districts serving Killeen, Temple and the wider area.
These public schools and programs have a solid track record in special education — but we don’t re-check them every year. Staff, leadership, and programs change from building to building and year to year. Treat this as a strong starting point, and confirm the current fit for your child.
Temple ISD offers free special-education services including a Non-Categorical Early Childhood program for ages 3-5 and structured dyslexia therapy using the Scottish Rite Take Flight Orton-Gillingham curriculum delivered by Certified Academic Language Therapists. Programs change year to year; verify current services with the district.
Belton ISD serves students in Belton and parts of the metro with free special-education and related services, evaluation, and dyslexia intervention under IDEA. Programs change year to year; confirm current eligibility and placements directly with the district.
Private-pay autism assessment practice serving Killeen, Fort Cavazos, Harker Heights, Copperas Cove and surrounding Central Texas, using clinical interviewing, norm-referenced measures, behavioral observation, and developmental history for children, teens, and adults. Individualized, strength-based diagnostic evaluations.
Baylor Scott & White McLane Children's Child Development team evaluates children birth to age 6 for autism and developmental and behavioral conditions, working with psychologists, speech and occupational therapists, and ABA — Central Texas's premier academic diagnostic home, in Temple.
McLane Children's Killeen clinic brings pediatric specialty care closer to Fort Cavazos families — the local medical home for developmental concerns and referrals into McLane's developmental and autism evaluation services.
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 across Central Texas, instead of trusting star ratings.
Texas law requires your district to screen for and provide dyslexia intervention — Killeen ISD, Temple ISD, and the others have dyslexia services using trained therapists. Request a dyslexia evaluation in writing if your child struggles with reading; it's a free service many families don't know to ask for.
Texas is a national leader in dyslexia therapy: Certified Academic Language Therapists (CALT) and Licensed Dyslexia Therapists (LDT) deliver structured-literacy (Orton-Gillingham-based) intervention. The Academic Language Therapy Association directory lists them near Killeen, Temple, and Harker Heights — the gold-standard dyslexia credential.
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.
ABA therapy provider serving the Killeen metro including Harker Heights and Fort Cavazos, where Board Certified Behavior Analysts (BCBAs) assess each child and build individualized treatment plans delivered by trained Registered Behavior Technicians (RBTs). Focus on building skills and independence for children with autism.
Pediatric therapy clinic in Harker Heights and Salado offering one-on-one occupational, speech-language, physical, and ABA therapy for children birth to 17, with an OT team that is AEIOU-certified in feeding therapy and NDT-certified for neuromotor and sensory-processing needs.
ABA therapy provider serving Killeen, Temple, Waco, and Lampasas, delivering individualized, evidence-based behavior programs supervised by Board Certified Behavior Analysts (BCBAs) for children with autism.
Action Behavior Centers provides center-based applied behavior analysis for children with autism in the Killeen/Harker Heights area, works with TRICARE (important for Fort Cavazos families), and carries BHCOE accreditation — the real quality marker for ABA.
Elite Therapy Center provides pediatric speech, occupational, and physical therapy with clinics in Harker Heights, Killeen, and Temple — licensed and nationally certified (CCC-SLP, OTR/L) clinicians serving Central Texas.
Care Options for Kids provides pediatric speech, occupational, and physical therapy in Killeen with licensed and nationally certified clinicians — a coordinated local option for communication, motor, and developmental needs.
The BHCOE directory lists accredited ABA providers across Bell County (many TRICARE-friendly for military families), ASHA ProFind lists CCC-SLP speech therapists, and AOTA lists OTR/L occupational therapists — searchable by zip so families in Temple, Belton, or Copperas Cove find the nearest.
McLane Children's developmental-behavioral pediatricians and child-development specialists diagnose and help manage autism, ADHD, intellectual disability, and complex developmental conditions — Central Texas's premier academic developmental-medicine team.
The American Academy of Pediatrics' directory helps you find board-certified developmental-behavioral pediatricians serving Central Texas — the credential to verify for a formal autism or ADHD diagnosis.
The Council of Parent Attorneys and Advocates' directory lists active, vetted special-education advocates and attorneys serving Central Texas — the field's real professional standard.
Partners Resource Network runs Texas's federally funded Parent Training and Information Centers — free help understanding your rights, evaluations, and the IEP/ARD process, with experience supporting military families. A respected statewide free resource before hiring a private advocate.
Texas's protection & advocacy agency offers free legal information and advocacy for special-education rights — a no-cost first stop before hiring a private advocate or attorney.
For Fort Cavazos military families, EFMP provides free enrollment, family support, and systems navigation to make sure your child's medical and educational needs are documented and supported through PCS moves — pair it with your IDEA rights at the local school.
Legal Aid of NorthWest Texas provides free civil legal help to income-eligible families across the Killeen/Temple area — a no-cost route to legal assistance, including some education and benefits matters.
Texas law requires your district to screen for and provide dyslexia intervention at no cost — request a dyslexia evaluation in writing if your child struggles with reading.
For children birth to 3, Texas ECI (Childteam / Central Counties Services) provides free developmental evaluations and early-intervention therapies — the earliest, no-barrier place to start in the Killeen/Temple area.
For children birth to 3 with a delay or disability, Texas ECI provides free evaluation and early-intervention services (speech, OT, PT, developmental) — delivered locally by Childteam and Central Counties Services (254-773-6787) across Bell, Coryell, Hamilton, Lampasas, and Milam counties. The earliest, no-barrier place to start.
At age 3, request a special-education evaluation in writing from your district — Killeen ISD, Temple ISD, Belton ISD, or Copperas Cove ISD. Texas requires the Full Individual Evaluation (FIE) be completed within 45 school days of your signed consent. Military families: your child has the same IDEA rights at the public school regardless of PCS moves. This is the free legal route to an IEP.
For military families, Fort Cavazos's Exceptional Family Member Program (EFMP) provides enrollment, support, and care coordination, and TRICARE covers ABA therapy for autism through the Autism Care Demonstration. EFMP does not replace your child's IDEA rights at the local public school — use both.
Federally funded and free — they help Texas families understand their rights, the IEP/504 process, evaluations, and meetings. A great first call.
Texas'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 →
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How do I start the special-education process in Killeen & Temple?
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 Killeen & Temple?
A New Story lists credential-vetted schools, evaluators, therapists, advocates, and the free public programs and parent centers in Texas — searchable by ZIP, and free forever.