Midland and the Permian Basin — Midland, Greenwood, and the surrounding Midland County communities — have real, credentialed help for kids with special needs, anchored by the Midland Children's Rehabilitation Center and the Scottish Rite dyslexia tradition of West Texas, with academic referral centers in Lubbock and Dallas a drive away. Your local districts — Midland ISD and Greenwood ISD — each run special education. Many Permian Basin families are bilingual (Spanish/English), so this page is built in both languages. This is the Permian Basin'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, Orton-Gillingham/CALT, COPAA, CCC-SLP, OTR-L, board-certification), never by reviews or who pays. In Texas your free front door is ECI (Early Childhood Intervention, birth–3) and your school district's evaluation and IEP for ages 3+. By law, once you give written consent, the district has 45 school days to complete the evaluation. 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 →
The only private school in West Texas providing year-round services to students with intellectual disabilities, autism, learning disabilities, and rare syndromes from age 3 through adulthood. Its Preschool-High School program is Cognia-accredited.
Midland ISD's Special Services department serves students ages 3 to 21 with specialized programs — autism support, behavior, and life-skills — within an inclusion model, and runs early-childhood special education for preschoolers. Greenwood ISD runs its own as well. In the Permian Basin the strongest specialized placements are most often within the public districts; insist on the right program through the ARD/IEP process.
The Scottish Rite Learning Center of West Texas — the region's premier dyslexia program, training therapists in the Take Flight curriculum written by Texas Scottish Rite — serves West Texas, the Panhandle, and Eastern New Mexico, including the Midland area. A trusted regional resource for evidence-based dyslexia therapy and therapist referrals.
The PEN Project — the Partners Resource Network parent training center serving West Texas (ESC Region 18, which includes Midland) — offers free help weighing options and pushing for the right program through the ARD/IEP process. Bilingual support is available; invaluable for Permian Basin families.
An independent college-prep school whose ESS program provides in-school intervention, academic language therapy (for dyslexia/reading), executive-function coaching, and classroom support for students with diagnosed learning differences.
A long-running Permian Basin nonprofit (since 1956) offering pediatric occupational, physical, and speech therapy plus structured dyslexia tutoring to children at no charge to families.
The local public school district's special-education arm provides IEP/504 services, dyslexia and reading intervention, autism supports, Child Find evaluations, and transition services across Midland campuses.
The state education service center serving Midland-area districts, offering autism, dyslexia, deaf/hard-of-hearing, early-childhood SPED evaluation guidance, and parent resources for special populations.
A BCBA-supervised applied-behavior-analysis provider serving children with autism in Midland through center-based, in-home, and school-based programming with no waitlist.
A center-based ABA provider delivering individualized, board-certified-behavior-analyst-supervised early intervention and social-skills programming for children with autism in Midland.
A small private school in the Permian Basin built specifically for students with dyslexia and related reading disabilities, using certified Orton-Gillingham multisensory instruction at low student-teacher ratios.
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.
The neighboring Odessa district serves roughly 3,000 students with disabilities across a continuum including speech, OT/PT, music therapy, counseling, and adaptive PE, with dedicated assistive-technology and autism assessment teams. Programs change year to year.
The state-funded education service center for the Permian Basin that supports special-education staff and families across Midland, Ector, and surrounding districts with training, dispute-resolution resources, and SPEDTex guidance. Programs and supports change year to year.
The patient-facing TTUHSC clinic in Midland provides psychological and autism evaluations for children: a caregiver intake interview, two testing visits, and a written results report. University/academic-medicine affiliated.
Galliant's Midland location offers autism diagnostic evaluations — including the ADOS-2 gold-standard observation tool — in person or via telehealth, then ABA therapy. A local diagnostic starting point in the Permian Basin; confirm the evaluating clinician's credentials (licensed psychologist or developmental pediatrician).
Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center in Lubbock — about two hours north and the region's academic medical hub, also home to the TTU Burkhart Center for autism — is the referral for complex autism, ADHD, and developmental evaluations beyond what's available locally in Midland. The academic referral for hard cases.
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 the Permian Basin, instead of trusting star ratings.
Texas law requires districts to screen students for dyslexia (kindergarten and first grade) and provide evidence-based, multisensory, structured-literacy intervention following the state Dyslexia Handbook — typically delivered by a Certified Academic Language Therapist (CALT). Midland ISD and Greenwood ISD must offer this free — request dyslexia screening and services in writing, and know your rights before paying for private tutoring.
Midland Children's Rehabilitation Center (MCRC), a 501(c)(3) serving the Permian Basin since 1956, provides dyslexia tutoring alongside therapy at no cost to families. A remarkable free, local option for structured-literacy reading help in Midland.
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.
Established Midland clinic founded in 1997 offering pediatric physical, occupational, and speech-language therapy delivered by licensed/certified clinicians in a purpose-built children's facility.
Locally owned Midland speech-language therapy practice serving children with communication difficulties through in-clinic and teletherapy services, staffed by certified speech-language pathologists.
Action Behavior Centers' Midland clinic provides BCBA-led applied behavior analysis for children with autism from 18 months to 13 years, with no-cost autism assessments (ADOS-2) on site — a credentialed local autism provider. Ask about BHCOE accreditation and your insurance coverage.
Speech, Language & Behavior provides pediatric speech-language therapy, occupational therapy, and ABA for children ages 0–18 under one roof in Midland — a credentialed local clinic. Confirm CCC-SLP for the speech therapist and OTR/L for the occupational therapist.
MCRC delivers occupational, physical, and speech therapy — plus aquatic and equine programs — for children with neurological, orthopedic, and developmental needs, at no cost to families regardless of ability to pay. A deep, coordinated, free local option in Midland.
The BHCOE directory lists accredited ABA providers across the Permian Basin, ASHA ProFind lists CCC-SLP speech therapists, and AOTA lists OTR/L occupational therapists — searchable by zip so families in Midland, Greenwood, or Odessa find the nearest credentialed clinician.
Midland Health (Midland Memorial Hospital) provides pediatric care in Midland — a strong local medical starting point for developmental concerns and referrals, with Texas Tech in Lubbock and Texas Scottish Rite in Dallas as the academic referrals for complex autism, ADHD, and developmental diagnoses.
For a formal developmental-behavioral evaluation beyond what's available in Midland, Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center in Lubbock is the region's academic referral — board-certified specialists for autism, ADHD, and complex developmental diagnoses.
The American Academy of Pediatrics' directory helps you find board-certified developmental-behavioral pediatricians serving West 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 West Texas — the field's real professional standard.
The PEN Project, part of Partners Resource Network (Texas's federally funded Parent Training and Information Center for West Texas), offers free help understanding your rights, evaluations, and the ARD/IEP process, with bilingual support. A respected 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.
MCRC has never charged families for services — occupational, physical, and speech therapy plus dyslexia tutoring and aquatic/equine programs, regardless of ability to pay. The single most generous free local resource for Permian Basin children with developmental needs.
For children birth to 3, Texas ECI provides developmental evaluations and early-intervention therapies on a sliding fee (no family is turned away for inability to pay) — the earliest, low-barrier place to start in the Permian Basin. Call 2-1-1 for your local ECI program.
The Scottish Rite Learning Center of West Texas, a charitable program of the Lubbock Scottish Rite, supports evidence-based dyslexia therapy and therapist training across West Texas including Midland — a low/no-cost path to Take Flight structured-literacy help.
The PEN Project offers free help understanding evaluations, IEPs, and your rights, with bilingual support — a no-cost first call for any Permian Basin family navigating special education.
For children birth to 3 with a developmental delay or disability, Texas ECI (run by Health & Human Services) provides free evaluation and early-intervention services — speech, occupational, and physical therapy, plus developmental and family support — delivered by a local contractor in the Permian Basin. The earliest, no-barrier place to start; call 2-1-1 to find your Midland-area ECI program.
Request a full individual evaluation (FIE) in writing from your district — Midland ISD or Greenwood ISD. In Texas the district must complete the evaluation within 45 school days of your written consent, then hold an ARD/IEP meeting to decide eligibility and services. This is the free legal route to an IEP under IDEA.
Texas's federally mandated protection & advocacy agency — free legal information and advocacy when a child's special-education rights are denied. A powerful free resource before you pay anyone.
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.
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How do I start the special-education process in Midland?
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 Midland?
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.