Guide to Resources on Learning Differences
Disability Information and Referral Center

Basic Information

Before you contact any organization, make sure you know the following information:

1. Child's Name
2. Gender
3. Age
4. Current grade in school
5. Current type of school attending: public, private, or home schooling
6. Diagnosis (if there is one)
7. Your purpose for contacting each organization; Be specific

As you are contacting organizations, do the following:

1. Maintain a file of personal and professional observations of the child.
2. Keep a log of contacts. Include this information:
   a) the organization contacted
   b) time/date
   c) the specific person you communicated with
   d) either write a brief summary of the conversation or save the correspondence received.
3. Read books and articles on the topic.
4. Attend conferences when possible.
5. Subscribe to newsletters.
6. Network in person and online.

NOTE: The field of Learning Disabilities is very broad and constantly changing. The key is to find what methods and resources work best for your child/student.

Specialists in the Field

• Attorney: legal assistance ·
• Advocate: representation in legal issues ·
• Audiologist: diagnoses hearing loss ·
• Child psychiatrist: behavioral and emotional assessment and treatment; can prescribe medication ·
• Clinical psychologist: non-medical diagnosis and therapeutic treatment of behavioral and emotional problems ·
• Developmental behavioral pediatrician: diagnosis and treatment of developmental disorders; can prescribe medication ·
• Educational psychologist: prepares and conducts psychological and educational assessments ·
• Educational therapist: assesses educational needs and implements programs ·
• Neurologist: diagnosis and treatment of brain and nervous system problems; can prescribe medication ·
• Neuropsychologist: conducts psychological tests and assesses brain functioning ·
• Occupational therapist: provides assessment and treatment in the areas of muscle strength, motor or sensory coordination ·
• Pediatrician: primary care of children; can prescribe medication ·
• Social worker: counseling ·
• Speech and language therapist: assessment and treatment of communication disorders ·
• Tutor: provides academic assistance and support in one or more subject areas ·

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Basic Terminology

• Attention Deficit Disorder (ADD) - A severe difficulty in focusing and maintaining attention. Often leads to learning and behavior problems at home, school, and work. Also called Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD). ·
• Brain Injury - The physical damage to brain tissue or structure that occurs before, during, or after birth that is verified by EEG, MRI, CAT, or a similar examination, rather than by observation of performance. When caused by an accident, the damage may be called Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI). ·
• Developmental Aphasia - A severe language disorder that is presumed to be due to brain injury rather than because of a developmental delay in the normal acquisition of language. ·
• Dyscalculia - A severe difficulty in understanding and using symbols or functions needed for success in mathematics. ·
• Dysgraphia - A severe difficulty in producing handwriting that is legible and written at an age-appropriate speed. ·
• Dyslexia - A severe difficulty in understanding or using one or more areas of language, including listening, speaking, reading, writing, and spelling. ·
• Dysnomia - A marked difficulty in remembering names or recalling words needed for oral or written language. ·
• Dyspraxia - A severe difficulty in performing drawing, writing, buttoning, and other tasks requiring fine motor skill, or in sequencing the necessary movements. ·

Main National Organizations

Children and Adults with ADD (CHADD)
8181 Professional Place, Ste 150
Landover, MD 20785
800-233-4050 or 301-306-7070
301-306-7090 FAX
www.chadd.org

Council for Learning Disabilities (CLD)
11184 Antioch Rd, Box 405
Overland Park, KS 66210
913-491-1011 913-491-1012 FAX
www.cldinternational.org

Division for Learning Disabilities
Council for Exceptional Children
1110 North Glebe Rd, Ste 300
Arlington, VA 22201-5704
888-CEC-SPED or 703-620-3660
703-264-9494 FAX
www.teachingld.org

International Dyslexia Association (IDA)
40 York Rd, 4th Fl.
Baltimore, MD 21204
410-296-0232
410-321-5069 FAX
www.interdys.org

Learning Disabilities Association of America (LDA)
4156 Library Road
Pittsburgh, PA 15234-1349
412-341-1515 
412-344-0224 FAX
info@ldaamerica.org email
www.ldaamerica.org

National Center for Learning Disabilities (NCLD)
381 Park Avenue South Ste 1401
New York, NY 10016
888-575-7373 or 212-545-7510
212-545-9665 FAX
www.ld.org

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Disability-Centered National Organizations

American Speech-Language-Hearing Association (ASHA)
2200 Research Boulevard
Rockville, MD 20850
800-498-2071 For Members
800-638-8255 For Non-Members
www.asha.org

Council for Exceptional Children (CEC)
1110 North Glebe Road, Ste 300
Arlington, VA 22201-5704
703-620-3660 local or 888-CEC-SPED toll free
703-264-9494 FAX
www.cec.sped.org

TASK (Team of Advocates for Special Kids)
18685 Santa Ynez
Fountain Valley, CA 92708
714-962-6332

National Dissemination Center for Children With Disabilities (NICHCY)
1825 Connecticut Ave NW, Ste 700
Washington, DC 20009
800-695-0285 
202-884-8441 FAX
nichcy@aed.org email
www.nichcy.org

Recording for the Blind and Dyslexic (RFB&D)
20 Roszel Road
Princeton, NJ 08540
866-RFBD-585 or 866-732-3585
www.rfbd.org

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Education-Centered National Organizations

American Library Association (ALA)
50 E. Huron St
Chicago, IL 60611
800-545-2433
library@ala.org email
www.ala.org

Association of Educational Therapists
11300 W. Olympic Blvd Ste 600
Los Angeles, CA 90064
800-286-4267
310-437-0585 FAX
aet@aetonline.org email
www.aetonline.org

Association on Higher Education and Disability (AHEAD)
University of Massachusetts, Boston
107 Commerce Center Dr., Ste 204
Huntersville, NC 280780
704-947-7779
704-948-7779 FAX
ahead@ahead.org
www.ahead.org

HEATH
The George Washington University
2134 G. St., NW
Washington, D.C. 20052
202 - 973 - 0904 or 1-800-544-3284
202 - 973 - 0908 FAX
askheath@gwu.edu
www.heath.gwu.edu

Inclusion
Dr. Sandra Alper, Department Head:
Department of Special Education,
University of Northern Iowa,
Cedar Falls, IA 50614
319-273-6061
sandra.alper@uni.edu email
www.uni.edu/coe/inclusion

National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC)
1313 L. St, NW, Ste 500
Washington, DC 20005
202-232-8777 or 800-424-2460
naecy@naeyc.org email
www.naeyc.org

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Law-Centered National Organizations

American Bar Association (ABA)
Child Advocacy and Protection Center
740 15th Street, NW
Washington, DC 20005
202-662-1000
www.abanet.org/home.html

Consortium for Appropriate Dispute Resolution (CADRE)
P.O. Box 51360
Eugene, OR 97405-0906
3411-A Willamette Street
Eugene, OR 97405-5122
541-686-5060 phone  541-686-5063 FAX
www.directionservice.org/cadre

Disability Rights Education and
Defense Fund (DREDF)
2212 Sixth Street
Berkeley, CA 94710
800-348-4232 or 510-644-2555
510-841-8645 FAX
info@dredf.org  email
www.dredf.org

CBI (In Child’s Best Interest)
130 Cindy Lou Dr
San Antonio TX 78249
210-834-3807
dlladvocate@aol.com

National Council of Juvenile and
Family Court Judges
P.O. Box 8970
Reno, NV 89507
775-784-6012
www.ncjfcj.org/content/view/20/94/

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Parent-Centered National Organizations

Families and Advocates Partnerships for Education (FAPE)
PACER Center
8161 Normandale Boulevard
Minneapolis, MN 55437-1044
952-838-9000
952-838-0199 FAX
fape@fape.org email
www.fape.org

National Parent Teacher Association
541 N Fairbanks Court
Ste 1300
Chicago, IL 60611
800-307-4782
312-670-6783 FAX
www.pta.org

National Parent to Parent Support and Information System
Kathleen Judd, Project Director
PO Box 907
Blue Ridge, GA 30513
800-651-1151 or 706-632-8822
706-632-8830 FAX
judd103w@wonder.em.cdc.gov email

PACER (Parent Advocacy Coalition for Educational Rights)
8161 Normandale Blvd.
Bloomington, Minnesota 55437
952-838-9000
952-838-0199 FAX
pacer@pacer.org
www.pacer.org

Parents of GT/LD Children
2420 Eccleston Street
Silver Spring, MD 20902
301-986-1422

NOTE: Use these national organizations both for acquiring general resources on Learning Disabilities and for locating local resources.

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Local contacts can also be found in the following section:

State/Local Organizations

Academic Language Therapy Association
14070 Proton Rd, Ste 100, LB 9
Dallas, TX 75244
972-233-9107 X201 or toll free 1-866-283-7133
972-490-4219 FAX
helpline@altaread.org email
www.altaread.org

Children and Adults with ADD (CHADD): www.chadd.org
Austin: meets at Rosedale Elementary, 2nd Tues of the month, 7-8:30 pm during AIDS calendar school year
Brazos Valley (College Station) Satellite: 979-690-6816
Concho Valley: 325-718-9852  Dallas Metro: 214-339-2047
Ellis County: 972-880-6380
Frisco: 214-325-9330
Kaufman Branch of Dallas TX: 972-524-3378
Mid-County: 409-223-3636
NE Tarrant County: meets first Thursday of the month, from Sept – May, Whites Chapel United Methodist Church at 7 pm
North Texas: 972-406-1833 

Cognitive Clinic
3724 Jefferson St., Ste 204
Austin, TX 78731
512-453-1344
thecogclinic@worldnet.att.net

Council for Learning Disabilities (CLD) Regional Chapter
www.cldinternational.org/
President Elizabeth Swanson
University of Texas
easwanson@utexas.edu

Dallas Dyslexia Information Group
Contact: Bob Brooks: 214-351-1985
Meetings are held the second Monday of the month except for December. The Group meets at: The Winston School, 5707 Royal Lane, Dallas TX 75229, 214-691-6950

International Dyslexia Association Texas Chapters
www.interdys.org/jsp/branch/texas.jsp

Austin
Sharon McMichael
A.A.B.I.D.A
P.O. Box 92604
Austin, TX 78709-2604
512-452-7658
 www.austinida.org

Dallas
Anna Burton
10470 Proton, Ste 100
Dallas, TX 75244
 972-233-9107 ext 222
 972-490-4219 FAX

Houston
P.O. Box 540504
Houston, TX 77254-0504 
832-282-7154 
info@houstonida.org email  www.houstonida.org
 
Learning Disabilities Association of Texas (LDAT)
1011 W 31st St
Austin, TX 78705
800-604-7500 or 512-458-8234
contact@LDAT.org email
www.LDAT.org

LDAT has local offices in the following cities. Please contact the Austin office for information:

Coppell
Dallas (Park Cities)
Greenville (Sabine Valley)

Richardson
Sugar Land (Ft. Bend)

Listening Centre
14330 Midway, Bldg 2, Ste 202
Dallas, TX 75244
214-404-8152

Statewide PTI Projects (Parent Training Information Centers)
http://www.tea.state.tx.us/special.ed/explansaf/ptic.html
1) PATH Project
Serving:  Regions 5 (Beaumont), 6 (Huntsville), 7 (Kilgore), 8 (Mt. Pleasant), 9 (Wichita Falls), 10 (Richardson), 11 (Fort Worth), 12 (Waco), and 13 (Austin)
Alice Robertson, Project Director
1090 Longfellow Drive
Beaumont, TX 77760
409-898-4684  or Toll-free: 800-866-4726
409-898-4869 Fax
partnersresource@sbcglobal.net

2) TEAM Project
Serving:  Regions 1 (Edinburg), 2 (Corpus Christi), 3 (Victoria), 4 (Houston), and 20 (San Antonio)
Jeanetta Alexander, Project Director
3311 Richmond, Ste. 334
Houston, TX 77098
713-524-2147 Office or Toll free: 877-832-8945
713-942-7135 Fax
partnersteam@sbcglobal.net

3) West Texas PEN Project
Serving:  Regions 14 (Abilene), 15 (San Angelo), 16 (Amarillo), 17 (Lubbock), 18 (Midland), and 19 (El Paso)
Jon Howell, Project Director
1001 Main Street, Suite 804
Lubbock, TX 79401
806-762-1434 Office or Toll free: 877-762-1435
806-762-1628 Fax
 wtxpen@sbcglobal.net

Scottish Rite Learning Center of Austin
12871 Research Blvd
Austin, TX 78750
512-472-1231  
512-326-1877 FAX
www.scottishritelearningcenter.org
Scottish Rite has other facilities in Texas:
Learning Center of West Texas (Lubbock): 806-765-9150

Speech Kids
301 Hesters Crossing Rd, Ste 110
Round Rock, TX 78681
512-828-3072
speechkids@sbcglobal.net

Texas Department of State Health Services
Audiovisual Library
1100 W. 49th St.
Austin, TX  78756-3199
1-888-963-7111 ext. 7260 or 512-458-7260
avlibrary@dshs.state.tx.us
www.tdh.state.tx.us/avlib

Texas Education Agency (TEA)
Special Education Section
1701 N Congress Ave
Austin, TX 78701
512-463-9734
Parent Information Line: 1-800-252-9668
www.tea.state.tx.us/special.ed

Texas Rehabilitation Commission (TRC)
Department of Assistive and Rehabilitative Services (DARS)
4800 N. Lamar Blvd., 3rd FL
Austin, TX 78756
800-628-5115
www.dars.state.tx.us/drs/index.shtml
DARS has many offices throughout the state.
         
Other State/Local Resources For Information:
  211/First Call for Help
  Schools/Colleges/Universities
  Public Libraries
  Doctors
  Neighborhood Literacy Programs

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Texas Private Schools

Arlington
          Gateway School: 817-226-6222
Austin
          Odyssey School: 512-472-2262
          Rawson-Saunders School: 512-476-8382
Carrollton
          Newfound School: 214-390-1749
          St. Anthony's: 972-245-4147
Dallas
          Dallas Academy: 214-324-1481, www.dallas-academy.com
          Fairhill School: 972-233-1026
          Hillier School: 214-559-5363
          Keystone Academy: 972-250-4455
          Oakhill Academy: 214-368-0664
          Preston Hollow: 214-368-3886
          Shelton School: 972-774-1772, www.shelton.org
          Vanguard School: 972-404-1616
          Winston School: 214-691-6950, www.winston-school.org
Fort Worth
          Child Study Center School: 817-390-2831
          Hill School: 817-923-9482, www.hillschool.org
          Key School: 817-446-3738, www.thekeyschool.com
Learning Center of North Texas: 817-336-0808,
                    www.thelearningcenterofnt.org
          Starpoint Schools at TCU: 817-257-7141
          Wedgwood Academy: 817-263-2976
Houston
          Briarwood School: 281-493-1070
          Monarch School: 713-479-0800, www.monarchschool.org
Ingram
          Star Ranch School: 512-367-4868 (added 4-17-08)
Kemah
Tullis Farm School &Puppet Place: 281-334-6615,
www.tullisfarmschool.org
Longview
          Crisman Preparatory School: 903-758-9741
Mesquite
          Meadowview School: 972-289-1831
Plano
          Great Lakes Academy: 972-517-7498
          Star Bright Academy: 972-517-6730
Richardson
          Highland Academy: 972-238-7567
San Antonio
          Winston School: 210-342-5345

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Funding Information

Types of Funding:
Scholarships: criteria based, usually by type of disability, field of study, or state of residence
Financial aid: need based
Loans: usually must be repaid with interest
Payment plans: monthly installments used for repayment

Specific Resources:
FACTS Tuition Management: payment plans
P.O. Box 67037, Lincoln, NE 68506, 800-624-7092
www.factstuition.com

Smart Tuition Management Services: payment plans
95 Wall Street, Ste 2300, NY, NY, 10005, 888-868-8828,
www.smarttuition.com

Education Resources Institute (TERI): loans
PO Box 312, Boston, MA 02116, 800-255-8374
www.teri.org

Educate: www.wachovia.com: loans
Tuition Pay/Sallie may Corporation
PO Box 816
Swansea, MA 02777
800-635-0120
info@tuitionpay.com
www.tuitionpay.com

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Specific Programs:

Anne & Matt Harbison Scholarship
P. Buckley Moss Society
540-943-5678
society@mosssociety.org email
www.mosssociety.org
For a graduating senior with a Learning Disability who plans to attend college. Nominations must be made through a representative of the Moss Society. At this time there are no Moss Society chapters in Texas.

Anne Ford Scholarship
National Center for Learning Disabilities, Inc.
381 Park Avenue South, Suite 1401
New York, NY 10016-8806
212-545-9665 FAX
For a graduating senior with LD with plans to attend college

Learning Through Listening Award
Recording for the Blind and Dyslexic
20 Roszel Road
Princeton, NJ 08540
609-453-0606
www.rfbd.org

SLM Financial's K-12 Family Education LoanSM
Sallie Mae Alternative Education Loans
888-2-SALLIE (72-5543), www.slmeducationloans.com
Loan programs for approved K-12 private schools

PrepGate K-12 Education Loan
888-353-GATE (4283), www.prepgate.com
Loan programs for approved K-12 private schools

Wells Fargo Education Connection
800-658-3557, www.wellsfargo.com/student/loans/undergrad/education
Loan programs for K-12 schools

CitiAssist K-12 Loan
1-800-967-2400, studentloan.citibank.com/slcsite/fr_k12.thm
Loan programs for K-12 schools

Children's Scholarship Fund
8 W. 38th Street, 9th floor
New York, NY 10018
212-515-7100
www.scholarshipfund.org
Provides partial tuition assistance for low-income families to send their children to private schools.

Some General sources

Center for Education Reform:
www.edreform.com
Information on Scholarships:
Collegeboard.com
EStudentLoan.com
Finaid.org
Privateschool.about.com
School counselors
Special education teachers

Websites

Education Resources Information Center (ERIC): www.eric.ed.gov
Internet Special Education Resources (ISER): www.iser.com/index.shtml
LD Resources: www.ldresources.com
Literacy and Learning Disabilities Special Collections: ldlink.coe.utk.edu
Public Libraries Learning Disabilities Initiative: www.ala.org/roads
Schwab:www.greatschools.net/

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Assistive Technology Resources

NOTE: Please contact the Disability Information and Referral Center (DIRC), a service provided by the Talking Book Program (TBP), for more information on assistive technology resources and on learning disabilities. TBP is a free lending library that provides recreational reading materials in alternative formats for qualified individuals in Texas who cannot read standard print or physically hold a book.

Disability Information and Referral Center (DIRC)
Talking Book Program (TBP)
PO Box 12927
Austin TX 78711-2927
1-800-252-9605
512-463-5458
512-936-0685 FAX
tbp.services@tsl.state.tx.us

Learning Difference Guide in PDF

If you do not have the Adobe Acrobat reader installed on your computer, you must first download it and install it on your own computer before you can print out the PDF version of the Talking Book Program application.

Follow these links to download a free copy of Adobe Acrobat Reader:

Get Acrobat Reader

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updated 06/2009

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