San Jose's public school system is really several: San Jose Unified covers a central band of the city for grades K-12, while East Side Union High School District — one of the largest high school districts in the state — serves the majority of the city's teenagers across eleven feeder elementary districts. This page covers both entry points, plus the regional center and state programs that fund evaluation and therapy, with a source for every fact.

Statewide programs, numbers, and rights are on the California page. This page adds the local entry points that are specific to San Jose (Santa Clara County).

Early intervention under 3: California Early Start

Children from birth to 36 months qualify for Early Start, California's early intervention system, through one of three paths: a developmental delay of at least 25 percent in one developmental area, an established risk condition of known cause, or a documented set of biomedical risk factors. A parent, relative, pediatrician, or child care provider can make the referral, and there's no charge for evaluation, assessment, or service coordination. San Andreas Regional Center coordinates most local Early Start services, though some cases route instead to a local education agency depending on the type of delay identified. State policy allows 45 days from referral for a service coordinator to be assigned, the evaluation completed, and a written family service plan produced. Turning 3 does not carry eligibility forward automatically; the family is reassessed under the separate, stricter Lanterman Act standard.

• California Early Start
• Referral phone: 800-515-BABY (800-515-2229) — statewide Early Start Babyline

New to early intervention? Read the plain-language guide first.

School districts and special education

State law puts a Child Find duty on every California school district: seek out, identify, and evaluate any student with a suspected disability, free of charge, from birth through age 21, under Education Code 56043. Your written referral starts the clock — 15 calendar days for the district's proposed assessment plan, at least 15 more days for your consent decision, and 60 calendar days from your signature for the district to finish testing and seat an IEP team if your child qualifies. State regulations make autism its own eligibility category, marked by a significant effect on communication and social interaction that typically shows up before a child turns three.

• San Jose Unified School District — covers a central portion of San Jose for grades K-12; general inquiries specialed@sjusd.org, (408) 535-6000
• East Side Union High School District — serves grades 9-12 across most of San Jose through eleven feeder elementary districts; publishes a 60-day post-consent assessment timeline; (408) 347-5000

IEP or 504 · If you disagree with the school

Evaluation and diagnosis pathways in San Jose

We have not yet verified a hospital or university evaluation program with public intake information in San Jose. That is a gap in our research, not a sign there is nothing here — and it does not stand between you and an evaluation. The school district evaluation above is free, and early intervention under 3 does not need a private diagnosis first.

How assessment works · What to do while you wait

Disability services and waivers: San Andreas Regional Center

San Andreas Regional Center is the entry point into California's Lanterman Act system for Santa Clara, Santa Cruz, San Benito, and Monterey counties, one of 21 regional centers statewide coordinating developmental-disability and Medicaid waiver services. Any person, 'regardless of age, cultural background, or income,' who is believed to have a developmental disability is encouraged to apply, in the center's own words. For a child 3 or older, eligibility requires one of five qualifying diagnoses — intellectual disability, cerebral palsy, epilepsy, autism, or a closely related condition — plus a 'substantial disability,' meaning significant limits in at least three of seven major life activities. State law sets initial intake at 15 working days from a request, with an eligibility decision due within 120 days, or 60 days where delay would risk a child's health, safety, or development.

• San Andreas Regional Center
• Phone: 408-374-9960

Local organizations that help San Jose families

We have not yet verified a local parent organization in San Jose. Statewide help still covers you: the California guide lists the federally funded parent center and the free disability rights organization for the whole state, and both take calls from families anywhere in California.

Documented waits and access notes

Wait times change. Each note below links to the public source it came from — confirm current status directly with the program.

• California's DDS estimates 292 Santa Clara County 8-year-olds were autistic and Lanterman-eligible in 2025, a 1.32 percent share of the county's roughly 22,135 children that age — below the 2.60 percent statewide average. (source)
• San Andreas Regional Center's FY 2024-2025 caseload included 8,300 autistic clients out of 17,581 total — a 47 percent share, several points below the statewide pattern where autism became the majority diagnostic category for the first time in 2024. (source)
• San Jose families with SB 946 coverage face no age cutoff and no yearly dollar limit on ABA — the mandate is open-ended on both fronts, tied instead to what is documented as medically necessary. (source)