Indianapolis and Marion County share a consolidated city-county government, but that consolidation never reached the school system — the county still contains Indianapolis Public Schools plus ten separate township school corporations, each running its own Child Find process depending on a family's exact address. Early intervention and disability-waiver services, meanwhile, are organized through statewide agencies with a dedicated Marion County office for each.

This guide lists those specific contacts: the regional early-intervention office covering Marion County, two of the county's many school districts, two Indianapolis-based autism evaluation clinics tied to the city's academic medical centers, and the Bureau of Disabilities Services office that opens Indiana's Medicaid waiver system.

Statewide programs, numbers, and rights are on the Indiana page. This page adds the local entry points that are specific to Indianapolis (Marion County).

Early intervention under 3: First Steps (Indiana's IDEA Part C system)

First Steps is Indiana's statewide early intervention system for children from birth to age 3 with a developmental delay or diagnosed condition, administered by the Family and Social Services Administration's Bureau of Child Development Services. Rather than one central office, the state is divided into nine regional System Point of Entry (SPOE) clusters, and Marion County — Indianapolis included — falls under Cluster G, run by the nonprofit ProKids, Inc. Anyone who knows the child, not just a parent or doctor, can make a confidential referral through the First Steps website or by calling Cluster G directly. Services are free to families and are built around coaching caregivers to support development through everyday routines, and the system hands off to school-based special education once a child turns 3.

• First Steps (Indiana's IDEA Part C system)
• Referral phone: 317-257-2229 (Cluster G, Marion County SPOE)

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

School districts and special education

Marion County's school system is unusually fragmented for a consolidated city-county government: Indianapolis Public Schools covers only part of the city, while ten township school corporations — Pike, Washington, Wayne, Lawrence, Warren, Perry, Franklin, Decatur, and others — each run Child Find independently for their own attendance areas. Indiana's Child Find duty, set out in state administrative code, requires every district to locate and evaluate students ages 3 to 22 who may need special education, and a family starts the process with a written or verbal request to their specific district.

• Indianapolis Public Schools — Special Education — 120 E. Walnut St, Indianapolis, IN 46204; 317-226-4000
• MSD Pike Township — Exceptional Learners — 6901 Zionsville Road, Indianapolis, IN 46268; district line 317-293-0393

IEP or 504 · If you disagree with the school

Evaluation and diagnosis pathways in Indianapolis

These are hospital and university programs with public intake information. Listing here is informational — it is not a recommendation, and it is not medical advice. Public school evaluation is free and does not require any of these.

• Riley Children's Health — Developmental Medicine — psychological evaluation for autism and related developmental, cognitive, and behavioral conditions, from infancy through age 22, with virtual consultation, virtual assessment, in-person, and interdisciplinary assessment options · the department states directly that psychological evaluations can involve a lengthy wait; referring providers fax a consultation request to 317-944-9760
• IU School of Medicine — Autism Spectrum and Developmental Disorders Outpatient Program — comprehensive autism evaluation combining parent interviews, structured observation, and standardized testing, plus ongoing treatment including ABA-based training, cognitive-behavioral therapy, and psychiatric medication management, for ages birth to 18 · 317-963-7288

How assessment works · What to do while you wait

Disability services and waivers: Indiana FSSA — Bureau of Disabilities Services, District 5

Indiana's Bureau of Disabilities Services (BDS), part of the Family and Social Services Administration, administers two Medicaid Home and Community-Based Services waivers for people with intellectual and developmental disabilities: the Family Supports Waiver and the more intensive Community Integration and Habilitation Waiver. Marion County is covered by BDS District 5, based in Indianapolis. A family applies either through the online BDS Gateway portal or a paper application (State Form 55068) submitted to the district office, and BDS's statewide help line can route a Marion County family to the right local contact and answer eligibility and waitlist questions before an application is filed.

• Indiana FSSA — Bureau of Disabilities Services, District 5
• Phone: 800-457-8283 (statewide BDS help line) · 800-545-7763 (BDS office locator)

Local organizations that help Indianapolis families

• HANDS in Autism — Indiana University's statewide autism training and resource center, based in Indianapolis; free toolkits, visual supports, and family/caregiver training
• Autism Society of Indiana — statewide nonprofit based in the Indianapolis metro (Carmel); direct-care support, sensory-friendly events, and family resources (800-609-8449)
• IN*SOURCE — Indiana's federally designated Parent Training and Information Center; one-on-one help navigating special education statewide (574-234-7101)
• Indiana Disability Rights — the state's federally designated protection-and-advocacy system, established 1977 (317-722-5555, toll-free 800-622-4845)
• Special Olympics Indiana — headquartered in Indianapolis; year-round sports across all 92 counties, including a Young Athletes program for younger children (317-328-2000)

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.

• Whichever Marion County corporation covers your address, Indiana rule sets the same clock: 50 instructional days from consent to complete testing and hold the case conference deciding eligibility. (source)
• Cluster G, run by ProKids for Marion County, is bound by the unextended federal Part C deadline — evaluation and the first IFSP meeting are due within 45 days of the referral reaching the office. (source)
• The Arc of Indiana's waiver update notes that Indiana's two HCBS waivers, Family Supports and Community Integration and Habilitation, filled to capacity in December 2025, with the state not expecting new openings before July 2026 — relevant to any Indianapolis family starting a District 5 application now. (source)