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Legal Aid for Children’s Health and Safety (LACHS)

Access to education, benefits, and healthcare are fundamental to the well-being of all children, particularly those in low-income families. Lone Star Legal Aid is dedicated to making these necessities accessible for youth across East Texas.

Lone Star Legal Aid is proud to receive a grant from the Texas Access to Justice Foundation aimed at advancing children’s well-being in regions across Texas. LSLA will offer education services, ensuring children have the support they need to thrive academically. A second initiative will expand LSLA’s Medical Legal Partnerships and address critical issues related to children’s health and security, including access to much-needed benefits.

 

Services We Offer:

Education Services

In Anderson, Angelina, Cherokee, Gregg, Hardin, Harrison, Henderson, Jasper, Jefferson, Nacogdoches, Newton, Orange, Panola, Rains, Rusk, Sabine, San Augustine, Shelby, Smith, Tyler, Upshur, Van Zandt, and Wood counties, Legal Aid for Children’s Health and Safety (LACHS) can help with the following:

  • Requests for Independent Educational Evaluations
  • Denials of school enrollment and special education services
  • Guidance and representation in Admission, Review and Dismissal (ARD) meetings, mediation, and due process hearings
  • Development of Individual Educational Plans
  • Administrative complaints, appeals, and litigation under the Disabilities Education Improvement Act, the Americans with Disabilities Act, Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, and other state and federal law
  • Complaints to the Texas Education Agency and the Office of Civil Rights, U.S. Department of Education
  • Guidance and representation in sanctions, hearings, and appeals related to truancy, disruption of classes, suspensions, expulsions, alternative education school placement, and other school-based disciplinary action
  • Youth aging out of foster care

Other counties in Texas will be reached by our collaborative partners Disability Rights Texas and Legal Aid of Northwest Texas.

Access to Benefits/Medical Legal Partnership

In Austin, Brazoria, Chambers, Colorado, Fort Bend, Galveston, Harris, Liberty, Matagorda, Montgomery, Walker, Waller and Wharton counties, Legal Aid for Children’s Health and Safety (LACHS) can help with:

  • Guardianships
  • Safety (protective orders and custody arrangements)
  • Access to health care and public benefits
  • Disability rights
  • Educational access
  • School discipline matters
  • Juvenile matters
  • Foster care matters
  • Employment
  • Housing
  • Other legal needs benefiting children and the families that care for them

Other counties in Texas will be reached by our collaborative partner Texas Legal Services Center.

DISCLAIMER: Even if you are not in the counties specified by this project/initiative, we may still be able to assist you with the same type of legal aid services. We encourage anyone in need of legal assistance to apply for our services.

About Texas Access to Justice Foundation

The Texas Access to Justice Foundation, established by the Supreme Court of Texas in 1984, serves as the primary state-based funding source for civil legal aid in Texas. Committed to the vision of ensuring equal access to justice for all Texans, regardless of their income, the Foundation administers funds to support nonprofit organizations providing legal aid to approximately 100,000 Texas families annually. For more information, visit www.teajf.org.