Texas Parent to Parent

We are super excited about our free 1-Day East Texas Conference coming up on June 20th in Tyler at the Douglas R. Mehling Center, Breckenridge Village! We are still hoping to find a few more speakers and exhibitors! We have extended the deadline for speakers: https://fs12.formsite.com/txp2porg/form56/index
Exhibitors Needed: https://fs12.formsite.com/txp2porg/form62/index

Living in/near East Texas and want to attend the conference? Register Here: https://fs12.formsite.com/txp2porg/form90/index

Exhibitor Registration has been extended for the Statewide Conference on July 17-18th in Georgetown at Southwestern University. We still have a few tables available so please register soon so we can get you in the program!

https://fs12.formsite.com/txp2porg/form21/index

School's out for summer?? And it is finally June, hot and humid! Let's catch up on our Summer Plans, and all the legislative/program advocacy opportunities coming up!

Monday, June 1st at Noon will be our Spanish speaking parent meeting with Dora & Alejandra!
To join the call IN SPANISH only: Register here:
https://us02web.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZUld-qqrz8uHd3IUO9YiP7_3k2B7jGqdxO0 #/registration

Also on Monday evening, June 1st will be our Advocacy Evening with Linda and Amy Litzinger at 7:30pm. See the previous post but there is a lot happening that we need to raise our voices about! https://us06web.zoom.us/meeting/register/tJwrcuGsqT8iHdyQLFDRoXKZ2JwaURu7R-In

And finally our English parent support group will meet Wednesday, June 3rd from 11am-1pm with Patty, Greta, Dora and Alejandra! Come and take a few minutes to connect, share and learn from each other!
https://us02web.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZAvc-ytqzMvGdeVS9Pdy0DbXWkuW58cUyik

An Advocacy Update!

Greetings Advocates!
Many of us have been preparing for Monday's House Special Education hearing. We will have a quick zoom on Sunday night at 7:30pm for any remaining questions. Here is the zoom code: https://us06web.zoom.us/j/81464393197
The entire invitation with phone numbers is at the bottom.

Here is the hearing announcement: https://capitol.texas.gov/tlodocs/89R/schedules/pdf/C4002026060110001.PDF
You will notice that the public can come and testify OR upload their thoughts from afar, OR do both in case you don't get to say it all in such short amount of time.

If you are coming, here are driving and parking instructions, starting from I-35 and 12th street.
From I-35 and 12th Street, drive west three blocks.
After passing Trinity Street, there is a pink stucco garage to your right, called "Capitol Public Parking".
Take a ticket as you enter, and park.
The walking exit is on the southwest corner of the building.
Walk a block west to the Capitol.

The hearing room is not in the Capitol, so turn right and walk to the back driveway.
Enter the Regan building, finding room 140.
Note that if you have an accessibility placard or plates, you can park at a meter for free and not have to use the garage.

Once you are on the Capitol wifi (no code is needed) go here to sign in for the hearing: http://hwrs.house.texas.gov/
If you are not sure which category you want to sign in for, do all three. We can talk more about this on our call.

The three categories are:
1. HB2 will be about the budget and what changes you think are necessary.

2. Teacher recruitment and retention will be about any gaps you know of.
They are also asking about the new discipline policy, and many other things.

3. Investment in Special Education will be about:
Low incidence disabilities that need more focus. Cortical Vision, Braille, and many others. Any topic you can think of that is about special education.

If you want more time to talk, then register for all three and make your issue be about funding, teachers, and investment in students.

The whole zoom invitation for Sunday at 7:30pm:

Topic: Q&A for Monday's special education hearing during the Txp2p Advocacy Evening.
Join Zoom Meeting
Time: May 31st at 7:30pm
https://us06web.zoom.us/j/81464393197

Meeting chat link
https://us06web.zoom.us/launch/jc/81464393197

Join instructions
https://us06web.zoom.us/meetings/81464393197/invitations?signature=xtpazy4eNvK7Lyr1EU5lJTc6BtfGh0XQRBUnv_TbEQA

🌷Greetings advocates!

On Monday at 10:00am, there is a hearing focused on Special Education.
https://capitol.texas.gov/tlodocs/89R/schedules/pdf/C4002026060110001.PDF
You can watch it here: https://house.texas.gov/video-audio/

The House has a portal so that you can write in your thoughts!
https://comments.house.texas.gov/home?c=c400
Send them in from now, and up until the end of the hearing.

There are three areas to leave comments:
1. HB2 would be about the budget and what changes you think are necessary.
2. Teacher recruitment and retention will be about any gaps you know of. They are also asking about the new discipline policy, and many other things.

3. Investment in Special Education will be about:
Low incidence disabilities that need more focus. Cortical Vision, Braille, and many others. Anything you can think of!

Put in anything that is on your mind. This is our chance to answer an open question without travel.

I am about to announce two zoom times to call in to ask me questions about this rare event: Thursday at 7:30 and Sunday at 7:30pm.

Let me know if you are interested.
Best regards,
🌷Linda Litzinger, [email protected]

Are you a parent, self-advocate, or family member of someone with a disability? Your experiences matter. Share them in our survey.

To learn more about our research project, please visit raisingtexasvoices.org

We are super excited to have had so many families signing up so far for the 21st Annual Txp2p Statewide Parent Conference in Georgetown on July 17th-18th!

Parents & Professional Registration Information--READ FIRST:https://www.txp2p.org/Media/files/2026-Statewide-Conf-Packet-english-FINAL.pdf

Once you have read about the conference, then sign up here:
https://fs12.formsite.com/txp2porg/w7lo8ewnol/index

We still have a few Sponsor Opportunities available!
https://www.txp2p.org/donate/conference-sponsors/state-conference-sponsor-signup

And some Exhibitor tables remain and we would love to have you attend and meet all our amazing families:
https://fs12.formsite.com/txp2porg/form21/index

We want to wish everyone a very restful and peace-filled Memorial Day weekend! Due to the holiday, two of our Parent support groups, Spanish parent meeting on Monday and the English parent meeting on Wednesday are off.

But the Advocacy staff are meeting with folks interested in preparing for an extremely important Special Education Hearing on June 1st. We need to discuss uploading comments on the portal and more.

The Advocacy Evening with Linda & Amy Litzinger will be Monday, May 25th at 7:30pm
Register Here: https://us06web.zoom.us/meeting/register/tJwrcuGsqT8iHdyQLFDRoXKZ2JwaURu7R-In

Texas Parent to Parent is returning to Tyler, Texas, in partnership with the Northeast Texas Public Health District, to host a FREE one-day conference for parents, self-advocates, family members, educators, service providers, and community members interested in topics related to children with disabilities, chronic and mental health conditions, and other healthcare needs.

We are thrilled to announce that registration is now open for the 8th Annual East Texas Parent Conference! The conference will be held on Saturday, June 20, 2026, at the Douglas R. Mehling II Center at Breckenridge Village, located at 15062 CR 1145, Tyler, TX 75704. Lunch and free childcare are provided.
Register Here: https://fs12.formsite.com/txp2porg/form90/index

Be an East Texas Parent Conference Sponsor: https://fs12.formsite.com/txp2porg/form56/index
Be an East Texas Parent Conference Exhibitor: https://fs12.formsite.com/txp2porg/form62/index

The Texas Governor’s Committee on People with Disabilities (GCPD), in collaboration with the Texas Department of Public Safety (DPS) and the Texas Department of Motor Vehicles (TxDMV), will host a live “Driving with Disability” webinar on May 19th, 2026, at 10:00 a.m. (CST), highlighting major developments in Texas’ first-of-its-kind statewide Driving with Disability program.

Register Here: https://txgov-us.zoomgov.com/webinar/register/WN_PsBTPBFrST6HHfAE-YlF4Q #/registration

Featured presentations will include:
• Updates to the redesigned Texas driver license and identification card
• Information on enrolling in the Driving with Disability program
• Driver education options and available accommodations
• New educational resources for families and individuals with disabilities
• Driving with Disability Training Resources: For Parents, Citizens, and Texas Law Enforcement
• Perspectives from Texans participating in the program

Attendees will hear from GCPD, DPS, TxDMV, Jennifer Allen and Samuel Allen regarding the continued expansion of accessibility and communication resources across Texas. The event will be held virtually via Zoom and is open to the public.