Regional Center of the East Bay (RCEB): San Leandro, Concord

How do I reach the Regional Center of the East Bay?

What can RCEB pay for?

• Adaptive skills trainingA professional comes to your home and teaches daily skills one at a time, so your family member can do more alone.
• RespiteSomeone looks after your family member for a set number of hours, so you get a break. Your case manager can approve up to 40 hours a month.
• Behavior servicesA specialist coaches you and other caregivers on hard behavior. Insurance or Medi-Cal is used first.
• Day programsFor adults who have finished school, to build skills and get ready for work.
• Independent living skillsHelp for adults 18 and up who live, or want to live, in a place of their own.
• Social recreation and campActivities and camp, from age 3. Families pay for tickets and entry fees.
• TransportationRides to programs in the plan. For a child living at home, the family drives unless it shows in writing that it can’t.
• Child careHelp with child care for children under 13 whose parents work full time.

RCEB pays last. It buys a service only after other programs, like Medi-Cal, insurance or school, have been tried or can’t help.

Who qualifies for RCEB, and how do I apply?

Step by step

1. Reach intake.Call (510) 618-6122, email intakeoverthree@rceb.org, or send RCEB’s online inquiry. Give a phone number or email, or things slow down.
2. Meet an Assessment Counselor.RCEB sends an application by email or mail. The first intake meeting is within 15 working days, at your home or at RCEB.
3. RCEB decides.Testing is done within 120 days of that first meeting. RCEB sends a letter within 10 days of deciding.
4. Meet your case manager.If your family member qualifies, the first planning meeting is within 60 days.

More on who qualifies: our eligibility page.

Quick answers

How do I reach my RCEB case manager?

• Write, so there’s a record.Email your case manager, and put your family member’s full name in each message. Most RCEB staff emails are the first initial and last name, then @rceb.org. Ask your case manager to confirm theirs.
• No answer in 3 business days?RCEB says to email oncallcasemanager@rceb.org if your case manager or other staff haven’t replied within three business days.
• Can’t wait that long?RCEB doesn’t name a duty worker. Call the main line for your county, (510) 618-6100 or (925) 691-2300, and ask who is covering for your case manager.
• Ask for the CM Supervisor.Case managers report to a CM Supervisor, short for case manager supervisor. Ask your case manager or the front desk for that person’s name. The state’s guide that RCEB posts has a line to write it down.
• Keep a short log.Write down each call and email: the day, who you reached and what they said they’d do next.
• Want a different case manager?You can ask for one who fits your family better. The state’s guide on RCEB’s site says so. Under state law, a case manager stays on your file only if everyone agrees.

How do I get adaptive skills training through RCEB?

1. Email your case manager.Write that your family would like Aldera for adaptive skills training, with team@aldera.org copied. Here’s an email you can send. Name two or three daily skills that are hard right now.
2. A meeting within 30 days.The state’s guide on RCEB’s site says you can ask for a planning meeting any time, and it happens within 30 days.
3. Check the plan, then sign.Make sure adaptive skills training is written into the plan, or into the addendum that adds it, before you sign. Nothing starts until you do.
4. We come to your home.Once RCEB approves it, we meet your family member at home and set goals with you. The first visits show how many hours make sense.

The same guide says a copy of the plan comes within 45 days of asking, in your language.

How do I get copies of RCEB records?

• Fill out RCEB’s form.Use RCEB’s Release of Information form, in English and Spanish. Email it with a copy of your photo ID to ROIrequests@rceb.org.
• About 3 business days.RCEB says to allow up to three business days for copies once it has your written request. The copies come by email.
• Need them for IHSS?RCEB’s evaluation can show why your child needs protective supervision, the IHSS hours for a child who can’t safely be left alone. If you care for your child yourself, read how a parent can be paid as the IHSS provider.

How do I get school support in Alameda and Contra Costa counties?

1. Put it in writing.Ask for a special education assessment in a short, dated letter or email, and keep a copy. Each district below says where to send it.
2. An assessment plan in 15 days.The district has 15 days from your request to send a plan. School breaks of more than 5 school days don’t count.
3. 60 days once you sign.Your signature on the plan starts a 60-day clock for testing and the first IEP meeting.
4. Bring your case manager.Ask your case manager to join the IEP meeting, and bring RCEB’s reports. Anyone who knows your child can come too.
5. Getting close to 3?At least 90 days before the third birthday, you, RCEB and the district meet to plan the move to preschool.

Special education offices in the East Bay

• Oakland UnifiedAsk at your school’s main office, or ask the principal or resource specialist. Special Education: (510) 879-5003 or specialeducation@ousd.org. For ages 2 years 8 months to almost 5, the Early Childhood Evaluation Center serves Oakland families at (510) 879-5013.
• Fremont UnifiedTalk to your principal. The school’s Student Study Team meets within 15 days of your referral, and you can still ask for an assessment in writing. For a child in private school, call Special Education at (510) 659-2569.
• Hayward UnifiedSpecial Education Services: (510) 784-2611 or Specialed@husd.us. For preschool, email prekspedreferrals@husd.us or call (510) 784-2600, ext. 72611.
• Berkeley UnifiedFill out the district’s referral form and give it to your principal, counselor or special education teacher. Special Education: (510) 644-6210. Preschool requests go to prek-busd-intake@berkeley.net.
• Mt. Diablo UnifiedSpecial Education: (925) 682-8000, ext. 40423. The district says it returns calls within 24 to 48 hours. For a preschool assessment, register at the District Enrollment Center, or call (925) 685-1960 with questions.
• West Contra Costa UnifiedCall special education intake at (510) 307-4630, then press 4. The district runs its own special education plan, so its office handles every step.
• Antioch and other Contra Costa districtsMost of the county’s smaller districts, Antioch included, share the Contra Costa SELPA office at (925) 827-0949. San Ramon Valley Unified has its own office, at (925) 552-2004.

Every district follows the same state timelines. In Alameda, Albany, Emeryville and Piedmont, the North Region SELPA answers at (510) 525-9806.

Where can East Bay parents find support?

• Alameda County: Family Resource Navigators.RCEB’s family resource center for Alameda County. Call (510) 547-7322 or email info@familyresourcenavigators.org.
• Contra Costa County: CARE Parent Network.The family resource center for Contra Costa County. Call (925) 313-0999 or email info@careparentnetwork.org.
• Parent groups at RCEB.RCEB lists groups for parents who speak Spanish, Vietnamese or Korean, and a monthly group for Black parents. See the list.