Advocates here work with Burbank families and Burbank Unified School District teams. Each profile lists a rate when the advocate shares one.
2 based in California · 3 virtual advocates who work with California schools
Advocates get hired after a meeting goes badly, rarely before the first one, which is why most of them start by reading a file that already carries a year of history in it.
Families in Burbank and El Cajon run into the same problem. The school says the current plan is working, and the progress report shows the same goal repeated from last year with the same numbers under it.
The meeting itself is the smallest part of the job. Nearly all the hours go into records and email before the Burbank team ever sits down.
Note what changed at home. Teachers see one room for one hour and parents see the rest of the day.
No advocate in this directory lists Burbank as their home base. These advocates work from other parts of California, and each card names the city.
Based in San Diego, CA
Special Education Advocate
At the Sanford Autism Advocacy Group (SAAG), we are a small but mighty special education consulting group with an emphasis on Autism and IEPs.
Based in Los Angeles, CA
Strategic Special Education Advocate
I combine the precision of a Columbia Law attorney with over a decade of special education leadership to help Los Angeles families navigate the IEP process with clarity, confidence, and results.
These advocates are not based in California. They join IEP meetings by video or phone, which IDEA allows when you and the school agree.
Virtual · based in Hialeah, FL · works with California schools
Advocate
I look forward to helping families and their students get the crucial support they need. I have varied experience working with families and educators at the state and local levels.
Virtual · based in Arlington Heights, IL · works with California schools
Special Education Advocate
I am a former special education teacher, with experience in public and therapeutic day schools.
Virtual · based in Buford, GA · works with California schools
Georgia Special Education & IEP Advocate
Dr. Mary Jo Ray-Jewett is the owner and lead advocate of The IEP Guru, LLC, providing special education advocacy throughout Georgia.
See all 29 virtual advocates who work with California families
Burbank Unified School District runs the IEP meetings for most Burbank students, and its special education staff will be on the other side of the table when you walk in.
Parents in El Cajon face the same paperwork. Rules do not change from one town to the next inside a state.
Confirm your child's district by address before you send a letter or name a district-specific process.
Once you sign consent for testing, a California district has 60 days to finish an initial evaluation, and that clock does not stop because a case manager is out or the file went to the wrong building.
Put the request in writing and date it. An email to the Burbank school counts as writing.
California gives a school district 60 days to finish an initial special education evaluation. A written request for an evaluation has to be answered inside 15 days. Missed deadlines are handled by the California Department of Education, Special Education Division, which takes written state complaints from parents.
The California Department of Education oversees special education in California. It does not license the advocates parents hire.
Ask what training the advocate actually finished and who ran it. A one-day webinar and a two-year program both end in a certificate.
Advocates do not decide complaints. The California Department of Education does, and only after someone files one in writing.
Burbank Unified School District is allowed to say no. What it is not allowed to do is say no without written notice that explains the reason.
Being listed for California is not the same as taking Burbank cases, so read the service area on each of the 2 in-state profiles before you write to anyone.
Ask whether the advocate has sat in a Burbank Unified School District meeting before. The answer is a yes or a no and it tells you a great deal.
Answers about hiring a special education advocate in Burbank, California, including cost, timing, virtual support, and Section 504 help.
What do special education advocates charge in Burbank, California?
Most advocates on this directory charge $75 to $150 per hour. A standard cycle with two hours of prep and two hours in the meeting runs about $400. Travel and extra meetings cost more.
What is the difference between an IEP advocate and a special education attorney?
An advocate is not a lawyer and cannot give legal advice or file a lawsuit. What an advocate can do is build the written record a lawyer would need later.
Who runs special education for Burbank schools?
Most of the city sits inside Burbank Unified School District. The district writes the plan and holds the special education budget, which is why a complaint about a missed service names the district and not the school.
What is the difference between an IEP and a 504 plan?
An IEP provides specialized instruction and related services under IDEA. A 504 plan provides accommodations under a civil rights law and does not require specialized instruction. Eligibility rules differ, so a child can qualify for one and not the other.
What documents does an advocate need from me?
Bring the current IEP or 504 plan, the most recent evaluation report, the last two progress reports and any email where the school said no. An advocate who has those before the call can tell you what is missing in ten minutes.
Official California links for parents in Burbank.
Last reviewed 2026-08-11.
The same California rules apply in El Cajon, Vacaville, Chico, Costa Mesa and the other cities listed here, or see every California advocate.
You are not limited to advocates inside Burbank. The closest listed office is in San Diego, and distance matters less than whether that person has worked a case in your district.
Keep a one-page timeline of what happened and when. Every advocate you talk to will start by building the same thing.
