Special education and Section 504 advocates for Poudre School District R-1 families in Fort Collins.
1 based in Colorado · 3 virtual advocates who work with Colorado 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 Fort Collins and Aurora 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 Fort Collins team ever sits down.
Read the evaluation report twice. The second read is where the missing service usually shows up.
No advocate in this directory lists Fort Collins as their home base. These advocates work from other parts of Colorado, and each card names the city.
Based in Lamar, CO
Special Education Advocate
I’ve been a science teacher, a Director of Financial Aid, and a Dean of Students at a rural community college — always at the table with students and families navigating systems not built for them.
These advocates are not based in Colorado. They join IEP meetings by video or phone, which IDEA allows when you and the school agree.
Virtual · based in Cumming, GA · works with Colorado schools
Founder
I’m Russell Lloyd, founder of YourChild.org, author, mentor, and special education advocate. I review the record, find the gaps, build the strategy, prepare the parent, and lead IEP meetings.
Virtual · based in Midland, TX · works with Colorado schools
Special Education Advocate
Kate Keenan is a special education advocate serving families in Midland, TX.
Virtual · based in Kansas City, MO · works with Colorado schools
Navigate Special Education with Clarity and Confidence - Guiding Families. Building Futures.
Dr. Diane is a special education advocate and founder of Steppingstone Services, LLC. She holds a Ph.D.
See all 25 virtual advocates who work with Colorado families
Poudre School District R-1 runs the IEP meetings for most Fort Collins students, and its special education staff will be on the other side of the table when you walk in.
Parents in Aurora 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.
No Colorado deadline applies to a written evaluation request. Federal rules still require a response within a reasonable time.
Write down what you want the school to add, in one page, before you walk into the Fort Collins meeting, because a team that reads your list in advance cannot pretend it never came up.
Colorado gives a school district 60 calendar days to finish an initial special education evaluation. No Colorado rule sets a separate deadline for answering a written request, so the federal reasonable-time standard is what applies. Missed deadlines are handled by the Colorado Department of Education, Office of Special Education, which takes written state complaints from parents.
No state license exists for special education advocacy. No federal agency issues one either, and no exam stands between a person and the title.
Check the references and not the letters after the name. Two calls to past clients settle it faster than any credential list.
Advocates do not decide complaints. The Colorado Department of Education does, and only after someone files one in writing.
You sign, not the advocate. Consent and the plan itself both need a parent signature.
Being listed for Colorado is not the same as taking Fort Collins cases, so read the service area on each of the 1 in-state profiles before you write to anyone.
Experience with Poudre School District R-1 matters more than the number of years printed on a profile page.
Answers about hiring a special education advocate in Fort Collins, Colorado, including cost, timing, virtual support, and Section 504 help.
What do special education advocates charge in Fort Collins, Colorado?
Rates run $75 to $250 per hour. What moves the number is experience, the type of case, and whether anyone has to drive to the meeting. Profiles here show the rate when the advocate publishes one.
Do I need an advocate for a routine annual review?
Most parents call after a school says no to testing, after goals repeat unchanged for a year, or a week before an annual review. Earlier is cheaper. An advocate hired the night before a meeting can only read so much.
Who runs special education for Fort Collins schools?
Most of the city sits inside Poudre School District R-1. 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.
Are there free IEP advocates in Fort Collins?
No public program assigns you a private advocate. The links under official resources on this page go to the state agency and to the complaint process, and both cost nothing to use.
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.
Official Colorado links for parents in Fort Collins.
Last reviewed 2026-08-11.
The same Colorado rules apply in Aurora, Lakewood, Colorado Springs, Thornton and the other cities listed here, or see every Colorado advocate.
Send the same two questions to every advocate you contact in Fort Collins and Aurora. Ask for the rate and for the first date they can meet.
Have the most recent Poudre School District R-1 progress report open on the first call. It shows whether the goals moved at all.
