Advocates here work with Coral Gables families and Miami-Dade County Public Schools teams. Each profile lists a rate when the advocate shares one.
3 based in Florida · 3 virtual advocates who work with Florida schools
The job is plain. An advocate knows what services the school owes your child and asks for them in writing.
Coral Gables is the 63rd-largest city in Florida. Size has nothing to do with how well a district runs its IEP meetings, and a small district with one experienced case manager often does better than a large one.
Advocates also coach. Some Coral Gables parents hire one for two hours of prep and go into the meeting alone.
Records live with Miami-Dade County Public Schools, not with the front office of one building, and a request addressed to the district gets a faster answer than one that is not.
No advocate in this directory lists Coral Gables as their home base. These advocates work from other parts of Florida, and each card names the city.
Based in Wesley Chapel, FL
Special Education Advocate
With 24 years of experience in the K-12 sector, I serves as a Student Support Specialist specializing in academic and behavioral ESE services.
Based in Leesburg, FL
CEO IEP Advocate Espanol
Evelyn Roman-Santos is a bilingual Special Education Advocate with 30 years of experience as a School Social Worker.
Based in Hialeah, FL
Advocate
Hello! 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.
These advocates are not based in Florida. They join IEP meetings by video or phone, which IDEA allows when you and the school agree.
Virtual · based in Inverness, IL · works with Florida schools
Special Education Advocate
I earned a Bachelor’s Degree in Communicative Sciences and Disorders at Michigan State University and a Master’s of Education from DePaul University, with a dual certification in elementary and…
Virtual · based in Austin, TX · works with Florida schools
Experienced Special Education Advocate & Former District Administrator
Chelsea Venegas, M.Ed., is a special education advocate with experience as a special education teacher, school administrator, district-level special education leader, and advocate within a special…
Virtual · based in Harrisburg, PA · works with Florida schools
Special Education Advocate
I’m a special education teacher with experience supporting students with behavioral, intellectual, and learning needs.
Miami-Dade County Public Schools runs the IEP meetings for most Coral Gables students, and its special education staff will be on the other side of the table when you walk in.
District lines and city lines are not the same thing. A street can sit inside one city and be zoned to the district next door.
Confirm your child's district by address before you send a letter or name a district-specific process.
The deadline for finishing an initial evaluation in Florida is 60 calendar days. Put that date on your calendar the day the paperwork goes in.
Bring the last two report cards and the current plan. That is usually enough paper to start.
Florida gives a school district 60 calendar days to finish an initial special education evaluation. A written request for an evaluation has to be answered inside 30 days. Missed deadlines are handled by the Florida Department of Education, Bureau of Exceptional Education and Student Services, which takes written state complaints from parents.
Certification programs exist and some advocates hold them. None of them is issued by the Florida Department of Education, Bureau of Exceptional Education and Student Services, and none of them is required to sit in a Florida IEP meeting.
Advocates who work Cutler Bay and here see the same state rules twice a week. Repetition inside one state is the practice worth paying for.
Hiring an advocate does not pause a deadline or undo a meeting that already happened. The work starts from wherever the Coral Gables file sits today.
Miami-Dade County Public Schools answers to the parent on the paperwork, so an advocate can draft the letter and you still have to be the one who sends it.
Rates and openings decide most of this. An advocate who cannot meet before your Coral Gables meeting date is the wrong hire, and the second-best advocate who is free this month usually beats the best one who is not.
Read a profile for what the advocate actually did, not for what the profile claims. Case detail is the tell.
Answers about hiring a special education advocate in Coral Gables, Florida, including cost, timing, virtual support, and Section 504 help.
How much does an IEP advocate cost in Coral Gables?
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.
Which school district serves Coral Gables, Florida?
Most of the city sits inside Miami-Dade County Public Schools. 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.
How many state indicators does Miami-Dade County Public Schools meet?
The state publishes a district report every year. In the latest one Miami-Dade County Public Schools met 41 of 64, and the link sits with the district facts on this page.
How long does the IEP evaluation process take in Florida?
The rule here is 60 calendar days. It covers the evaluation only. Writing the plan after a child is found eligible is a separate step with its own timing.
Who decides a special education complaint in Florida?
Three routes stay open when you disagree. Mediation is voluntary for both sides, a written state complaint is decided on the record by the Florida Department of Education, and a due process hearing takes evidence.
Official Florida links for parents in Coral Gables.
Last reviewed 2026-08-11.
The same Florida rules apply in Cutler Bay, Pensacola, North Miami Beach, Sarasota and the other cities listed here, or see every Florida advocate.
Search is free. You contact advocates directly.
Two questions sort most of this out. What would you do first with this file, and what does that cost.
