Special education and Section 504 advocates for Miami-Dade County Public Schools families in Key Biscayne.
3 based in Florida · 3 virtual advocates who work with Florida 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 Key Biscayne and Brooksville 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 Key Biscayne 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 Key Biscayne 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 New York, NY · works with Florida schools
Special Education Advocate
Clara Liriano, M.S., is a Special Education Advocate and New York State Certified Special Education Teacher with more than 20 years of experience supporting children and individuals with…
Virtual · based in Leonardtown, MD · works with Florida schools
Special Education Advocate
Douglas Hubscher is the Founder and President of Kids Are First, LLC, a special education advocacy firm dedicated to helping families navigate the IEP and 504 process with confidence, clarity, and…
Virtual · based in Philadelphia, PA · works with Florida schools
Educational Consultant
I began this journey because my own daughter was issued an IEP in 3rd grade. I didn't understand special education.
2 public schools inside Key Biscayne belong to Miami-Dade County Public Schools. Each one has its own case manager and its own backlog, and the answer you get about scheduling depends on which building your child attends.
Families who move between Brooksville and here change districts, and the new team is not required to keep the old plan word for word.
Confirm your child's district by address before you send a letter or name a district-specific process.
Federal law lets a state write its own evaluation deadline instead of using the national one. What Florida actually requires is 60 calendar days.
If the Key Biscayne team says no, ask for the refusal in writing.
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.
Training varies, and so does what it proves. A parent who asks how many Key Biscayne IEP meetings an advocate sat in last year learns more than a certificate would show.
Check the references and not the letters after the name. Two calls to past clients settle it faster than any credential list.
No advocate can promise a placement or an outcome in Key Biscayne. Anyone who does is selling you something.
Miami-Dade County Public Schools is allowed to say no. What it is not allowed to do is say no without written notice that explains the reason.
No advocate is listed in every city. A remote advocate who knows Florida rules is usually a better hire for Key Biscayne than a local one who does not.
Ask whether the advocate has sat in a Miami-Dade County Public Schools 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 Key Biscayne, Florida, including cost, timing, virtual support, and Section 504 help.
How much should I budget for one IEP meeting?
Flat fees are common for a single meeting and hourly billing is common for everything else. Many advocates give a free first call. Nobody bills you through this site, so ask each person how they invoice.
What district will be at my IEP meeting in Key Biscayne?
Most Key Biscayne families work with Miami-Dade County Public Schools. Charter and magnet enrollment can change which agency owes the service, so ask that question before the first meeting.
Where does Miami-Dade County Public Schools stand on state special education indicators?
Miami-Dade County Public Schools met 41 of 64 state special education indicators in the most recent report. Indicators measure compliance and outcomes across a whole district and say nothing about one classroom.
Is a 504 plan weaker than an IEP?
An IEP is the stronger document because it carries goals, service minutes and progress reporting. Section 504 plans are faster to write and easier for a district to agree to.
How do I file a state special education complaint in Florida?
The Florida Department of Education takes written complaints from parents about missed deadlines and services never delivered. An advocate can prepare one. The advocate does not decide it and cannot make the district settle.
Official Florida links for parents in Key Biscayne.
Last reviewed 2026-08-11.
The same Florida rules apply in Brooksville, St. Augustine, Dade City, Opa-locka and the other cities listed here, or see every Florida advocate.
Send the same two questions to every advocate you contact in Key Biscayne and Brooksville. Ask for the rate and for the first date they can meet.
Keep a one-page timeline of what happened and when. Every advocate you talk to will start by building the same thing.
