Advocates here work with New Port Richey families and Pasco 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
Hiring one is optional. Nothing in federal law requires a parent to bring an advocate to an IEP meeting.
Families in New Port Richey and Opa-locka 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.
Paperwork is where cases are won or lost, and an advocate who has read every progress report in the file will find the sentence a New Port Richey team wrote two years ago that contradicts what it is saying now.
Request the full file in writing before you hire anyone. Schools have to give parents the education records they keep.
No advocate in this directory lists New Port Richey 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 Lamar, CO · works with Florida schools
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.
Virtual · based in Coraopolis, PA · works with Florida schools
Board Certified Behavior Analyst and Special Education Advocate
Hi there! I'm Brittany, owner and founder of Balanced Behaviors, LLC. I'm a Behavior Analyst and Licensed Behavior Specialist in Pennsylvania with a Master’s in Special Education from Slippery Rock…
Virtual · based in Atlanta, GA · works with Florida schools
Special Education Advocate
My name is Jalani Traxler and I have loved teaching sense I myself was a student with an IEP receiving my own accommodations in elementary school.
Pasco County Public Schools met 41 of 65 state special education indicators in the most recent Florida report.
Families who move between Opa-locka 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.
Put the request in writing and date it. An email to the New Port Richey school counts as 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 New Port Richey 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 New Port Richey. Anyone who does is selling you something.
Advocates who have never seen the file cannot tell you what is missing from it. Send the records first and book the call second.
No advocate is listed in every city. A remote advocate who knows Florida rules is usually a better hire for New Port Richey than a local one who does not.
Experience with Pasco County Public Schools matters more than the number of years printed on a profile page.
Answers about hiring a special education advocate in New Port Richey, Florida, including cost, timing, virtual support, and Section 504 help.
How much should I budget for one IEP meeting?
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 district will be at my IEP meeting in New Port Richey?
Most of the city sits inside Pasco 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.
Does the state provide a free advocate?
Free guidance exists. Parent centers, disability rights agencies and local parent groups all give it, and none of them will attend the meeting as your representative.
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.
What should I bring to the IEP meeting?
Write down the two things you want changed and bring the paperwork that shows why. Meetings run long when nobody in the room has decided what the ask is.
Official Florida links for parents in New Port Richey.
Last reviewed 2026-08-11.
The same Florida rules apply in Opa-locka, Pinecrest, Naples, St. Augustine and the other cities listed here, or see every Florida advocate.
Send the same two questions to every advocate you contact in New Port Richey and Opa-locka. Ask for the rate and for the first date they can meet.
Have the most recent Pasco County Public Schools progress report open on the first call. It shows whether the goals moved at all.
