DeKalb County Public Schools staff run the IEP meetings in Brookhaven. These advocates sit on your side of the table.
5 based in Georgia · 3 virtual advocates who work with Georgia schools
An IEP advocate goes to school meetings with you and argues for services your child is not getting.
Most of the work happens before anyone sits down in a Brookhaven conference room.
Advocates also coach. Some Brookhaven parents hire one for two hours of prep and go into the meeting alone.
DeKalb County Public Schools keeps progress data on every goal in the plan. Ask for it as a table of dates and numbers rather than a paragraph.
No advocate in this directory lists Brookhaven as their home base. These advocates work from other parts of Georgia, and each card names the city.
Based in Flowery Branch, GA
Special education advocate/ IEP consultant
I am a certified special education teacher and a behavior specialist. Additionally, I am a mother to a child with behavioral issues who has an Individualized Education Program (IEP), as well as…
Based in Buford, GA
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.
Based in Atlanta, GA
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.
These advocates are not based in Georgia. They join IEP meetings by video or phone, which IDEA allows when you and the school agree.
Virtual · based in Leonardtown, MD · works with Georgia 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 Austin, TX · works with Georgia schools
Special Education Advocate
Hi, My name is David Gonzales. Living in Austin, TX, but originally from Los Angeles, CA. I carry a masters degree in special education and currently practice as a sped teacher.
Virtual · based in Los Angeles, CA · works with Georgia schools
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.
5 public schools inside Brookhaven belong to DeKalb 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.
Buildings do not fund services and districts do. Ask which office is deciding before you spend a meeting arguing with the wrong one.
Confirm your child's district by address before you send a letter or name a district-specific process.
No Georgia deadline applies to a written evaluation request. Federal rules still require a response within a reasonable time.
Ask the Brookhaven team for the evaluation report before the meeting, not at it, because nobody reads a long report accurately while the rest of the team waits.
Georgia gives a school district 60 calendar days to finish an initial special education evaluation. No Georgia 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 Georgia Department of Education, Division for Exceptional Children, which takes written state complaints from parents.
Certification programs exist and some advocates hold them. None of them is issued by the Georgia Department of Education, Division for Exceptional Children, and none of them is required to sit in a Georgia IEP meeting.
A certificate says nothing about DeKalb County Public Schools. Ask instead what the advocate has filed there and what came back.
Advocates are not attorneys. No advocate in Brookhaven can file a lawsuit for you or give you legal advice about the case.
What worked for a family in Marietta may not fit yours. Ask the advocate what is different about your file before you copy anyone.
Rates and openings decide most of this. An advocate who cannot meet before your Brookhaven meeting date is the wrong hire, and the second-best advocate who is free this month usually beats the best one who is not.
Distance is a scheduling problem and not a legal one. Meetings run by video whenever the parent and the school both agree to it.
Answers about hiring a special education advocate in Brookhaven, Georgia, including cost, timing, virtual support, and Section 504 help.
How much does an IEP advocate cost in Brookhaven?
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 Brookhaven, Georgia?
Most Brookhaven families work with DeKalb County Public Schools. Charter and magnet enrollment can change which agency owes the service, so ask that question before the first meeting.
How long does the IEP evaluation process take in Georgia?
Georgia sets its own deadline and it is 60 calendar days. Federal law lets a state do that, so a timeline a parent reads on a national site may not be the one running here.
Is there low cost IEP help anywhere?
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.
What records should I ask for before an IEP meeting?
Ask in writing and address it to the district rather than the front office. Schools have to let parents inspect the education records they keep, and inspection has to happen before the next IEP meeting.
Official Georgia links for parents in Brookhaven.
Last reviewed 2026-08-11.
The same Georgia rules apply in Marietta, Smyrna, Albany, Valdosta and the other cities listed here, or see every Georgia advocate.
Search is free. You contact advocates directly.
Do not sign anything at the first meeting if you are unsure. Consent can wait a day.
