Advocates here work with Augusta families and Augusta Public Schools teams. Each profile lists a rate when the advocate shares one.
3 virtual advocates who work with Maine schools
An advocate is a paid professional who reads the evaluation reports, drafts your concerns, sits beside you at the IEP table, and follows up on whatever the school agreed to do.
Parents in Augusta usually start looking for an advocate when a meeting is already on the calendar.
Advocates also coach. Some Augusta parents hire one for two hours of prep and go into the meeting alone.
Augusta Public Schools can charge for copies of a file. Asking to inspect the record in person instead costs nothing under federal rules.
These advocates are not based in Maine. They join IEP meetings by video or phone, which IDEA allows when you and the school agree.
Virtual · based in Las Vegas, NV · works with Maine schools
IEP Consultant
Hey there! I’ve been a special education teacher for nearly a decade, so helping unique learners thrive is truly my life’s work.
Virtual · based in Cumming, GA · works with Maine 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 Austin, TX · works with Maine 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.
6 public schools inside Augusta belong to Augusta 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.
Federal law lets a state write its own evaluation deadline instead of using the national one. What Maine actually requires is 45 school days for children ages 5 to 22, and 60 calendar days for children in Child Development Services.
Keep every email. Most of what an advocate does with an Augusta file is date-stamping what the school already told you.
Maine gives a school district 45 school days for children ages 5 to 22, and 60 calendar days for children in Child Development Services to finish an initial special education evaluation. A written request for an evaluation has to be answered inside 15 school days. Missed deadlines are handled by the Maine Department of Education, Office of Special Services and Inclusive Education, which takes written state complaints from parents.
Certification programs exist and some advocates hold them. None of them is issued by the Maine Department of Education, Office of Special Services and Inclusive Education, and none of them is required to sit in a Maine IEP meeting.
A certificate says nothing about Augusta Public Schools. Ask instead what the advocate has filed there and what came back.
Advocates are not attorneys. No advocate in Augusta can file a lawsuit for you or give you legal advice about the case.
Nobody can undo a meeting you already agreed to in writing. Read the page you are asked to sign before the room empties.
Video is normal now. 26 of the advocates listed for Augusta work with families by phone or video instead of driving to the school.
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 Augusta, Maine, including cost, timing, virtual support, and Section 504 help.
How much does an IEP advocate cost in Augusta?
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.
At what point do parents usually call an advocate?
Bring somebody in when the file stops making sense to you. A routine review with services in place and progress data that moves usually does not need one.
Can an advocate join an IEP meeting by video?
Yes. IDEA, the federal special education law, requires parent participation in IEP meetings and allows alternative means such as video or phone when you and the school agree. Your advocate does not have to live nearby.
Which school district serves Augusta, Maine?
Augusta Public Schools runs the IEP meetings for most Augusta students. District lines and city lines are not the same, so confirm yours by address before you send a letter.
Is there low cost IEP help anywhere?
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.
Official Maine links for parents in Augusta.
Last reviewed 2026-08-11.
The same Maine rules apply in Saco, Westbrook, Biddeford, Sanford and the other cities listed here, or see every Maine 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.
