Advocates here work with Ann Arbor families and Ann Arbor Public Schools teams. Each profile lists a rate when the advocate shares one.
3 virtual advocates who work with Michigan schools
The job is plain. An advocate knows what services the school owes your child and asks for them in writing.
Parents in Ann Arbor usually start looking for an advocate when a meeting is already on the calendar.
Before the meeting an advocate reads the current IEP against the evaluation reports, pulls the progress data to see whether the goals are actually being met, writes your concerns into one page, and sends it to the team in advance.
Ann Arbor 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.
These advocates are not based in Michigan. They join IEP meetings by video or phone, which IDEA allows when you and the school agree.
Virtual · based in San Diego, CA · works with Michigan schools
Special Education Advocate
At the Sanford Autism Advocacy Group (SAAG), we are a small but mighty special education consulting group with an emphasis on Autism and IEPs.
Virtual · based in Wesley Chapel, FL · works with Michigan schools
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.
Virtual · based in Kansas City, MO · works with Michigan schools
Navigate Special Education with Clarity and Confidence - Guiding Families. Building Futures.
Dr. Diane is a special education advocate and founder of Steppingstone Services, LLC. She holds a Ph.D.
See all 26 virtual advocates who work with Michigan families
30 public schools inside Ann Arbor belong to Ann Arbor 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.
Charter and magnet enrollment changes who owes the service. Ask which agency is responsible before the first meeting.
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 Michigan is 30 school 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.
Michigan gives a school district 30 school days to finish an initial special education evaluation. A written request for an evaluation has to be answered inside 10 school days. Missed deadlines are handled by the Michigan Department of Education, Office of Special Education, which takes written state complaints from parents.
Michigan does not license or certify special education advocates. Anyone in Ann Arbor can print a card with the word advocate on it.
Advocates who work Lansing and here see the same state rules twice a week. Repetition inside one state is the practice worth paying for.
Advocates are not attorneys. No advocate in Ann Arbor 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 Ann Arbor work with families by phone or video instead of driving to the school.
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 Ann Arbor, Michigan, including cost, timing, virtual support, and Section 504 help.
How much does an IEP advocate cost in Ann Arbor?
Rates run $75 to $250 per hour. What moves the number is experience, the type of case, and whether anyone has to drive to the meeting. Profiles here show the rate when the advocate publishes one.
Which school district serves Ann Arbor, Michigan?
Ann Arbor Public Schools runs the IEP meetings for most Ann Arbor 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?
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.
Should my child have an IEP or a Section 504 plan?
The short version. IEP means the school changes what is taught and how, and Section 504 means the school changes the conditions around it.
How do I prepare for an IEP meeting in Ann Arbor?
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 Michigan links for parents in Ann Arbor.
Last reviewed 2026-08-11.
The same Michigan rules apply in Lansing, Sterling Heights, Dearborn, Warren and the other cities listed here, or see every Michigan advocate.
Send the same two questions to every advocate you contact in Ann Arbor and Lansing. Ask for the rate and for the first date they can meet.
Two questions sort most of this out. What would you do first with this file, and what does that cost.
