Rochester Community School District staff run the IEP meetings in Rochester Hills. These advocates sit on your side of the table.
1 based in Michigan · 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.
Most of the work happens before anyone sits down in a Rochester Hills conference room.
During a Rochester Hills IEP meeting an advocate writes down what the team agrees to and asks for it in the document before anyone leaves the room.
Rochester Community School District 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 Rochester Hills as their home base. These advocates work from other parts of Michigan, and each card names the city.
Based in Oscoda, MI
Special Education Advocate | Certified Neurodiversity Coach | Certified Neuropsychology Coach
Michelle Velazquez is a Special Education Advocate, Educational Consultant, Master IEP Coach®, and Certified Neurodiversity and Neuropsychology Coach.
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 Cumming, GA · works with Michigan schools
Founder
I raised three children with special needs, so I know what it’s like to sit in an IEP meeting and feel like no one is listening.
Virtual · based in Portland, OR · works with Michigan schools
Experienced Special Education Advocate & Former District Administrator
Chelsea Venegas, M.Ed., is the Founder & Special Education Advocate at Access & Bloom. A former special education teacher, school administrator, and district leader, she supports families with IEPs,…
Virtual · based in New York, NY · works with Michigan 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…
See all 30 virtual advocates who work with Michigan families
Rochester Community School District runs the IEP meetings for most Rochester Hills students, and its special education staff will be on the other side of the table when you walk in.
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. Rochester Hills addresses may fall in more than one public school district.
A written request for an evaluation starts a second clock in Michigan, and the district has to answer inside 10 school days.
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.
Certification programs exist and some advocates hold them. None of them is issued by the Michigan Department of Education, Office of Special Education, and none of them is required to sit in a Michigan IEP meeting.
A certificate says nothing about Rochester Community School District. Ask instead what the advocate has filed there and what came back.
Hiring an advocate does not pause a deadline or undo a meeting that already happened. The work starts from wherever the Rochester Hills file sits today.
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. 30 of the advocates listed for Rochester Hills work with families by phone or video instead of driving to the school.
Ask for two references from cases like yours. Somebody who cannot produce one has not worked many.
Answers about hiring a special education advocate in Rochester Hills, Michigan, including cost, timing, virtual support, and Section 504 help.
How much does an IEP advocate cost in Rochester Hills?
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.
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.
Which school district serves Rochester Hills, Michigan?
Rochester Community School District runs the IEP meetings for most Rochester Hills 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?
Every state has a federally funded Parent Training and Information Center that answers questions at no charge. Free help usually means general guidance rather than somebody sitting next to you in the meeting.
What records should I ask for before an IEP meeting?
Ask for the full file, which means every evaluation, the progress data behind each goal and any email where the school said no. Put it in writing and keep the date.
Official Michigan links for parents in Rochester Hills.
Last reviewed 2026-08-11.
The same Michigan rules apply in Flint, Southfield, Farmington Hills, Kalamazoo and the other cities listed here, or see every Michigan advocate.
Print the current IEP and bring it to the first call. Every advocate on the Rochester Hills list will ask for it.
Say the name of your school and Rochester Community School District in the first message. That is enough for an advocate to know whether they can take the case.
