Ithaca City School District staff run the IEP meetings in Ithaca. These advocates sit on your side of the table.
1 based in New York · 3 virtual advocates who work with New York schools
Advocates get hired after a meeting goes badly, rarely before the first one, which is why most of them start by reading a file that already carries a year of history in it.
Ithaca parents tend to call at one of two moments. The first is before an initial evaluation and the second is after a service quietly disappears from the plan.
Paperwork is where cases are won or lost, and an advocate who has read every progress report in the file will find the sentence an Ithaca team wrote two years ago that contradicts what it is saying now.
Note what changed at home. Teachers see one room for one hour and parents see the rest of the day.
No advocate in this directory lists Ithaca as their home base. These advocates work from other parts of New York, and each card names the city.
Based in New York, NY
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…
These advocates are not based in New York. They join IEP meetings by video or phone, which IDEA allows when you and the school agree.
Virtual · based in Inverness, IL · works with New York schools
Special Education Advocate
I earned a Bachelor’s Degree in Communicative Sciences and Disorders at Michigan State University and a Master’s of Education from DePaul University, with a dual certification in elementary and…
Virtual · based in Austin, TX · works with New York 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 Hialeah, FL · works with New York schools
Advocate
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.
See all 30 virtual advocates who work with New York families
Ithaca City School District runs the IEP meetings for most Ithaca students, and its special education staff will be on the other side of the table when you walk in.
Parents in Long Beach face the same paperwork. Rules do not change from one town to the next inside a state.
Confirm your child's district by address before you send a letter or name a district-specific process.
Once you sign consent for testing, a New York district has 60 calendar days to finish an initial evaluation, and that clock does not stop because a case manager is out or the file went to the wrong building.
Put the request in writing and date it. An email to the Ithaca school counts as writing.
New York gives a school district 60 calendar days to finish an initial special education evaluation. No New York 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 New York State Education Department, Office of Special Education, which takes written state complaints from parents.
Training varies, and so does what it proves. A parent who asks how many Ithaca IEP meetings an advocate sat in last year learns more than a certificate would show.
Membership in a professional body is not a licence. It usually means dues were paid and a code of conduct was signed.
Advocates do not decide complaints. The New York State Education Department does, and only after someone files one in writing.
Advocates who have never seen the file cannot tell you what is missing from it. Send the records first and book the call second.
Being listed for New York is not the same as taking Ithaca cases, so read the service area on each of the 1 in-state profiles before you write to anyone.
Experience with Ithaca City School District matters more than the number of years printed on a profile page.
Answers about hiring a special education advocate in Ithaca, New York, including cost, timing, virtual support, and Section 504 help.
What do special education advocates charge in Ithaca, New York?
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 is the difference between an IEP advocate and a special education attorney?
An advocate is not a lawyer and cannot give legal advice or file a lawsuit. What an advocate can do is build the written record a lawyer would need later.
Who runs special education for Ithaca schools?
Most of the city sits inside Ithaca City School District. 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.
Do I have to use an advocate from my own town?
Every card on this page names the city the advocate works from. Advocates listed under the virtual heading live somewhere else and work with families here by video or phone.
Can I bring an advocate to a Section 504 meeting?
Nearly every advocate on this page takes both. Compare profiles for experience with accommodations, 504 meetings and school compliance, and ask the school in writing before you bring anyone to a 504 meeting.
Official New York links for parents in Ithaca.
Last reviewed 2026-08-11.
The same New York rules apply in Long Beach, Poughkeepsie, Garden City, Valley Stream and the other cities listed here, or see every New York advocate.
If nobody here fits, check the Long Beach page next. The same New York rules apply there.
Keep a one-page timeline of what happened and when. Every advocate you talk to will start by building the same thing.
