Based in Harrisburg, PA
Boaz Gregory
Special Education Advocate
I’m a special education teacher with experience supporting students with behavioral, intellectual, and learning needs.
- From $100 per hour
- Meets in person or by video
IEP advocates in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
Special education and Section 504 advocates for Pittsburgh School District families in Pittsburgh.
3 based in Pennsylvania · 3 virtual advocates who work with Pennsylvania schools
What an advocate does for a Pittsburgh family
The job is plain. An advocate knows what services the school owes your child and asks for them in writing.
Parents in Pittsburgh usually start looking for an advocate when a meeting is already on the calendar.
What the work looks like
Advocates also coach. Some Pittsburgh parents hire one for two hours of prep and go into the meeting alone.
Records live with Pittsburgh School District, not with the front office of one building, and a request addressed to the district gets a faster answer than one that is not.
Advocates based in Pennsylvania
No advocate in this directory lists Pittsburgh as their home base. These advocates work from other parts of Pennsylvania, and each card names the city.
Based in Coraopolis, PA
Brittany Maurizi
Board Certified Behavior Analyst and Special Education Advocate
Hi there! I'm Brittany, owner and founder of Balanced Behaviors, LLC. I'm a Behavior Analyst and Licensed Behavior Specialist in Pennsylvania with a Master’s in Special Education from Slippery Rock…
- Autism, Behavioral Support, Developmental Delay, Intellectual Disability
- From $75 per hour
- Free first call
- Meets in person or by video
Based in Philadelphia, PA
Karen McCree
Educational Consultant
I began this journey because my own daughter was issued an IEP in 3rd grade. I didn't understand special education.
- ADHD / Attention, Autism Spectrum, Behavioral & Emotional, Behavioral Support
- From $100 per hour
- Free first call
- Meets in person or by video
Virtual advocates who work with Pennsylvania families
These advocates are not based in Pennsylvania. They join IEP meetings by video or phone, which IDEA allows when you and the school agree.
Virtual · based in Bloomington, IL · works with Pennsylvania schools
Jade Adkins
Founder & Advocate
Jade is a former special education teacher who has taught everything from pre-k all the way to transition classrooms with students up to age 21.
- Autism, Behavioral Support, Developmental Delay, Intellectual Disability
- Contact for rate
- Meets in person or by video
Virtual · based in San Diego, CA · works with Pennsylvania schools
Sanford Autism Advocacy Group
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.
- Autism, Other Health Impairment, Speech/Language, IDEA
- From $200 per hour
- Meets in person or by video
Virtual · based in Wesley Chapel, FL · works with Pennsylvania schools
Angela Picardi
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.
- Autism, Behavioral Support, Intellectual Disability, Learning Disabilities
- Contact for rate
- Meets in person or by video
See all 22 virtual advocates who work with Pennsylvania families
Which district is in the room
Pittsburgh School District runs the IEP meetings for most Pittsburgh 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.
- District Pittsburgh School District
- County Allegheny County
- Public schools inside Pittsburgh 53
- Size Pittsburgh is the 2nd-largest city in Pennsylvania by the 2024 Census estimate
- Closest listed advocate Philadelphia, PA
Confirm your child's district by address. Pittsburgh addresses may fall in more than one public school district.
The deadlines that apply in Pennsylvania
Federal law lets a state write its own evaluation deadline instead of using the national one. What Pennsylvania actually requires is 60 calendar days.
Keep every email. Most of what an advocate does with a Pittsburgh file is date-stamping what the school already told you.
Pennsylvania gives a school district 60 calendar days to finish an initial special education evaluation. No Pennsylvania 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 Pennsylvania Department of Education, Bureau of Special Education, which takes written state complaints from parents.
Who licenses advocates in Pennsylvania
Certification programs exist and some advocates hold them. None of them is issued by the Pennsylvania Department of Education, Bureau of Special Education, and none of them is required to sit in a Pennsylvania IEP meeting.
Pittsburgh School District does not approve or bar advocates. Federal rules let a parent bring anyone with knowledge of the child to the meeting.
What an advocate cannot do
Advocates are not attorneys. No advocate in Pittsburgh can file a lawsuit for you or give you legal advice about the case.
What worked for a family in Allentown may not fit yours. Ask the advocate what is different about your file before you copy anyone.
Local advocates and video advocates
Video is normal now. 22 of the advocates listed for Pittsburgh 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.
Pittsburgh IEP and Section 504 advocate FAQ
Answers about hiring a special education advocate in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, including cost, timing, virtual support, and Section 504 help.
What is the hourly rate for a parent advocate?
Flat fees are common for a single meeting and hourly billing is common for everything else. Many advocates give a free first call. Nobody bills you through this site, so ask each person how they invoice.
Does Pittsburgh School District cover every Pittsburgh address?
Pittsburgh School District runs the IEP meetings for most Pittsburgh students. District lines and city lines are not the same, so confirm yours by address before you send a letter.
How do I get my child school records?
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.
Which plan covers therapy and specialized instruction?
An IEP is the stronger document because it carries goals, service minutes and progress reporting. Section 504 plans are faster to write and easier for a district to agree to.
What should I have ready before the first call with an advocate?
Bring the current IEP or 504 plan, the most recent evaluation report, the last two progress reports and any email where the school said no. An advocate who has those before the call can tell you what is missing in ten minutes.
Official special education resources in Pennsylvania
Official Pennsylvania links for parents in Pittsburgh.
Sources for the Pennsylvania rules on this page
- 22 Pa. Code 14.123, Evaluation (22 Pa. Code 14.123(b))
- PDE state complaints and dispute resolution
Last reviewed 2026-08-11.
Nearby cities in Pennsylvania
The same Pennsylvania rules apply in Allentown, Philadelphia, Reading, Erie and the other cities listed here, or see every Pennsylvania advocate.
What to do next
Print the current IEP and bring it to the first call. Every advocate on the Pittsburgh list will ask for it.
Say the name of your school and Pittsburgh School District in the first message. That is enough for an advocate to know whether they can take the case.
