Advocates here work with Collierville families and Collierville Schools teams. Each profile lists a rate when the advocate shares one.
3 virtual advocates who work with Tennessee schools
Advocates work for you, not for the school. That is the whole difference.
Families in Collierville and Brentwood run into the same problem. The school says the current plan is working, and the progress report shows the same goal repeated from last year with the same numbers under it.
Paperwork is where cases are won or lost, and an advocate who has read every progress report in the file will find the sentence a Collierville 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.
These advocates are not based in Tennessee. They join IEP meetings by video or phone, which IDEA allows when you and the school agree.
Virtual · based in Hawthorne, NJ · works with Tennessee schools
IEP Consultant, School Social Worker, Advocacy
I am a Child Study Team School Social Worker, with a Master of Social Work from Fordham University. I have core competencies in special education law, mental health, and behavioral health.
Virtual · based in Inverness, IL · works with Tennessee 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 San Antonio, TX · works with Tennessee schools
FamilyADDventures.com
Nicole Santiago is a learning specialist and an advocate (IEP coach). She is a member of COPAA.org and ensures special education students receive the most appropriate educational services possible.
See all 25 virtual advocates who work with Tennessee families
Collierville Schools runs the IEP meetings for most Collierville students, and its special education staff will be on the other side of the table when you walk in.
A Brentwood parent group can tell you how the same district handled a case like yours, which is worth more to read than a policy page.
Confirm your child's district by address before you send a letter or name a district-specific process.
The clock that matters starts when you sign consent. In Tennessee it runs 60 calendar days.
Put the request in writing and date it. An email to the Collierville school counts as writing.
Tennessee gives a school district 60 calendar days to finish an initial special education evaluation. No Tennessee 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 Tennessee Department of Education, Division of Special Education and Student Supports, which takes written state complaints from parents.
The Tennessee Department of Education oversees special education in Tennessee. It does not license the advocates parents hire.
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 Tennessee Department of Education does, and only after someone files one in writing.
Collierville Schools is allowed to say no. What it is not allowed to do is say no without written notice that explains the reason.
Rates and openings decide most of this. An advocate who cannot meet before your Collierville meeting date is the wrong hire, and the second-best advocate who is free this month usually beats the best one who is not.
Ask whether the advocate has sat in a Collierville Schools meeting before. The answer is a yes or a no and it tells you a great deal.
Answers about hiring a special education advocate in Collierville, Tennessee, including cost, timing, virtual support, and Section 504 help.
What do special education advocates charge in Collierville, Tennessee?
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.
What is the difference between an IEP advocate and a special education attorney?
Two different jobs. The advocate works the IEP process and the attorney works the legal one. If a hearing is already filed, you need the attorney.
Who runs special education for Collierville schools?
Most of the city sits inside Collierville Schools. 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.
Are there free IEP advocates in Collierville?
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.
Where does a written special education complaint go?
Written complaints go to the Tennessee Department of Education. It decides on the paperwork rather than at a hearing, so dates and documents are what the decision turns on.
Official Tennessee links for parents in Collierville.
Last reviewed 2026-08-11.
The same Tennessee rules apply in Brentwood, Gallatin, Bartlett, Germantown and the other cities listed here, or see every Tennessee advocate.
Send the same two questions to every advocate you contact in Collierville and Brentwood. Ask for the rate and for the first date they can meet.
Have the most recent Collierville Schools progress report open on the first call. It shows whether the goals moved at all.
