Virtual · based in Cumming, GA · works with Tennessee schools
Russell Lloyd
Founder
Russell Lloyd is a special education advocate serving families in Cumming, GA.
- From $95 per hour
- Meets in person or by video
IEP advocates in Memphis, Tennessee
Special education and Section 504 advocates for Memphis-Shelby County Schools families in Memphis.
3 virtual advocates who work with Tennessee schools
What an advocate does for a Memphis family
An advocate is a paid professional who reads the evaluation reports, drafts your concerns, sits beside you at the IEP table, and follows up on whatever the school agreed to do.
Most of the work happens before anyone sits down in a Memphis conference room.
What the work looks like
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.
Memphis-Shelby County Schools keeps progress data on every goal in the plan. Ask for it as a table of dates and numbers rather than a paragraph.
Virtual advocates who work with Tennessee families
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 New York, NY · works with Tennessee schools
Clara Liriano
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…
- ADHD / Attention, AAC, Autism Spectrum, Behavioral & Emotional
- From $150 per hour
- Free first call
- Meets in person or by video
Virtual · based in Inverness, IL · works with Tennessee schools
Arielle Allen
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…
- Autism, Behavioral Support, Deaf-Blindness, Developmental Delay
- Contact for rate
- Meets in person or by video
See all 20 virtual advocates who work with Tennessee families
Which district is in the room
136 public schools inside Memphis belong to Memphis-Shelby County 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.
District lines and city lines are not the same thing. A street can sit inside one city and be zoned to the district next door.
- District Memphis-Shelby County Schools
- County Shelby County
- Public schools inside Memphis 136
- Size Memphis is the 2nd-largest city in Tennessee by the 2024 Census estimate
Confirm your child's district by address before you send a letter or name a district-specific process.
The deadlines that apply in Tennessee
The deadline for finishing an initial evaluation in Tennessee is 60 calendar 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.
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.
Who licenses advocates in Tennessee
Attorneys are licensed. Advocates hold no license, and the difference matters most when a case gets close to a hearing, which is the point where the Memphis district starts talking to its own lawyer.
A certificate says nothing about Memphis-Shelby County Schools. Ask instead what the advocate has filed there and what came back.
What an advocate cannot do
Hiring an advocate does not pause a deadline or undo a meeting that already happened. The work starts from wherever the Memphis file sits today.
Memphis-Shelby County Schools answers to the parent on the paperwork, so an advocate can draft the letter and you still have to be the one who sends it.
Local advocates and video advocates
Video is normal now. 20 of the advocates listed for Memphis 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.
Memphis IEP and Section 504 advocate FAQ
Answers about hiring a special education advocate in Memphis, Tennessee, including cost, timing, virtual support, and Section 504 help.
How much does an IEP advocate cost in Memphis?
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 Memphis, Tennessee?
Most of the city sits inside Memphis-Shelby County 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.
How long does the IEP evaluation process take in Tennessee?
Tennessee sets its own deadline and it is 60 calendar days. Federal law lets a state do that, so a timeline a parent reads on a national site may not be the one running here.
Do advocates handle accommodation plans?
Yes. Section 504 work looks the same as IEP work, which is records, a written request and somebody in the room who knows what the school already agreed to.
Should my child have an IEP or a Section 504 plan?
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.
Official special education resources in Tennessee
Official Tennessee links for parents in Memphis.
Sources for the Tennessee rules on this page
- Tenn. Comp. R. & Regs. 0520-01-09, Special Education Programs and Services (Tenn. Comp. R. & Regs. 0520-01-09-.05(1)(f))
- 34 CFR 300.301, Initial evaluations (34 CFR 300.301(c))
Last reviewed 2026-08-11.
Nearby cities in Tennessee
The same Tennessee rules apply in Knoxville, Nashville, Chattanooga, Clarksville and the other cities listed here, or see every Tennessee advocate.
What to do next
If nobody here fits, check the Knoxville page next. The same Tennessee rules apply there.
Say the name of your school and Memphis-Shelby County Schools in the first message. That is enough for an advocate to know whether they can take the case.
