Advocates here work with Carrollton families and Carrollton-Farmers Branch ISD teams. Each profile lists a rate when the advocate shares one.
4 based in Texas · 3 virtual advocates who work with Texas schools
An IEP advocate goes to school meetings with you and argues for services your child is not getting.
Parents in Carrollton usually start looking for an advocate when a meeting is already on the calendar.
During a Carrollton IEP meeting an advocate writes down what the team agrees to and asks for it in the document before anyone leaves the room.
Carrollton-Farmers Branch ISD 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 Carrollton as their home base. These advocates work from other parts of Texas, and each card names the city.
Based in Austin, TX
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.
Based in Midland, TX
Special Education Advocate
Kate Keenan is a special education advocate serving families in Midland, TX.
Based in San Antonio, TX
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.
Based in Katy, TX
Special Education Advocate
Besides being a parent of a neurodivergent son, I have been a special education teacher, diagnostician, and advocate for the past 30 years. I am a true hands-on, walk in your shoes type of advocate.
These advocates are not based in Texas. They join IEP meetings by video or phone, which IDEA allows when you and the school agree.
Virtual · based in Hawthorne, NJ · works with Texas 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 Philadelphia, PA · works with Texas schools
Educational Consultant
I began this journey because my own daughter was issued an IEP in 3rd grade. I didn't understand special education.
Virtual · based in San Diego, CA · works with Texas schools
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.
Carrollton-Farmers Branch ISD runs the IEP meetings for most Carrollton students, and its special education staff will be on the other side of the table when you walk in.
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.
Confirm your child's district by address. Carrollton addresses may fall in more than one public school district.
The deadline for finishing an initial evaluation in Texas is 45 school days. Put that date on your calendar the day the paperwork goes in.
Ask the Carrollton team for the evaluation report before the meeting, not at it, because nobody reads a long report accurately while the rest of the team waits.
Texas gives a school district 45 school days to finish an initial special education evaluation. A written request for an evaluation has to be answered inside 15 school days. Missed deadlines are handled by the Texas Education Agency, Office of Special Populations and Student Supports, which takes written state complaints from parents.
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 Carrollton district starts talking to its own lawyer.
Carrollton-Farmers Branch ISD does not approve or bar advocates. Federal rules let a parent bring anyone with knowledge of the child to the meeting.
Advocates are not attorneys. No advocate in Carrollton can file a lawsuit for you or give you legal advice about the case.
Carrollton-Farmers Branch ISD 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.
Rates and openings decide most of this. An advocate who cannot meet before your Carrollton 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 for two references from cases like yours. Somebody who cannot produce one has not worked many.
Answers about hiring a special education advocate in Carrollton, Texas, including cost, timing, virtual support, and Section 504 help.
What is the hourly rate for a parent advocate?
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.
When should I hire a special education advocate in Carrollton?
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.
Does Carrollton-Farmers Branch ISD cover every Carrollton address?
Most of the city sits inside Carrollton-Farmers Branch ISD. 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.
What can I do if I cannot afford an advocate?
Free guidance exists. Parent centers, disability rights agencies and local parent groups all give it, and none of them will attend the meeting as your representative.
How do I get my child school records?
A district can charge for copies. Asking to inspect the record in person costs nothing under federal rules, and it is usually faster than waiting for a copy set.
Official Texas links for parents in Carrollton.
Last reviewed 2026-08-11.
The same Texas rules apply in Lewisville, Round Rock, Abilene, Midland and the other cities listed here, or see every Texas advocate.
Start with two calls, not six. Ask each advocate what they would do first with a Carrollton file, and hire the one whose answer is specific enough that you could write it down as a task.
Two questions sort most of this out. What would you do first with this file, and what does that cost.
