El Paso ISD staff run the IEP meetings in El Paso. These advocates sit on your side of the table.
4 based in Texas · 3 virtual advocates who work with Texas schools
Advocates work for you, not for the school. That is the whole difference.
El Paso 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.
After the meeting the work is dull. The advocate reads the draft against the notes and sends a correction back the same week.
Read the evaluation report twice. The second read is where the missing service usually shows up.
No advocate in this directory lists El Paso 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 Coraopolis, PA · works with Texas schools
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…
Virtual · based in Newcastle, OK · works with Texas schools
Special Education Advocate - IEP Consultant
Former special education teacher and educational advocate with experience on both sides of the IEP table.
Virtual · based in Atlanta, GA · works with Texas schools
School Psychologist & Parent Advocate
I’m a certified School Psychologist, Parent Advocate, and Coach dedicated to helping families navigate special education with confidence.
71 public schools inside El Paso belong to El Paso ISD. 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.
An Arlington 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. El Paso addresses may fall in more than one public school district.
Once you sign consent for testing, a Texas district has 45 school 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.
Write down what you want the school to add, in one page, before you walk into the El Paso meeting, because a team that reads your list in advance cannot pretend it never came up.
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.
Training varies, and so does what it proves. A parent who asks how many El Paso IEP meetings an advocate sat in last year learns more than a certificate would show.
Check the references and not the letters after the name. Two calls to past clients settle it faster than any credential list.
No advocate can promise a placement or an outcome in El Paso. Anyone who does is selling you something.
You sign, not the advocate. Consent and the plan itself both need a parent signature.
Being listed for Texas is not the same as taking El Paso cases, so read the service area on each of the 4 in-state profiles before you write to anyone.
Experience with El Paso ISD matters more than the number of years printed on a profile page.
Answers about hiring a special education advocate in El Paso, Texas, including cost, timing, virtual support, and Section 504 help.
How much should I budget for one IEP meeting?
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.
What district will be at my IEP meeting in El Paso?
Most El Paso families work with El Paso ISD. Charter and magnet enrollment can change which agency owes the service, so ask that question before the first meeting.
How many days does an initial evaluation take?
Texas sets its own deadline and it is 45 school 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.
Is a 504 plan weaker than an IEP?
An IEP provides specialized instruction and related services under IDEA. A 504 plan provides accommodations under a civil rights law and does not require specialized instruction. Eligibility rules differ, so a child can qualify for one and not the other.
How do I file a state special education complaint in Texas?
Three routes stay open when you disagree. Mediation is voluntary for both sides, a written state complaint is decided on the record by the Texas Education Agency, and a due process hearing takes evidence.
Official Texas links for parents in El Paso.
Last reviewed 2026-08-11.
The same Texas rules apply in Arlington, Austin, Corpus Christi, Fort Worth and the other cities listed here, or see every Texas advocate.
If nobody here fits, check the Arlington page next. The same Texas rules apply there.
Have the most recent El Paso ISD progress report open on the first call. It shows whether the goals moved at all.
