Garland ISD staff run the IEP meetings in Garland. These advocates sit on your side of the table.
5 based in Texas · 3 virtual advocates who work with Texas schools
The job is plain. An advocate knows what services the school owes your child and asks for them in writing.
Parents in Garland usually start looking for an advocate when a meeting is already on the calendar.
Advocates also coach. Some Garland parents hire one for two hours of prep and go into the meeting alone.
Garland 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 Garland 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 Alamo, TX
Bilingual Special Education Advocate and Interpreter
Félix Ramos Jr. es fundador de RIO Advocates, LLC, donde brinda servicios bilingües de defensa educativa e interpretación en inglés y español.
Based in San Antonio, TX
Special Education Advocate | National COPAA Instructor
As an experienced Special Education Advocate, Executive Function Specialist, and expert IEP Coach, I offer families pathways to ensure they are informed, prepared, and confident as they navigate…
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 Inverness, IL · works with Texas 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 Buford, GA · works with Texas schools
Georgia Special Education & IEP Advocate
Dr. Mary Jo Ray-Jewett is the owner and lead advocate of The IEP Guru, LLC, providing special education advocacy throughout Georgia.
Virtual · based in Leesburg, FL · works with Texas schools
CEO IEP Advocate Espanol
Evelyn Roman-Santos is a bilingual Special Education Advocate with 30 years of experience as a School Social Worker.
Garland ISD takes most Garland addresses, but not all of them. Check yours before you send a letter, because a request that lands in the wrong district office does not start the evaluation clock at all.
Buildings do not fund services and districts do. Ask which office is deciding before you spend a meeting arguing with the wrong one.
Confirm your child's district by address. Garland addresses may fall in more than one public school district.
Federal law lets a state write its own evaluation deadline instead of using the national one. What Texas actually requires is 45 school days.
Ask the Garland 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 Garland district starts talking to its own lawyer.
A certificate says nothing about Garland ISD. Ask instead what the advocate has filed there and what came back.
An advocate cannot make the district agree. What moves a district is the record you build, not the person sitting next to you, and a good advocate spends more hours on the record than in the room.
What worked for a family in Frisco may not fit yours. Ask the advocate what is different about your file before you copy anyone.
Rates and openings decide most of this. An advocate who cannot meet before your Garland meeting date is the wrong hire, and the second-best advocate who is free this month usually beats the best one who is not.
Read a profile for what the advocate actually did, not for what the profile claims. Case detail is the tell.
Answers about hiring a special education advocate in Garland, Texas, including cost, timing, virtual support, and Section 504 help.
How much does an IEP advocate cost in Garland?
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 Garland, Texas?
Garland ISD runs the IEP meetings for most Garland students. District lines and city lines are not the same, so confirm yours by address before you send a letter.
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.
Is there low cost IEP help anywhere?
Every state has a federally funded Parent Training and Information Center that answers questions at no charge. Free help usually means general guidance rather than somebody sitting next to you in the meeting.
What records should I ask for before an IEP meeting?
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.
Official Texas links for parents in Garland.
Last reviewed 2026-08-11.
The same Texas rules apply in Frisco, Irving, Laredo, McKinney and the other cities listed here, or see every Texas advocate.
Print the current IEP and bring it to the first call. Every advocate on the Garland list will ask for it.
Do not sign anything at the first meeting if you are unsure. Consent can wait a day.
