Based in Austin, TX
Chelsea Venegas
Educational Advocate
Chelsea Venegas is a special education advocate serving families in Austin, TX.
- From $175 per hour
- Meets by video or phone
IEP advocates in Odessa, Texas
Ector County ISD staff run the IEP meetings in Odessa. These advocates sit on your side of the table.
5 based in Texas · 3 virtual advocates who work with Texas schools
What an advocate does for an Odessa family
The job is plain. An advocate knows what services the school owes your child and asks for them in writing.
Odessa is the 32nd-largest city in Texas. Size has nothing to do with how well a district runs its IEP meetings, and a small district with one experienced case manager often does better than a large one.
What the work looks like
During an Odessa IEP meeting an advocate writes down what the team agrees to and asks for it in the document before anyone leaves the room.
Records live with Ector County ISD, not with the front office of one building, and a request addressed to the district gets a faster answer than one that is not.
Advocates based in Texas
No advocate in this directory lists Odessa as their home base. These advocates work from other parts of Texas, and each card names the city.
Based in Austin, TX
David Gonzales
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.
- From $50 per hour
- Meets in person or by video
Based in Midland, TX
Kate Keenan
Special Education Advocate
Kate Keenan is a special education advocate serving families in Midland, TX.
- From $75 per hour
- Meets in person or by video
Virtual advocates who work with Texas families
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
Brittany Maurizi
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…
- Autism, Behavioral Support, Developmental Delay, Intellectual Disability
- From $75 per hour
- Free first call
- Meets in person or by video
Virtual · based in Atlanta, GA · works with Texas schools
Jalani Traxler
Special Education Advocate
My name is Jalani Traxler and I have loved teaching sense I myself was a student with an IEP receiving my own accommodations in elementary school.
- Dyslexia, Early Childhood, Emotional Regulation, ESY
- From $65 per hour
- Meets in person or by video
Virtual · based in Hawthorne, NJ · works with Texas schools
Dalia Rodriguez
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.
- Autism, Behavioral Support, Developmental Delay, Intellectual Disability
- Contact for rate
- Meets by video or phone
Which district is in the room
41 public schools inside Odessa belong to Ector County 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.
Buildings do not fund services and districts do. Ask which office is deciding before you spend a meeting arguing with the wrong one.
- District Ector County ISD
- County Ector County
- Public schools inside Odessa 41
- Size Odessa is the 32nd-largest city in Texas by the 2024 Census estimate
- Closest listed advocate Midland, TX
Confirm your child's district by address before you send a letter or name a district-specific process.
The deadlines that apply in Texas
Federal law lets a state write its own evaluation deadline instead of using the national one. What Texas actually requires is 45 school days.
Bring the last two report cards and the current plan. That is usually enough paper to start.
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.
Who licenses advocates in Texas
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 Odessa district starts talking to its own lawyer.
Advocates who work College Station and here see the same state rules twice a week. Repetition inside one state is the practice worth paying for.
What an advocate cannot do
Advocates are not attorneys. No advocate in Odessa can file a lawsuit for you or give you legal advice about the case.
Nobody can undo a meeting you already agreed to in writing. Read the page you are asked to sign before the room empties.
Local advocates and video advocates
Rates and openings decide most of this. An advocate who cannot meet before your Odessa 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.
Odessa IEP and Section 504 advocate FAQ
Answers about hiring a special education advocate in Odessa, 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 Odessa?
No fixed trigger exists. The useful test is whether you can tell from the paperwork what the school is actually offering, and whether the last thing you asked for came back in writing.
Does Ector County ISD cover every Odessa address?
Ector County ISD runs the IEP meetings for most Odessa students. District lines and city lines are not the same, so confirm yours by address before you send a letter.
Who investigates a school for missing an IEP deadline?
The Texas Education Agency takes written complaints from parents about missed deadlines and services never delivered. An advocate can prepare one. The advocate does not decide it and cannot make the district settle.
What should I have ready before the first call with an advocate?
Write down the two things you want changed and bring the paperwork that shows why. Meetings run long when nobody in the room has decided what the ask is.
Official special education resources in Texas
Official Texas links for parents in Odessa.
Sources for the Texas rules on this page
- 19 TAC Chapter 89, Subchapter AA, currently in effect (TEA) (19 TAC 89.1011(d)(1))
- TEA, Full and Individual Initial Evaluation timeline (19 TAC 89.1011(d)(1) and Tex. Educ. Code 29.004(a)(1))
- TEA special education complaints process
- TEA special education
Last reviewed 2026-08-11.
Nearby cities in Texas
The same Texas rules apply in College Station, League City, Pearland, Richardson and the other cities listed here, or see every Texas advocate.
What to do next
Print the current IEP and bring it to the first call. Every advocate on the Odessa list will ask for it.
Say the name of your school and Ector County ISD in the first message. That is enough for an advocate to know whether they can take the case.
