Special Education Advocacy
Bridging the achievement gap for students with disabilities.
Advocating4ED
Advocacy4ED understands the challenges faced by families of children with special education needs. Our comprehensive resources and expert guidance empower you to become effective advocates for your children's individualized learning needs.
Kathleen Ross-Kidder, Ph.D. has over 40 years experience as a special education advocate, univesity faculty member, school teacher, school psychologist, and national program development director, conference presenter and profesisonal trainer on the needs of students with disabilities from preschool to adulthood.
Kathleen Ross-Kidder, Ph.D. has over 40 years experience as a special education advocate, univesity faculty member, school teacher, school psychologist, and national program development director, conference presenter and profesisonal trainer on the needs of students with disabilities from preschool to adulthood.
Services
EDUCATIONAL CONSULTING
Working collaboratively with the school to get support services for your child with a disability: ADHD; learning disability, autism, behavioral issues at school, ID and other disabilities limiting academic success and FAPE.. As an expert in assessment, both psychological and educational testing, she also provides full review of your child's school records and can provide a written report with summarized recommendations for next steps. Dr. Ross Kidder also offers expert testimony for due process hearings. Consultation services also include literature reviews and summary presentations on critical issues related to education placement, learning, and transitions for students with disabilities.
REMOVING IEP ROADBLOCKS
Advocates work with you to help remove the many roadblocks interfering with needed special education services. Advocates help with: knowing: (1) How to request services; (2) How to meet with the school team to request an evaluation of your concerns; (3) How to understand the results of assessments presented by school staff to know if they support your concerns; (4) How to working with the school eligibility team to achieve services; and (5) Knowing what should be in an effective IEP, including what measurements and accommodations may be needed to help your child. Advocates also help you with follow-ups to make certain the roadblocks have been removed and the IEP is working.
EDUCATIONAL TRANSITION PLANNING
Advocates help with transition planning for college or vocation selections. Dr. Ross-Kidder, a retired university professor, has extensive understanding university transitions and how disability services work on college campuses. As co-developer and trainer needed GED testing accommodations for GED students with disabilities and as former reviewer of teacher requests for accommodations requests due to disabilities when taking the National Board of Teacher Certification test she understands how disabilities can impact gateway tests. She has also trained nationally on how to use adult assessment profiles in vocational rehabilitation student strength based career planning.
Special Education Advocacy Resource Kitt
Access our comprehensive SPARK (Special Education Parent Advocacy Resource Kit) to empower yourself with valuable resources, templates, and information designed to help you advocate effectively for your child's special education needs.
Parent Education Workshops
Participate in interactive workshops designed to equip parents with the knowledge and skills necessary to effectively advocate for their child's special education rights. Gain insights from experts and connect with other parents in similar situations.
Consultation Services
Dr. Ross-Kidder, a non-attorney advocate, provides professional assistance and guidance on navigating the special education system. She helps parents explore eligibility for services, FAPE, Child Find issues, Endrew F and annual yearly progress, due process, inclusion and least restrictive placements. An expert in assessment and knowing what test results mean she helps parents understand when school staff are saying about your child. She also can virtually attend school meetings with you to help your child obtain needed services. Dr. Ross Kidder offers a 30 minute free initial phone consultation
Contact
- Virginia, United States
- Virtual meetings
- +1-540-388-2172 - Educational & Psychological Consulting Services
- advocacy4ED@gmail.com
- 24 hours online
Free initial phone consultation to determine how I can help. Special education advocate services including meeting at your child's school are provided virtually making it possible for me to help parents foster their child's academic success and special education support services.
Team
Eligibility and IEP team
School staff
Members of the school professional staff, (general education teachers, special education teachers, school psychologists, behavioral specialists, school administrators are all impottant team members. This team reviews school reports, testing and other data to determine if a student qualifies for special educaiton services. If the student is found eligible for services the team again meets to develop the individualized education program(IEP)
Parents as team partners
Mandated team members
The Individuals with Disabiity Education Act (IDEA) says parents are partners in special education meetings about their child. IDEA does not consider if parents have needed knowledge about how regulations and data presented in meeting. Expert adovcates empower parents with that understanding.
Kathleen Ross-Kidder, Ph.D.
Special education advocate
I have extensive experience as a special education advocate, teacher, school psychologist, and national program development director, conference presented and professional training on the needs of students from preschool to adulthood. My focus is to improve educational outcomes for all students by helping parents understand how current educational policy and school student data collection and test results impact students success.
Student with a disability
Student with disability
IDEA says students, too, are important team members. Your child can explain what works and where instrucitonal accommodations or modifications are needed.
Articles
F.A.Q
How much do your services cost?
Cost of services is:- Initial 30 minute consultation no cost.
- Initial retainer fee that includes 1 hour phone or online consultation meeting, student school record review; attendance at one virtual school meeting. $250 to be paid in advance.
- Additional time to write reports, attend additional virtual meetings or discuss case issues using the phone or email billed at $80.. per hour.
- Expert hearing or court testimony billed at $125.00
- School extensive school comparison reports for custody school placement decisions $1500.( $750 due in advance final due prior to receiving final report.)
- Help writing a state complaint- $500 ($250 required in advance)
- Help writing due process hearing request $2000 ($1000 due in advance final amount due upon completion of final document for submission to hearing officer requesting ruling. Cost doe not include attending prehearing meetings, resolution meetings, or actual hearing. those will be billed at $80 per hour.)
- College readiness and application package for students with disabilities $500 to include record review, help with application writing process, help with matching school selection, and consultation with student to ready the student for what to expect at college.
- All other services or meeting attendances are billed at the rate of $80.00 per hour.
Where did Dr. Ross-Kidder go to college?
- University of Virginia, Curry Graduate School of Education, Curriculum and Special Education, Current non candidate for degree, 23 credit hours.
- George Washington University PH.D. Developmental Psychology: Dissertation: Using WISC-R factor scores to predict Ritalin medication responders among an ADHD referred population of children.
- George Mason University MA Clinical Psychology, Supervised training at Children's National Medical Center, Dept. of Psychiatry, Washington DC
- George Mason University MA work also completed Experimental Psychology: Thesis: Stimulus Familiarization Effect in Children.
- University of Michigan, Rackham Graduate School, Curriculum Development
- University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, BA, French & History
- High School, Richview Collegiate Institute, Toronto, Ontario Canada