Power through, Resolve issues because you know how.

Know how to proceed- And be ready to lead.

When collaboration stalls, knowing your next move isn’t optional – it’s essential. Unlike IEP meetings, Mediation involves a legally guided negotiation. Due Process Hearings? They’re formal legal proceedings – trials without a jury. These are high-stakes situations that demand preparation and precision.

You’ve already put in the work. You’ve spoken up at school board meetings. You’ve taken your concerns straight to the Superintendent. You’ve waited – and waited – for action.

Now it’s time to pivot to an advanced strategy.

At Lumen Advocacy, we walk you through every dispute resolution path: grievances, mediation, state complaints, discrimination complaints, and due process hearings.Together, we evaluate each option through the lens of your goals and your child’s unique needs. We exhaust every possible opportuniy to resolve disagreements at the lowest level.

While the school district may have attorneys on speed dial, you have something more powerful: a skilled advocate who knows your child’s journey – and knows how to fight for results.

If you are not working with us, you won’t be working with an Advocate who has secured an adverse decision against a Texas school district.

Mediations and Due Process Hearings

Attorney Optional –  You are not required to hire an attorney for these processs. In fact many families choose non-attorney representation to avoid the high legal fees often associated with lengthy special education disputes.

Guided Negotiation – When working with a state-appointed mediator – often an attorney that your advocate knows – you don’t have to navigate the negotiation alone. You have the right to bring in an experienced advocate who knows the system, understands the school’s position, your child’s needs and delivers results – at a fraction of the typical legal cost.

Lumen Advocacy is an independent educational consultancy and distinct from a law firm, so offers objective guidance that keeps your child at the center of every negotiation and decision. We are fully equipped to represent you throughout from filing, appearing at pre-hearing conferences, preparing responses to requests for production and more. You are fully prepared at every stage.

If legal counsel becomes necessary, Lumen Advocacy can connect you with trusted attorneys who align with your goals. Together, we’ll assess every option- strategically and financially – so you can act with confidence and act on recommendations.

Resolve Disputes with Purpose and Precision

When disagreements arise with your school district, you have options:

Informal options – well crafted letters to administrators and key decision-makers can help to resolve disagreements witout the need for elevation to formal dispute options. This is the most collaborative approach.

Manifestation Determination Review meetings – Building a strong correlation between disability and behaviors is key to presenting the reasons why your child should not be moved to a disciplinary placement. With new and imminent texas laws on discipline and suspensions, it is even more important to know how to influence these decisions.

Lumen Advocacy plans for the meeting and is ready to file for pendency if needed. Pendency means that the child remains in their current placement until the Hearing is over, or the dispute is otherwise resolved. Then we get to work with analysing any flaws in behavioral supports, or Functional Behavioral Assessments, and revising the IEP.

Mediation – this option is a guided negotiation in a non-adversarial environment without the formalities of litigation. It’s voluntary, but can deliver powerful results in a settlement offer. Lumen Advocacy prepares a comprehensive Letter of the Issues and Requested Remedies that anchors the discussion, clearly outlining your position and the outcomes you seek.

Due Process Hearings – Lumen Advocacy prepares the case arguments, assembles exhibits, prepares and secures witnesses, leads direct and cross-examinations and prepares closing briefs. The know how to proceed and handling of processes and pitfalls is critical.

Civil Rights Complaints leverage.

When your child’s rights under Section 504, Title II or IX have been ignored – or when other remedies need bolstering – a grievance can help apply pressure and school investigation aid the resolution of possible discrimination or harassment. Currently, the Office for Civil Rights is not pursuing investigations (April 2025).

As your advocate, I help you decide when to file and how to leverage these complaints as part of a broader results-oriented strategy. Instead of reacting, you take control.

Let’s position your child’s case for the strongest possible outcome. Ready to get Started?

*ADVOCATES DO NOT GIVE LEGAL ADVICE