My name is Elle Sanderson, Founder of Rising Star. Rising Star Advocacy was born out of a life lived in two worlds at once: the world of everyday parenting and the world families enter when a child’s needs are complex, misunderstood, or dismissed. It started the way many advocacy journeys start, not from a business plan, but from necessity. From late nights reading reports. From learning the language of services and supports. From realizing that what a child needs and what a system provides do not always line up unless someone is willing to ask better questions, document the truth, and keep showing up.
I’m a mom of four, and one of my children has a rare genetic mutation (SYNGAP1) with significant medical and developmental needs. Our family has carried the weight of seizures, low muscle tone, and the constant vigilance that comes with medically fragile kids. I have also lived what it feels like to watch your child go through the kind of medical experiences that change you forever, including brain surgery at a young age. Those moments reorder your priorities. They teach you what matters, what doesn’t, and how fiercely you’re willing to fight for what your child deserves.
At the same time, I’ve lived the reality of being a military spouse and raising a family through seasons that require adaptability, grit, and an ability to build stability inside constant change. I married young, and our life has been shaped by deployments, distance, transitions, and the ongoing work of keeping home steady for our kids. That combination, high responsibility at a young age, plus the lived experience of disability and complex needs, built a particular kind of strength: practical, persistent, and calm under pressure.
That’s the foundation of Rising Star Advocacy.
Where advocacy began
When you enter special education as a parent, you quickly learn that love alone is not enough. You need information. You need documentation. You need to know what to ask for, how to ask for it, and how to follow through when the answer is unclear. You also learn that many families are trying to navigate this while exhausted, grieving, overwhelmed, and often isolated.
I didn’t learn advocacy in a classroom. I knew it in the real-time decisions families are forced to make: trying to understand evaluations, trying to interpret progress reports, trying to keep a child safe and supported while still honoring their dignity. I learned it in the tension between “we care” and “we can’t.” I learned it while watching how quickly a child can be underestimated, how often parents are made to feel like they’re the problem, and how easy it is for essential details to disappear unless they are written down and brought back to the table.
So I built a system for myself: records organization, timelines, patterns, and communication that stays professional and student-centered. That system eventually became what families started asking me for help with, because they wanted what I had learned the hard way: how to advocate without burning down the relationship, how to stay calm while being firm, and how to make sure the student is never lost in the noise.
Why “Rising Star”
The name is simple on purpose. Every child is a rising star, not because life is easy, but because growth is possible when supports match needs. The goal isn’t perfection. The goal is progress, safety, access, and dignity. The goal is a child who is understood, not managed. A team that works from data and needs, not assumptions. And a parent who feels steady enough to speak clearly and follow through.
Rising Star Advocacy exists for families who want to do this the right way: with documentation, clarity, and a plan.
How is my approach different?
My work is rooted in two things:
Data and heart.
Data matters. Documentation matters. Timelines matter. But so does the human side, the reality of raising a child with needs while trying to hold a job, a household, and your own mental strength. I understand both. I can read the records and know what they mean.
Professional and collaborative, without losing backbone.
I believe in strong communication that stays respectful and clear. I don’t believe in chaos, threats, or emotional explosions as a strategy. I do believe in written follow-through, well-organized evidence, and asking schools to explain decisions in a way that can be understood and documented. I work with families who want to stay focused on student needs and who are ready to move from overwhelmed to organized.
The mission
Rising Star Advocacy is here to help families:
- Make sense of the records and the data
- Prepare for IEP/504 conversations with clarity
- Strengthen school communication with professional writing and follow-through
- Understand options when concerns need to be documented formally
- Build confidence through training and education, not fear
I am not a lawyer, and Rising Star Advocacy does not provide legal advice. What I do provide is real advocacy support that helps families understand the process, organize the facts, and communicate in a way that protects the student and keeps the focus where it belongs.
The heart behind it
I know what it’s like to be the parent walking into a meeting carrying more than a binder. I know what it’s like to fight for your child while trying to keep your own heart intact. I also see the relief that comes when someone helps you sort the noise into a plan, enables you to find your voice again, and reminds you that your child’s needs are not “too much.”
This work is personal, but it’s also professional. It’s built on lived experience, deep respect for families, and an unwavering commitment to student dignity.
That’s our story. And if you’re here because you need support, you don’t have to do this alone.