Jamie Collins brings to the firm a passion for education and a profound desire to assist families navigating the special education landscape. With a unique balance of analytical skills and sensitivity to the various struggles of special education students and their families, she is a powerful educational advocate.

Jamie began her legal career representing clients seeking political asylum in the United States, at which time she developed a love of advocating for families in need. In the process of raising a family, she further honed her advocacy skills while struggling to locate and access the best resources for her own children in need of educational accommodations and related social and emotional support. Due to frequent relocations across the country with her family, she interacted with many public, private and charter school systems by necessity and understands, firsthand, the obstacles students with disabilities and neurodivergence face. She empathizes with children that struggle in school, not just educationally, but socially and emotionally, and with their parents, who often feel helpless to make things better. Jamie endeavors to assist and support parents in their journey to successfully transition their students to post-high school life and beyond.

Nearly ten years ago, she returned to her hometown of Holmdel, New Jersey, where her love of education and learning resulted in a seat on the Board of Education.  As a board member, she experienced education from the public school perspective, which has been a tremendous asset. While on the board, she served as the Chair of the Curriculum & Instruction Committee, where she championed the cause of vulnerable students in the public education system. Her greatest accomplishments included spearheading improvements for compliance with bullying and bias laws and educating school personnel on the needs of students with disabilities, neurodivergence, and mental health issues. Her advocacy eventually resulted in the hiring of a behavioral health professional from Rutgers University.

Her greatest strengths are her insight into the emotional needs of students struggling with disabilities in school, as well as analyzing assessments and related reports in order to identify the best solutions for them. Her specialties include students with ADHD, learning disabilities, OCD, anxiety disorders, and twice exceptional children.

Jamie has a knack for resolving complex matters and getting tasks accomplished that might seem impossible — giving up is not in her nature, especially when children are involved. She says that everything she has done thus far in her professional and personal life has been in preparation for her position with Manes & Weinberg. She believes that advocating for children with special needs in education is her life’s purpose.