There was an error in our recent automated email notifications regarding the certification process for the Special Education Data Dashboard (SEDD) application. The emails incorrectly stated that the certification period is currently open. We apologize for any confusion this may have caused and appreciate your understanding. Rest assured, you will receive a notification when the application officially opens on May 7, 2025, and again when the certification window opens on July 23, 2025. 

Continue reading for important information regarding the Special Education Data Dashboard application and its processes. 

Special Education Data Dashboard 

The Special Education Data Dashboard (SEDD) is scheduled to open on May 7, 2025. SEDD is a comprehensive platform for Public Education Agencies (PEAs) to securely access federally mandated special education and statewide public data with redaction features. Through this application, PEAs enter, review, and certify special education data required under Section 618 of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA).  

Application Access  

The roles below can access the SEDD application and can only be assigned by the local ADEConnect Entity Administrator within the PEA. Only one role should be assigned per user, and it should be applied at the parent entity (district) level:  

• ESS SEDD: LEA User  
  • Data Entry and Review only  
• ESS SEDD: LEA Signer  
  • Data Entry, Review, and Certification  
  • This role is designated for SPED directors, superintendents, business managers, and other equivalent titles. 

Reporting Requirements  

Even if a PEA did not provide services to any special education students throughout the school year, the PEA is still required to review this data during the review period and certify this information during data certification.   

• Public School Districts  
  • Exit data, including tuitioned-out students  
  • Discipline data, including tuitioned-out students  
  • Students Without Disabilities (SWOD), if applicable  
  • Preschool Transition  
• Charter Schools  
  • Exit data, including tuitioned-out students  
  • Discipline data, including tuitioned-out students  
  • Students Without Disabilities, if applicable  
• Secure Care Facilities  
  • Exit data  
  • Discipline data

Important Dates  

• May 7, 2025: SEDD opens  
  • Validate that users have the correct access to the application  
  • Begin reviewing/entering data, if applicable  
• July 15, 2025: Student data submission deadline  
  • All student data in AzEDS must be corrected in PEA’s SIS  
  • Preschool Transition and SWOD data entry via the SEDD application  
• July 23, 2025: Data certification opens  
  • Users with the ESS SEDD: LEA Signer role must complete electronically 
• August 6, 2025: Data certification deadline 
  • PEAs who fail to certify may have their IDEA funds placed on hold 

Training and Office Hours  

We are conducting a training session via Microsoft Teams to help PEAs meet these reporting requirements. If you cannot attend this event, a video of the webinar will be made available later.  

Date: Thursday, May 8, 2025  
Time: 9:00 a.m.–12:00 p.m.  
Register for the online training. 

Office hours will be available to assist PEAs with questions in troubleshooting their data. We aim to begin office hours starting Tuesday, May 13, 2025. Additional information regarding office hour registration will be provided during the SEDD webinar and published to the SEDD website when available.  

We hope to see you during the SEDD webinar!

If you have any questions or need further assistance, please do not hesitate to contact the ESS Data Management inbox or call us at 602-542-3962.

DATA MANAGEMENT ALERT  

FY26 Statement of Assurances Open for Submission 

The FY26 Statement of Assurances application is open for submission. All public education agencies (PEAs) must submit the IDEA Statement of Assurances (SOA) through the ESS Portal within ADEConnect. This is required before any FY26 activities in the Exceptional Student Services portal are allowable. The portal will block any PEA that has not completed the SOA effective July 1, 2025, which is when FY26 begins. 

The application is now open for submission and closes on June 11, 2025. 

The SOA must be submitted by the Superintendent, Charter Holder, or Special Education Director of your PEA before FY26 IDEA funding applications are approved in the Grants Management Enterprise system. 

• The PEA must assign the role of ESS Special Education: Signer in ADEConnect to the individual who will review, sign, and submit the Statement of Assurances. 

• PEAs that do not apply for IDEA funds are still required to submit the SOA. 

Please direct any questions to [email protected]. 

DATA MANAGEMENT ALERT   
      

Special Education Data Updates Webinar: Wednesday, April 16, 2025 

The Exceptional Student Services Data Management team will host the next live Special Education Data Updates webinar on Wednesday, April 16, 2025, from 2:00 to 3:00 pm. This session will cover a variety of data topics that will include:    

• Reminders  

• Trending topics  

• Top Three Integrity Errors 

• Q&A     

Please register by clicking this link. Registration is required to attend. If you have any questions, please email the ESS Data Management inbox.  

DATA MANAGEMENT ALERT  

FY26 Statement of Assurances, required for all Public Education Agencies, opens April 2, 2025 

Under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA), the representative body for Special Education for Arizona, Exceptional Student Services (ESS), is required to annually obtain assurances from Public Education Agencies (PEAs) attesting that they are meeting the requirements under state and federal statutes. This requirement is completed via the Statement of Assurances application. 

Completing the annual Statement of Assurances is a requirement for all entities defined as a PEA, regardless of whether they get federal funds. Non-Public Organizations (NPOs) are exempt from this requirement.  

All PEAs must submit the FY26 Statement of Assurances (SOA) through the ESS Portal, accessed via ADEConnect.  

The application will open on April 2, 2025, and close for submissions on June 11, 2025. 

The SOA must be submitted by your Superintendent, Charter Holder, or Special Education Director before FY26 IDEA funding applications are approved in the Grants Management Enterprise system. 

• The PEA’s entity administrator must assign the role of ESS Special Education: Signer in ADEConnect to the individual who will review, sign, and submit the SOA. 

• PEAs that do not apply for IDEA funds are still required to submit the SOA. 

Once the role is assigned, please log in to ADEConnect, navigate to the Exceptional Student Services portal, and select the Statement of Assurances link under Surveys & Assurances:

The survey code will auto-populate for your PEA. Please select the “Yes” checkbox for each page to indicate your assurances for the requirements. 

Upon completion, the SOA can be printed for your records. If your PEA wants to ensure that the SOA was submitted, re-accessing the SOA will display the “Thank you for submitting” page. 

Please direct any questions to the ESS Data Management inbox. 

DATA MANAGEMENT ALERT    

Special Education Data Updates Webinar: Wednesday, March 19, 2025  

The Exceptional Student Services Data Management team will host the next live Special Education Data Updates webinar on Wednesday, March 19, 2025, from 2:00 to 3:00 pm. This session will cover a variety of data topics that will include:    

• Reminders  

• Trending topics  

• Top Three Integrity Errors 

• Q&A     

     Please register by clicking this link. Registration is required to attend. If you have any questions, please email the ESS Data Management inbox.  

DATA MANAGEMENT ALERT    

Special Education Data Updates Webinar: Wednesday, February 19, 2025 

The Exceptional Student Services Data Management team will host the next live Special Education Data Updates webinar on Wednesday, February 19, 2025, from 2:00 to 3:00 pm. This session will cover a variety of data topics that will include:    

• Reminders  

• Trending topics  

• Top Three Integrity Errors 

• Q&A     

 Please register by clicking this link. Registration is required to attend. If you have any questions, please email the ESS Data Management inbox.  

The memo below was initially sent out on November 1, 2024.

Please review the attached memo for important information on determining the primary need when reporting preschool severe delay (PSD), developmental delay (DD), multiple disabilities (MD), or multiple disabilities - severe sensory impairment (MDSSI).

This email updates public education agencies (PEAs) regarding the October 1 Enrollment Data process.

The closing date for October 1 data submissions was December 11, 2024. The integrity process was initiated as usual but took longer than expected to finish, delaying the October 1 processing. As such, the October 1 processing finished on December 13, 2024, and included data submitted on December 12, 2024. We will be cognizant of these factors during the October 1 Non-Reconciliation Phase if they are needed for specific PEAs. Overall, this increased the data quality by allowing an extra day of data, allowing PEAs to further clean their data in AzEDS.

The October 1 Enrollment Data has successfully processed integrity rules and is finalized in AzEDS. The Arizona Department of Education (ADE) encourages PEAs to review final October 1 reports in AzEDS or relevant applications. The October 1 data is now static and will be utilized for financial allocations, research, or other business purposes as appropriate. ADE appreciates the efforts of all PEAs in submitting timely and accurate data.

DATA MANAGEMENT ALERT  

New Integrity Rule for FY 2025: -52012 

A new integrity rule for FY 2025 has been introduced into the integrity process on SPED data. This new rule is a continuation of our effort to validate SPED reporting further to ensure clean data for the state.   

A new one-sheet Integrity Tool is available on our AzEDS SPED Reporting webpage for troubleshooting tips. It has been added to our SPED Integrity Rules Reference document.

PLEASE NOTE: This alert is not an indication your entity is failing this rule. Please check your INTEG15 report in the AzEDS Portal to determine if your entity is failing any SPED Integrity Rules.  

Integrity Rule -52012:

This rule will serve as a WARNING to ensure that incidents identified as serious bodily injury meet the criterion for federal reporting.  

Please contact [email protected] with any questions regarding these new rules.    

DATA MANAGEMENT ALERT  

ESS October 1 Data Collection—Phase III: Non-Reconciliation Webinar 

The Exceptional Student Services Data Management team is happy to announce an upcoming October 1 Data Collection—Phase III: Non-Reconciliation training. Phase III is only for the PEAs that could not match the number of SPED students submitted in Phase I with the number of SPED students in AzEDS during Phase II. PEAs will receive an email if they qualify for Phase III on January 6th, 2025.  

The training will be hosted via a live webinar on Thursday, January 16th, 2025, from 9:30 a.m. – 11:00 a.m. 

Registration is required to attend. Register for the October 1 Data Collection—Phase: III Non-Reconciliation webinar.  

If you have any questions, please email the ESS Data Management inbox.