Special Education Directors,

ESS/Program Support &  Monitoring is pleased to announce the release of the SY 2024–2025 Programmatic Monitoring Guide Steps. Attached is the release memo that indicates some of the recent updates.

The Guide Steps is a technical assistance document created to aid public education agencies (PEAs) in understanding the requirements specific to programmatic monitoring. Legal compliance may be more extensive as it relates to a state complaint or due process. Any examples should not be taken directly and added to a student’s IEP or evaluation because each student is unique and has his/her own set of circumstances that must be addressed through his/her individual evaluation and IEP.

We hope that these Guide Steps assist PEAs to review created student documents for compliance purposes and to assist in reviewing systemic, programmatic needs within the PEA. Questions can be directed to your PEA’s Program Support & Monitoring Specialist.

Please see the attached information on a training opportunity the National Down Syndrome Congress is offering locally.

Free registration to attend the Educators Conference if the attendee volunteers for the Youth & Adults Conference on Saturday, July 27, from 8:15 am to 5:15 pm OR volunteers for two sessions of Kids Camp throughout Saturday or Sunday. After the attendee volunteers, they will receive a $75 refund. 

Register to volunteer at https://bit.ly/48EWu4i.  After the Convention, email [email protected] to receive a refund or if you have any questions. 

Conference flyer can be found here.

Are you concerned about the current rate of suspensions and expulsions at your school or district? Do you feel students are losing valuable class time due to disruptions and other behavior problems? Are teachers struggling to be successful with classroom management? Are administrators spending too much time dealing with discipline issues?  If you answered yes to one or more of these questions, you might find the solution in Multi-Tier Behavior Supports.

Multi-Tier Behavior Supports (MTBS) is a three-year training series that will assist district, charter, or school teams in developing a school-wide approach to positive behavior management practices. This training is based on School-Wide Positive Behavior Interventions and Support (SW-PBIS) evidence-based elements. The Individuals with Disabilities Act (IDEA) notes that “the IEP team shall, in the case of a child whose behavior impedes the child’s learning or that of others, consider the use of positive behavioral interventions and supports, and other strategies, to address that behavior” (20 U.S.C. §1414(d)(3)(B)(i)). 

Year 1 training sessions will be held on September 16–17, 2024, December 2–3, 2024, and February 3–4, 2025. The cost is $100 per team member for the Year 1 training. Costs for participation in Years 2 and 3 of the training may be reimbursed with funding by ADE/ESS if certain requirements are met.

Several open spots remain for teams to register for the 2024-2025 MTBS cohort. If you would like to learn more or start the application process, please contact Celeste Nameth.

The ADE/ESS/Academic Achievement and Inclusive Practices team is working with the Academic Standards Mathematics team to offer meaningful professional learning to high school math teachers across the state, focusing on supporting students with disabilities. Use your remaining ESSER funds to support your high school math educators with this training!

Title: Unlocking Potential: Innovative Approaches to Teaching Math to Diverse High School Learners

Date: June 13−14, 2024
Time: 8:00 a.m.−3:30 p.m.
Location: Scottsdale, AZ
Fee: $60
Presenters: Laurel Cherry, Academic Standards, and Rob Hilliker, ESS

Workshop Description
Are you looking for more ways to unlock all of your students’ potential? Join us to uncover strategies that will help your students crack the code to feel empowered and succeed in math! You will engage in rich tasks that give students the keys that will unlock deep connections across concepts. We will explore how to incorporate concrete manipulatives and visual representations to master high school math standards. We will also offer ideas for targeted practice when preparing for state assessments. By making math relevant and exciting, we unlock potential and build strong foundations for success in high school math standards, on the ACT, and beyond!

Register for Unlocking Potential: Innovative Approaches to Teaching Math to Diverse High School Learners. Search for “Unlocking Potential” to find the session in APLD.

If you have any questions about the training, please email Rob Hilliker or email Laurel Cherry.

ADE/ESS is excited to announce the opening of registration for Arizona’s 2024 IDEA Conference: Expect, Engage, Achieve. This year’s conference will be held from September 4–6, 2024, at the JW Marriott Desert Ridge in Phoenix. Please visit the IDEA Conference website to learn about our keynote speakers: Valerie Williams, Perry Zirkel, Pamela Schuller, and Dr. Erik Carter. Additional national speakers and exciting conference events will be shared soon. 

The conference registration fee for professionals is $575 per person and can be paid by credit card, check, or purchase order. ADE/ESS is aware that PEAs may have approaching procurement deadlines related to issuing purchase orders, so please do not delay in registering for the conference. Registration is anticipated to fill quickly.

Register for the 2024 IDEA Conference in the Arizona Professional Learning and Development System (APLD). Interested participants must have an ADE Connect account to complete the registration. See the APLD Learner Guide for detailed steps to complete registration.

Please visit the IDEA Conference Registration web page to learn more about registering, including making a Save My Seat request, Lodging, and Frequently Asked Questions.

ESS appreciates this opportunity to learn with each of you and looks forward to this year’s conference. Stay informed by visiting the IDEA Conference website for updates, including announcements about keynote speakers. Questions can be emailed to the IDEA Conference inbox

Teach Camp registration is filling up fast! It is hard to believe that we will launch Teach Camp for the fifth year this summer! Teach Camp provides professional learning and supports that are specifically designed for beginning special education teachers. Teach Camp aims to increase the retention of special educators by providing our newest special education teachers with the tools that they need to survive and thrive during their first years in the classroom. Of this year’s participants, 97.5 % reported that their work-related knowledge had increased because they attended camp, and 100% reported an increase in their work-related motivation!

Teach Camp is available to special education teachers who will begin their first, second, or third year of teaching special education in Fall 2024. Recent graduates from traditional teacher preparation programs, alternative certified teachers, and veteran general education teachers transitioning to special education are all welcome. Please note that participants must be currently employed in a school district or charter as a special education teacher for the 2024-2025 school year, and participants must have no more than two years of special education teaching experience in total (including previous positions) to be eligible to attend Teach Camp.   

The cost is only $250 per teacher and includes:  

• 3-day summer “camp” to be held July 9–11, 2024, at the Rio Salado Conference Center in Tempe* (breakfast and lunch provided)  
• One-day follow-up session in February 2025 in Phoenix* (lunch provided)   
• A copy of The Survival Guide for New Special Education Teachers  
• A one-year membership to the Council for Exceptional Children
• Additional valuable resources   

Here are some of the things this year’s campers had to say about their experience at camp:

“This is one of the BEST conferences I have attended. Not just because of all the valuable resources provided, knowledgeable and accessible presenters, materials given... Mainly because of all the Teach Camp representatives who were so kind, inspiring, happy, motivating, encouraging, and attentive!! To me, this was the best part of the training. I felt cared for!”

“The information provided was invaluable. Learned many new things and especially loved the resource toolbox. The whole training was worth it just to have that info to tap later.”

“Not many to mention just one. All the individual sessions! Carol Kosnitsky's knowledge, experience, passion and energy just lights a fire under you and gets you excited. Great to meet so many of you that work at Dept of Ed in ESS, gave me a great understanding of where the support system starts.  LOVE the Survival Guide book, I'm on the last chapter and there are so many great resources in there. It reinforces and supports Teach Camp!”

“The best thing was the staff who planned and executed the camp. They thought of everything. BEST seminar I ever attended, and the follow-up day was very anticipated. It did not disappoint. Practicality of information presented; I absolutely enjoyed Carol Kosnitsky!”

Registration for Teach Camp is open until June 25, 2024*, on a first-come, first-served basis. Registration must be approved by the special education director and completed by the PEA, not the special education teacher. On-site registration is not available

*To be considered for travel reimbursement, participants must register at the link below by May 17, 2024.

Begin the registration process for Teach Camp!

Do your students doubt their abilities when they experience challenges? Do they understand how to put forth effort and make progress toward their goals? Self-efficacy instruction can increase students’ belief in themselves and can develop their ability to persist through learning challenges. 

The ADE/ESS, in collaboration with the University of Kansas Research Collaboration, is offering the College and Career Competencies Project, a free, one-year professional development series that includes:

• Free access to self-efficacy curricula at the primary, intermediate, and secondary levels with 25+ evidence-based instructional activities that teach 10 self-efficacy strategies.
• Virtual training across the school year to all staff, based on your PD calendar.
• Assessments to show student growth.
• Coaching support throughout the implementation process.

The College and Career Competencies Project is accepting 12 more schools (elementary, middle, or high) for the 2024–2025 school year!

To participate, have an administrator from your district complete the CCCs Project Interest Form and schedule a 30-minute conference call about the project.

View the self-efficacy infographic, which includes the definition of self-efficacy and student impacts resulting from instruction.

For any questions, email Pattie Noonan.

Data Management Alert

FY2024 Special Education Data Dashboard

The Special Education Data Dashboard (SEDD) opens today, May 8, 2024. 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).

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 certify this information during data certification.

• Public School Districts

  • Exit, including tuitioned-out students

  • Discipline, including tuitioned-out students

  • Students Without Disabilities (SWOD), if applicable

  • Preschool Transition

• Charter Schools

  • Exit, including tuitioned-out students

  • Discipline, including tuitioned-out students

  • Students Without Disabilities, if applicable

• Secure Care Facilities

  • Exit

  • Discipline

Training

We are conducting training sessions to help you to meet the reporting requirements. Each session will cover the same material. Registration is required.

• Online Training via Zoom

Date: Thursday, May 23, 2024

Time: 9:00 a.m.–12:00 p.m.

Register for the online training

• In-Person Training

Location: 100 N. 15^th Ave., Phoenix, AZ 85007

Date: Monday, June 3, 2024

Time: 1:00–4:00 p.m.

Register for the in-person training

Important Dates

• May 8, 2024: SEDD opens

  • Validate that users have the correct access to the application

  • Begin reviewing/entering data

• July 15, 2024: Student data is due

  • All student data in AzEDS must be corrected in PEA’s SIS

  • Preschool Transition and SWOD data entry

• July 22, 2024: Data Certification opens

  • Due August 5, 2024, by 5:00 p.m.

    • LEA Signer must complete electronically

Application Access

The following roles can access the SEDD application and can only be assigned by a local ADEConnect Entity Administrator within the PEA:

• ESS SEDD: LEA User

  • Data Entry and Review only

• ESS SEDD: LEA Signer

  • Data Entry, Review, and Certification

New for FY2024

• Application

  • SPED Discipline Data

    • Previous: Data was submitted in the Discipline Data Collection Application

    • New: Discipline Data is collected in AzEDS

• Data

  • SPED Exit Data

    • Previous: Students must be enrolled in SPED services within the first two weeks of the school year

    • New: The student's enrollment in SPED services must align with the approved AzEDS calendar and be effective from the first day of school

    • Previous: Exit Review Status

    • New: Exit Review Status removed (email notifications optional)

• Reports

  • New: Discipline Detail Report (coming soon)

We hope to see you at one of our training sessions. Please email the ESS Data Management inbox with any questions.

The ADE/ESS Special Education Program Approval System for the 2024–2025 school year opens on Wednesday, May 8, 2024. ESS plans to have all Private Special Education Schools, Emotional Disabilities-Public (ED-P) programs, and Residential Treatment Centers (RTCs) that wish to operate for the fiscal year 2025 reviewed and approved by June 15, 2024. Failure to apply may cause integrity failures for public education agencies (PEAs), affecting state payments. Please see the attached memo.

For more information on completing the application, please refer to the Private Special Education Schools and Emotional Disabilities- Public (ED-P) instruction manuals.

If you have questions regarding Private SPED Schools or ED-Ps, please email the Private Day and ED-P inbox. If you have any questions regarding RTCs, please email the Vouchers inbox.

FY25 Special Education Program Approvals

The ADE/ESS/Academic Achievement and Inclusive Practices team is excited to announce a free, virtual, professional learning opportunity for educators and administrators: “Sparking Curiosity with Problem-Solving: Raising Student Voice.” Come learn about a professional learning series for the 2024–2025 school year that offers in-person training and on-site coaching. This presentation is designed for general and special education teachers and administrators.

“Sparking Curiosity with Problem-Solving: Raising Student Voice”

Date: Tuesday, June 4, 2024

Time: 9:00−11:00 a.m.

Fee: Free

Register for Sparking Curiosity with Problem-Solving: Raising Student Voice

About Cecilio Dimas

Cecilio Dimas is the Executive Director of the Silicon Valley Mathematics Initiative (SVMI). Cecilio has served as a mathematics coordinator and has supported districts in their efforts to implement the Common Core State Standards in Mathematics. He has taught at both elementary and secondary levels. SVMI has played a vital role in his development as a learner, teacher, coach, facilitator, and administrator. Cecilio enjoys working with students, teachers, and administrators and believes that fostering the development of critical thinking, collaboration, and communication skills while nurturing language development and cultivating joy in the mathematics classroom is essential for all students to thrive in our local, national, and global communities.

Workshop Description
Join us as we explore how to empower students to delve into problem-solving enthusiastically. We will use low-floor/high-ceiling tasks rooted in routines and lesson structures that develop language and mathematics authentically and purposefully. Mr. Dimas will lead participants through learning experiences that utilize Math Language Routines. You will gain practical strategies that you can use right away in your classrooms. During this session, we will also provide you with information about an exciting professional learning and coaching opportunity.

If you have any questions about the training, please email Rob Hilliker.