Special Education Stakeholders,

ADE/ESS is excited to announce the opening of registration for Arizona’s 2023 IDEA Conference: Creating Connections and Strengthening Systems. This year’s conference will be held from August 21–23, 2023, at the JW Marriott Desert Ridge in Phoenix.

The conference registration fee for professionals is $470 per person and can be paid by credit card, check, or purchase order. ADE/ESS is aware that public education agencies (PEAs) may have approaching procurement deadlines related to the issuance of purchase orders, so please do not delay in registering for the conference. Registration is anticipated to fill quickly.

Register for the 2023 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.

To learn more about registration, including information about making a Save My Seat request and Frequently Asked Questions, please visit the IDEA Conference Registration webpage.

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 conference updates, including announcements about keynote speakers. Questions can be emailed to the IDEA Conference inbox.

DATA MANAGEMENT ALERT

FY23 Parentally Placed Private School Student Survey required by all Public School Districts only opens Today, 5/18/23

The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) 2004 requires that each public education agency (PEA) maintain its records and provide to the State information related to parentally placed private elementary and secondary school students covered under §§ 300.130 through 300.144.

The application will open today, 5/18/23 and close for submissions on 8/16/23.

• The PEA must assign the role at the district level of ESS Data Surveys: User in ADEConnect to the individual that will submit this survey.

• Instructions: Parentally Placed Private School Students

• FAQs: Parentally Placed Private School Students

Once the role is assigned, please login to ADEConnect, navigate to the Exceptional Student Services Portal (ESS) and select the ESS Data Surveys application. From there you can click on the blue hyperlinked text “FY23 Parentally Placed Private School Students Survey” to start the survey. Upon completion the application will display a “Thank you for submitting” page.

Please direct any questions to [email protected].

DATA MANAGEMENT ALERT

FY23 Parentally Placed Private School Student Survey required by all Public School Districts only opens Today, 5/18/23

The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) 2004 requires that each public education agency (PEA) maintain its records and provide to the State information related to parentally placed private elementary and secondary school students covered under §§ 300.130 through 300.144.

The application will open today, 5/18/23 and close for submissions on 8/16/23.

• The PEA must assign the role at the district level of ESS Data Surveys: User in ADEConnect to the individual that will submit this survey.

• Instructions: Parentally Placed Private School Students

• FAQs: Parentally Placed Private School Students

Once the role is assigned, please login to ADEConnect, navigate to the Exceptional Student Services Portal (ESS) and select the ESS Data Surveys application. From there you can click on the blue hyperlinked text “FY23 Parentally Placed Private School Students Survey” to start the survey. Upon completion the application will display a “Thank you for submitting” page.

Please direct any questions to [email protected].

DATA MANAGEMENT ALERT

FY23 Parentally Placed Private School Student Survey required by all Public School Districts only opens Today, 5/18/23

The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) 2004 requires that each public education agency (PEA) maintain its records and provide to the State information related to parentally placed private elementary and secondary school students covered under §§ 300.130 through 300.144.

The application will open today, 5/18/23 and close for submissions on 8/16/23.

• The PEA must assign the role at the district level of ESS Data Surveys: User in ADEConnect to the individual that will submit this survey.

• Instructions: Parentally Placed Private School Students

• FAQs: Parentally Placed Private School Students

Once the role is assigned, please login to ADEConnect, navigate to the Exceptional Student Services Portal (ESS) and select the ESS Data Surveys application. From there you can click on the blue hyperlinked text “FY23 Parentally Placed Private School Students Survey” to start the survey. Upon completion the application will display a “Thank you for submitting” page.

Please direct any questions to [email protected].

DATA MANAGEMENT ALERT

FY23 Parentally Placed Private School Student Survey required by all Public School Districts only opens Today, 5/18/23

The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) 2004 requires that each public education agency (PEA) maintain its records and provide to the State information related to parentally placed private elementary and secondary school students covered under §§ 300.130 through 300.144.

The application will open today, 5/18/23 and close for submissions on 8/16/23.

• The PEA must assign the role at the district level of ESS Data Surveys: User in ADEConnect to the individual that will submit this survey.

• Instructions: Parentally Placed Private School Students

• FAQs: Parentally Placed Private School Students

Once the role is assigned, please login to ADEConnect, navigate to the Exceptional Student Services Portal (ESS) and select the ESS Data Surveys application. From there you can click on the blue hyperlinked text “FY23 Parentally Placed Private School Students Survey” to start the survey. Upon completion the application will display a “Thank you for submitting” page.

Please direct any questions to [email protected].

DATA MANAGEMENT ALERT

FY 2023 Special Education Data Dashboard

The Special Education Data Dashboard (SEDD) opens today, May 18, 2023. This application aims to provide a one-stop shop for public education agencies (PEAs) to securely view their special education data and a redacted statewide view. By viewing relevant data in one place, PEAs can see how it all ties together and, ultimately, how it culminates into the indicators outlined in the State Performance Plan (SPP) / Annual Performance Report (APR).

Applicable roles for the SEDD application must be requested from your local ADEConnect Entity Administrator:

• SEDD LEA User includes edit permissions
• SEDD LEA Signer includes edit and signer permissions

To access the SEDD application, please login to ADEConnect, navigate to the Exceptional Student Services Portal, and select the Special Education Data Dashboard button under Data Collection & Reporting:

Currently, the only active component accessible to PEAs is the Student Exit Data for FY 2023. From the homepage of the SEDD application, you can select this component either through the ‘Data’ menu option or click ‘Go’ within the red box.

Exit data will be extracted from AzEDS daily and displayed after federal business rules have been applied (refer to the Exit technical assistance document under the ‘Help’ menu option, which will take you to the SEDD website that contains the applicable tools and resources). This data is REVIEW only. Any changes to this data must be made through your Student Information System and uploaded/synced to AzEDS. You will have until July 15, 2023, by 5:00 pm to finalize your Exit data.

For the remainder of FY 2023 data requirements, we will activate Preschool Transition Data and Students Without Disabilities (expulsion) components on June 30, 2023. Note that these two sections will require data entry to complete.

Two new components will be added on June 1, 2023: Least Restrictive Environment (LRE) and Personnel data, both based on October 1.

Please be aware that this application will be expanded further to include the following items in FY 2024 and 2025:

• SPP/APR Indicators
• PEA Determinations/Risk Analysis
• Discipline for Students with Disabilities
• Assessments
• Data Visualization

If you did not attend the Special Education Data Updates (SEDU) webinar in April or May (soon to be posted), consider reviewing the applicable https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7QetmTW4dgIrecordings available on our website under Training Opportunities or on our YouTube Channel.

Please direct any questions to [email protected].

DATA MANAGEMENT ALERT 

FY24 Data Reporting Updates Document Now Available

ESS Data Management is pleased to announce the FY24 Data Reporting Updates document. It’s now available in the ESS Data Management Toolkit and located on the ESS Data Management website. This document outlines important changes for SPED data reporting for FY24, including AzEDS and ESS applications overseen by ESS Data Management. Most notably, the following changes are for AzEDS reporting in FY24:

• AzEDS Preschool Outcomes Reporting
• AZEDS Discipline Reporting
• AzEDS Ancillary Needs Reporting
• IsIDEAParent Reporting

Applicable SPED integrity rules and reports that validate SPED exit and LRE codes will be updated for these changes.

For any questions regarding the upcoming FY24 Data Reporting Updates, please feel free to contact [email protected]. 

Please refer to the AzEDS SPED Reporting page for current reporting guidance.

ADE/ESS is pleased to announce that registration for the 2023 Special Education New Director Symposium (SENDS) is now open! The purpose of this professional learning opportunity is to prepare new special education directors for the practical operation of a special education system. Topics covered in SENDS include compliance and legal requirements, fiscal issues, assessment, general supervision, and ADE supports and resources.

SENDS will be held virtually from 9:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. on September 15, October 20, November 3, and December 8. New special education directors serving Arizona public education agencies in their first or second year of being a special education director (including any previous positions) are eligible to attend. Each new director will also receive a one-year membership to the Council for Exceptional Children (CEC) and CEC’s Council for Administrators of Special Education (CASE) special interest division. The cost of participation in SENDS is $50.

Register for the Special Education New Director Symposium (SENDS) training.

For questions about SENDS, please email the ESS Recruitment and Retention Inbox.

Registration for Teach Camp is closing soon, so be sure to register your new special education teachers for Teach Camp today! 

Teach Camp is a year-long support system that includes professional learning specifically designed for beginning special educators. The goal of Teach Camp is to increase retention of special educators by providing our newest special education teachers with the tools they need to survive and thrive during their first years in the classroom. 

Teach Camp is available to special education teachers who will begin their first, second, or third year of teaching special education in the fall of 2023. Recent graduates from traditional teacher preparation programs, alternative certified teachers, and veteran general education teachers transitioning to special education are all welcome. Please note, participants must be currently employed in a school district or charter as a special education teacher, 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.  

Teach Camp will launch this summer! The cost is $250 per teacher and includes: 

• 3-day summer “camp” to be held June 26–28, 2023 in Phoenix* (breakfast and lunch provided) 
• One-day follow-up session in February 2024 in Phoenix* with national speaker Carol Kosnitsky (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  

*Information regarding travel reimbursement for participants from eligible PEAs will be provided once registration is completed. 

Registration for Teach Camp is open until June 5, 2023, 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.  

Begin the registration process for Teach Camp! 

Please email the ESS Recruitment and Retention Inbox with any questions about Teach Camp. For more information about Teach Camp, pleasevisit the ESS Teach Camp webpage. 

Both state and national trends point to an increase in the frequency and intensity of special education disputes. More than ever, all members of the IEP team would benefit from exploring additional tools and strategies for strengthening collaborative decision-making and building consensus. The ADE/ESS Dispute Resolution unit is pleased to offer a variety of professional learning opportunities, free of charge, to public education agencies (PEAs) seeking to establish or strengthen a facilitated IEP culture. Interested PEAs can submit a Facilitated IEP Training Request, and the ADE/ESS Alternative Dispute Resolution Specialist will reach out to offer flexible options to meet the needs of your PEA team. Secure your preferred date(s) soon, as summer and fall calendars tend to fill quickly!  

Please visit the Facilitated IEP website to learn more about state-coordinated FIEP meetings and to access the brand-new online request form!  To receive FIEP program updates and dispute resolution tips, join the FIEP listserv. Completing the FIEP Program Survey will help ADE/ESS to improve our process and identify areas of interest for advanced training topics.