The ADE/ESS is pleased to announce that Teach Camp 6.0 is now open for registration!

After five years of supporting almost 500 new special education teachers, we are as excited as ever about Teach Camp!

Teach Camp aims to increase the retention of beginning special educators by providing them with the tools they need to survive and thrive.

Here’s what some of this year’s campers had to say about their experience at Teach Camp:

• ”I know the knowledge I'll bring back will help improve my own teaching skills and that of my coworkers as I share with them what I've learned.
• “I think this was an awesome experience, and I would recommend this to my colleagues!”
• “Great mix of learning, community, and fun!”        

Teach Camp Eligibility:

• We know there are many pathways to becoming a special education teacher in Arizona. Recent graduates from traditional teacher preparation programs, alternative certified teachers, and veteran general education teachers transitioning to special education are all welcome.
• 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 2025.
• Participants must be directly employed by a school district or charter as a special education teacher.

The cost for Summer 2025 Teach Camp is $250 per teacher and includes:  

• 3-day summer “camp” to be held July 8-10, 2025, at ASU SkySong, 1365 North Scottsdale Rd, Scottsdale, AZ 85257
• Follow-up support throughout the school year, including virtual sessions and newsletters 
• A copy of The Survival Guide for New Special Education Teachers  
• A one-year membership to the Council for Exceptional Children  
• Additional valuable resources     

Registration:
Registration for Teach Camp is open on a first-come, first-served basis. Registration must be approved by the special education director and completed by the district or charter organization, not the special education teacher. Please note that there is a limit of ten registrations for each district or charter. More than ten teachers from any one district or charter will be placed on a waiting list. Please be aware that we may reduce the group size per district or charter organization to accommodate the attendance of more districts/charters and budget constraints for travel reimbursement. On-site registration is not available.   

Travel Reimbursement:
Funding is available for travel costs for districts and charter organizations that are traveling 51 miles or more from the school district or charter office to ASU SkySong, 1301 North Scottsdale Rd, Scottsdale, AZ 85257.  Reimbursements will be made to the district or charter organization, not the special education teacher, via the Arizona Procurement Portal. Please note that APP registration and an additional completed State Procurement Office Form will be required.  Additional information regarding travel reimbursement will be provided to the district or charter organization once registration is completed. To be considered for travel reimbursement for the three-day summer session, registration must be completed by May 2, 2025. Reimbursement may be provided for up to five travelers per district or charter, with additional travelers added as funding permits.

Begin the registration process for Teach Camp!  

Please email the ESS Recruitment and Retention Inbox with any questions about Teach Camp.   

The Arizona Speech-Language-Hearing Association (ArSHA) will hold its annual convention on April 11–12 in Tempe, Arizona. Hundreds of speech-language pathologists (SLPs), speech-language technicians (SLTs), speech-language pathology assistants (SLPAs), and students enrolled in SLP graduate programs will attend this event.

ADE/ESS Recruitment and Retention will staff a booth in the convention exhibit hall to recruit SLPs/SLTs/SLPAs and audiologists on behalf of Arizona’s public schools. Our booth will include information about all SLP/SLT/SLPA positions posted on the Arizona Education Employment Board (AEEB). The AEEB is a free online job provided by ADE/ESS. You can view all current speech positions on the job board to confirm if your vacancy is posted. 

The Arizona Department of Education sponsors the public school strand at the convention to support high-quality, relevant professional development for school-based speech personnel. This year’s sponsored topics include remediation of speech sound disorders, language assessment of multilingual students, assistive technology, building Tier 2 vocabulary, and keeping students engaged in speech therapy.

To be included in this recruitment effort, please post your speech positions on our job board by April 1.

For additional information, please email the ESS Recruitment and Retention Inbox. 

All school districts, charter schools, secure care facilities, and the Arizona State Schools for the Deaf and the Blind (ASDB) are required to annually administer the State Performance Plan Indicator 8 Parent Involvement Survey to parents of students with an Individualized Education Program (IEP). The survey opened on January 20, 2025, via ADEConnect Data Surveys and will close on May 31, 2025. Our current participation rate is 5.1%.

Mail Merge Feature: The survey application has merged the individual student login codes and parent letters. This feature will make it easier for users to disseminate parent instructions.

Additional forms and guidance can be found on the Parent Involvement Survey Info for Schools website and ADEConnect on the Data Surveys page.

If you do not already have access to the survey application or need to add additional users who should have the right to use this information and administer the survey, contact your entity ADEConnect administrator and ask to be assigned the Data Surveys: User Role. If additional assistance is needed to be assigned the User Role, use the Help Desk ticketing system via ADEConnect.

Please email the Parent Survey Inbox with questions.

Are you ready to transform learning and create more inclusive educational experiences? The ADE/ESS Academic Achievement and Inclusive Practices Unit invites all educators to our upcoming free virtual professional learning series on Universal Design for Learning (UDL).

These webinars are an excellent opportunity to deepen your understanding of UDL principles and how they can be applied to create more inclusive, accessible learning environments for all students. These sessions are packed with practical strategies, research-based insights, and tools that can be implemented across diverse classroom settings, supporting the success of all learners.   Whether you're an educator, administrator, or advocate for inclusive education, these webinars will provide valuable takeaways to enhance your practice.

Assistive Tech and UDL: A Conversation About Technology, Tools, and Teaching
Choose One: 
March 25, 4:00-5:00 p.m.
April 8, 4:00-5:00 p.m.

 The Engagement Toolbox: A Treasure Trove of Powerful Strategies

April 3, 4:00-5:00 p.m.

 Leading for Inclusion: UDL Essentials for School Administrators
Choose One: 
April 2, 4:00-5:00 p.m.
April 14, 4:00-5:00 p.m.

 Representation Reimagined: UDL’s Key to Inclusive Learning
Choose One: 
April 10, 4:00-5:00 p.m.
April 30, 4:00-5:00 p.m.

 Please note that these sessions will not be recorded.

Register today and be part of the conversation!

For additional information, visit: https://exceptionalstudent.padlet.org/essacadachincpractices/ade-universal-design-for-learning-resources-39z6kkpy9vyf67x5

We look forward to seeing you there!

(Flyer can be found here)

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. 

The ADE/ESS Assistive Technology (AT) Team is pleased to announce the final installation of our 2024–2025 AT National Presenter series, Meaningful Activities to Increase Participation, Access & Communication for Students with Complex Bodies and Communication Needs, with Julie Marzano, M.S., OTR/L and Emily McCarthy, M.S., CCC-SLP. This presentation is intended for special education administrators, special education teachers, general education teachers, related service providers, and assistive technology specialists.

Date/Time:                  Tuesday, May 6, 2025 - 8:00 AM – 3:30 PM (Seats are limited; register now!) Please bring your own device

Fee:                                $25

Where:                          Gilbert Community Education Center

Address:                       6839 E. Guadalupe Rd., Mesa, AZ 85212

Julie Marzano, M.S., OTR/L, is a nationally certified occupational therapist who works and resides outside of Philadelphia, PA, with her husband and three children. She has over 20 years of experience working in the public school system and currently works at an approved private school serving students aged 3-21 with MANY abilities. Julie loves her job and enjoys the creative aspect of “thinking outside the box” to develop solutions from an OT perspective.

Emily McCarthy, M.S., CCC-SLP, is a nationally certified and licensed speech-language pathologist. She worked in the public school setting for 12 years before transitioning to early intervention. Emily now works with the birth-to-three population in Pennsylvania. Emily lives with her husband and three children just a few streets away from Julie in the suburbs of Philadelphia, PA. 

Julie and Emily are co-creators of Fine Motor Boot Camp and Tooth Camp.

Workshop Description:

Only 2% of students with IEPs in the United States are classified as having multiple disabilities. This population is often underserved in our community. Individuals who work with children with multiple disabilities sometimes struggle to find new and exciting ways to meet the needs of these students. Let’s “think outside the box” and focus on what our students can do! Learn how to use a strengths-based approach to guide active and meaningful participation for our students with multiple disabilities and complex needs in the areas of literacy, math, vocation, and recreation/leisure. Attend and leave re-energized, creative, and equipped with cost-effective activities that can be easily implemented the next day.

Objectives:

• Understand and apply a strength-based approach, including the concepts of “presuming competence” and “presuming potential” for students with multiple and complex needs.
• Gain knowledge of basic language development and modes of communication.
• Define and differentiate between core and fringe vocabulary.
• Define “active participation” for students with complex needs.
• Develop skills to differentiate curriculum and activities to enhance active participation for students with multiple and complex needs.
• Define and understand “active communication responses.”
• Gain knowledge of assessments for communication, including switch, touchscreen, and eye-gaze access methods.
• Increase active participation and access to education for students with complex needs.
• Learn strategies for using switches to increase participation in activities of daily living (ADLs), group activities, math, English Language Arts (ELA), vocational tasks, and recreation/leisure activities.
• Explore Speech Generating Device mounting options and hacks.

Register for Meaningful Activities to Increase Participation, Access & Communication for Students with Complex Bodies and Communication Needs

If you have questions about this training, please email [email protected].

Are you overwhelmed by professional development? Don’t have time for a 90-minute webinar? We got you! Join the ADE/ESS Assistive Technology Team for our spring series, Assistive Technology: Just One Thing (JOT). In these quick 30-minute sessions, we will highlight a single assistive technology tool or strategy that you can use to support your students.

Title:                JOT: Trello- How to Streamline Your Day and Reclaim Your Time

Presenters:     Rui Hernandez, M.S., CCC-SLP

Date:               Wednesday, April 30, 2025

Time:               11:30 AM-12:00 PM

Description: Overwhelmed with your never-ending to-do list? Come learn about Trello, a free, visual task management tool, and how it can help streamline your day. This webinar is specifically designed for educators and will explore practical applications like lesson planning, IEP tracking, parent communication, and resource management. Learn to create boards, lists, and cards to organize everything from daily tasks to long-term projects. Discover time-saving tips and tricks to boost productivity and reclaim your time. Walk away with actionable strategies to implement Trello immediately and conquer your daily chaos. Perfect for beginners, this webinar will empower you to work smarter, not harder!

Registration has closed. 

If you have questions regarding this professional development opportunity, please email [email protected]

Revised 1.23.2026

On October 21, 2024, the Arizona State Board of Education (SBE) approved a board rule change that impacts Individualized Education Program (IEP) requirements, specifically secondary transition services. See this memo for more information about the secondary transition services rule change. In response, the ADE/ESS Program Support & Monitoring (PSM) unit and the Secondary Transition team are collaborating to provide an in-person professional development opportunity to gain clarity on the rule change and how to apply effective practices for stronger transition plans.  

Attendees will receive an overview of secondary transition planning requirements, implications for the 2024 Arizona State Board of Education rule changes, and effective practices. These trainings are geared towards school administrators, teachers, and other staff integral to transition planning and service delivery.

Register to reserve your spot now in Phoenix or Tucson. See the attached flyer for more information.

 If you have questions about this training, please email Veronica Reza.