Special Education Directors,

Please see the following information regarding an external professional development opportunity made available by the Arizona Deafblind Project:

Do you or someone you know work with a student with combined vision and hearing loss?

We are pleased to announce registration is now open for the Arizona Deafblind Project's Intervener Training Program. This training addresses the need for high-quality, evidence-based practices for anyone who serves children and youth with combined vision and hearing loss. 

Our flyer describes this training in more depth and includes a syllabus for this year’s Cohort. If you would like more information on the Open Hands, Open Access (OHOA) learning modules we utilize, check out this Introductory Video.

Thank you in advance for considering this training for yourself, your colleagues, and/or those you supervise. Please consider forwarding this information to others who may be interested. Here is the link for ONLINE REGISTRATION, which closes on August 26th. Our work begins together in September.  

If you have any questions, do not hesitate to reach out to any one of the Arizona Deafblind Project Staff. 

Megan Mogan, Deafblind Specialist 

Amy Trollop, Deafblind Specialist

Pat Jung, Deafblind Specialist

Lisa Yencarelli, Project Director

Special Education Directors,

Please see information about a external professional development opportunity:

Are you interested in improving individualized education programs (IEPs)? Are you looking for resources and strategies to help prepare educators to promote progress for students with disabilities? Join the PROGRESS Center for a free two-day virtual learning event, Prepping for PROGRESS! Adding New Tools to Your Backpack (Toolbox) for the Start of School on August 3-4, 2022. The event will focus on sharing information, resources, and lessons learned to support the development and implementation of high-quality educational programming for students with disabilities. ​Learn more about the event and register for sessions on the PROGRESS website!  

DATA MANAGEMENT ALERT 

SEDD Certification begins tomorrow July 20th

Certification of final FY22 Special Education Data begins tomorrow July 20th, and is due by August 3rd. 

Requirements for certification in the Special Education Data Dashboard (SEDD) application include:

• Review of SPED Exit students who qualify for SPED exit as outlined in the SPED Exit Flow Chart.
  • Review of SPED Exiters was due 7/15, aligning with the close of FY22 AzEDS.
  • Any sites not reviewed will still require certification; a comment box is available on the certification page for any additional information.
• Preschool Transition: required for PEAs that provide special education and related services to preschoolers. Data entry involves information on students who transferred from Part C (Arizona Early Intervention Program) to Part B (PEA preschool program).
• Students without Disabilities: data entry is required for PEAs to identify whether or not educational services were provided to students without disabilities reported as long-term suspended or expelled in AzEDS.

Instructions for completion of the FY22 SEDD application are available on our ESS Data Management website.

ADEConnect Roles required for completion:

• ESS SEDD: LEA User
  • Allow for data entry into the application
• ESS SEDD: LEA Signer
  • Allow for data entry into the application and final certification

For any questions regarding this issue please feel free to contact [email protected].

Arizona’s 2022 IDEA Conference, Rise Up: Reimagining and Transforming Educational Practices, is only a few months away. We hope to see you September 7–9, 2022 at the JW Marriott Desert Ridge in Phoenix.

ADE/ESS is excited to announce the conference’s Premier and National Speakers, including Carol Kosnitsky, Dr. Erik Carter, Dr. Phil Strain, and Sarah Ward. Please see the conference flyer to learn more about these speakers, additional national presenters, and other exciting conference events.

Registration for the 2022 IDEA Conference is still open. Register for the 2022 IDEA Conference in the Event Management System (EMS). To learn more about registration and see Frequently Asked Questions, please visit the IDEA Conference Registration webpage.

Please bookmark the IDEA Conference website and check for updates throughout the summer. Questions about the conference or registration can be sent to the IDEA Conference inbox.

DATA MANAGEMENT ALERT

New Integrity Rule -40086 – New SPED14 Exit Code for Preschool

A new Special Education integrity rule -40086, will be introduced into the integrity process on FY23 SPED data. This update is a continuation of our effort to ensure clean data for the state. A new one-sheet Integrity Tool is now available on our AzEDS SPED Reporting webpage for troubleshooting tips for Integrity Rule -40086.

This rule will validate when a SPED14 (No longer eligible for PS Special Education) exit code is reported, the enrollment exit is on the same date.

Note the SPED14 exit code will also need to align to the SPED Exit Validation Matrix to pass exit rule -40055.

Please contact [email protected] with any questions regarding this update.

DATA MANAGEMENT ALERT

Special Education Data Dashboard Update:

Preschool Transition and Students without Disabilities Data Entry Now Open

Two new data entry components are added to the Special Education Data Dashboard (SEDD) as of today:

• Preschool Transition: required for PEAs that provide special education and related services to preschoolers. Data entry involves information on students who transferred from Part C (Arizona Early Intervention Program) to Part B (PEA preschool program).
• Students without Disabilities: data entry is required for PEAs to identify whether or not educational services were provided to students without disabilities reported as long-term suspended or expelled in AzEDS.

These data collection requirements are due by August 3, 2022, by 5:00 pm. If your PEA does not serve preschoolers and/or does not have any students without disabilities reported as long-term suspended or expelled, these components will not be accessible and are not applicable.

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

From the home page of the SEDD application, you can select this component through the “Data” menu option or click “Go” in one or more of the accessible boxes.

As a reminder, exit data will be extracted from AzEDS daily and displayed after processing federal business rules. This data is REVIEW only. Any changes to this data will need to be made through your Student Information System and uploaded/synced to AzEDS. You will have until July 15, 2022, by 5:00 pm to finalize your Exit data.

You can refer to the technical assistance documents under the “Help” menu option, which will take you to the SEDD website that contains the appropriate tools and resources.

If you did not attend the Special Education Data Updates (SEDU) webinar in April or May, feel free to review the recordings available on our website under Training Opportunities or on our YouTube Channel. Note the SEDD portion for the April session begins at 3:57, and the May session begins at 7:08.

Please direct any questions to [email protected].

Special Education Stakeholders,

Arizona’s 2022 IDEA Conference, Rise Up: Reimagining and Transforming Educational Practices, is only a few months away. We hope to see you September 7–9, 2022 at the JW Marriott Desert Ridge in Phoenix.

ADE/ESS is excited to announce the conference’s Premier and National Speakers, including Carol Kosnitsky, Dr. Erik Carter, Dr. Phil Strain, and Sarah Ward. Please see the conference flyer to learn more about these speakers, additional national presenters, and other exciting conference events.

Registration for the 2022 IDEA Conference is still open. Register for the 2022 IDEA Conference in the Event Management System (EMS). To learn more about registration and see Frequently Asked Questions, please visit the IDEA Conference Registration webpage.

The deadline to apply for the Youth and Family Scholarship and submit Student Artwork for Display is Thursday, June 30, 2022. Please share these opportunities with youth, families, and your colleagues.

Please bookmark the IDEA Conference website and check for updates throughout the summer. Questions about the conference or registration can be sent to the IDEA Conference inbox.

Special Education Administrators,

Starting in August 2022, the National Resource Center for Paraeducators (NRCP) and the Center for Technical Assistance for Excellence in Special Education (TAESE) have organized a year of monthly, low-cost, professional development webinars for paraeducators, teachers, administrators, etc.

Saturday Mornings with the NRCP!

Registration is open and ongoing for 12 webinars! One year of professional development!

Join us on the second Saturday of each month for exciting topics and presenters. The first six months will cover topics such as:

• Working Effectively with Students with Challenging and Severe Behaviors
• Teachers and Paraeducators Team-Teaching in the Classroom and On a Tight Schedule: Enhancing Communication Between Paraeducators and General Education Teachers
• Autism/Non-Verbal Trainings/Strategies
• IEPs, IDEA, Behavior Management Plans, and Transition Plans: What Are My Roles and Responsibilities?
• Dispelling the Myths of Unreachable, Unteachable, and Uncaring Students
• Ten Ways to Help the Non-Worker: Jumpstarting Work Completion Behavior

These webinar topics were selected based on feedback collected during the 2021–22 NRCP Regional conferences. The topics were then prioritized based on responses from a participant survey shared with conference participants and across social media outlets. As an administrator or district and state leader, if you have other topics you feel would be pertinent, please feel free to email us.

Each webinar will cost $25 per person. Session bundles are available. Six webinars can be purchased for $125, or all 12 can be purchased for $250. Each webinar will also be recorded and made available to all registrants for a limited time. Group discounts of 20% are available for groups of five or more participants (not limited to specific sessions or bundles). Email Laura Lema for more information and discount codes.

Please review the Save the Date(s) flyer. Each 2-hour webinar will be held from 10 a.m.–12 p.m. Mountain Standard Time (please be mindful of your specific time zone).  

DATA MANAGEMENT ALERT 

Special Education Data Updates Webinar Wednesday, June 15th   

The Exceptional Student Services Data Management team will be hosting the next Special Education Data Updates live webinar on Wednesday, June 15th from 2pm – 3pm. This session will cover a variety of data topics that will include (subject to change):    

• Reminders
  • Special Education Data Dashboard (SEDD) application
    • Preschool Transition data entry
    • Students without Disabilities data entry
    • Certification
  • Statement of Assurances
  • ESS Discipline Data Collection application
  • Parentally Placed Private School Students Survey
• Trending topics
  • FY23 AzEDS Data Reporting Updates
    • New SPED14 Exit Code
    • SPED LRE E Code Changes
    • Discipline Data Reporting in FY23
• Per your Request
  • Review Tuition Payer Codes
  • How to find your Program Support and Monitoring Specialist
• Top 3 Integrity Errors
• Q&A   

Registration is required to attend: Register for Special Education Data Updates webinar.  

For questions, please contact ESS Data Management via email at [email protected].