In partnership with Children and Youth with Special Health Care Needs, ADE/ESS is excited to be able to once again offer free registration for Arizona youth and their families. 

Who can apply for free registration for the 2022 IDEA Conference:

• Youth/Young adults between the ages of 14 and 26 years who have a documented disability
• Family members of a student with an IEP or 504 Plan
• Personal assistants who attend with a student or family member

Special Notes:

• Scholarships cover registration, lodging, and mileage (upon request, for applicants who live 51 miles or more from the JW Marriott Desert Ridge).  
• Scholarship recipients are responsible for the cost of food not provided by the conference.
• To ensure that scholarship funding is fairly distributed, the number of scholarships offered per family may be limited.
• If requests for scholarships exceed available funding, applicants will be placed on a waiting list.

A limited number of free registrations are available. Please complete the Youth, Young Adults, and Families Scholarship application by June 30, 2022. See the attached flyer for more information about this scholarship opportunity.

For more information about the IDEA Conference, including keynote speakers, please visit the IDEA Conference website. Questions about the conference, registration, or the scholarship can be sent to the IDEA Conference inbox.

Special Education Directors,

With input from the U.S. Department of Education, Office of Special Education Programs, the ADE/ESS developed policies and procedures for Early Childhood Special Education Transition that are aligned with the IDEA. Following the public participation process set forth in IDEA and GEPA regulations during Spring 2022, ESS considered all public comments and finalized its policies and procedures document. The finalized document is also available on the ADE/ESS website.

Many thanks are offered to the special education stakeholders who provided feedback and attended information sessions at the Early Intervention and Early Childhood Special Education Summit, as well as the public hearings for special education professionals and parents and families of youth with disabilities.

Special Education Stakeholders,

ADE/ESS is excited to announce keynote speakers for Arizona’s 2022 IDEA Conference, Rise Up: Reimagining and Transforming Educational Practices. This year’s conference will be held in person from September 7–9, 2022 at the JW Marriott Desert Ridge in Phoenix. Please see the conference flyer to learn about Dr. Christopher Emdin, Art Cernosia, and David Edward Garcia. Additional national speakers and exciting conference events will be shared soon.

ADE/ESS is also pleased to announce the opening of registration for the 2022 IDEA Conference. The conference registration fee for professionals is $450 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 the issuance of purchase orders, so please do not delay in registering for the conference. Registration is anticipated to fill quickly. Due to the reduced capacity at this year's conference, ADE/ESS may cap registrations at the entity level in order to ensure that all stakeholders have an equitable opportunity to attend. ADE/ESS will communicate directly with your entity if this cap occurs. 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 for updates throughout the summer. Questions about the conference or registration can be sent to the IDEA Conference inbox.

Special Education Directors,

Please see the following digital flyer learning opportunity for parents of children with disabilities who attend your schools, provided by Raising Special Kids. Feel free to share before the last day of school!

Raising Special Kids is offering 2022 Summer School for Parents in-person & virtually. Link for registration.

Special Education Directors,

The opening of the ADE/ESS Special Education Program Approval System for the 2022–2023 school year will open on May 16, 2022. ESS plans to have all ED-P programs that wish to operate for the fiscal year 2022 to 2023 reviewed and approved by the end of June. Failure to apply to the application may cause integrity failures for public education agencies (PEAs) toward the end of the upcoming school year, which may affect state payments.

Please see this memo for more information.

For any questions on ED-P programs, please contact Victoria Naser at [email protected].

ADE/ESS is excited to announce keynote speakers for Arizona’s 2022 IDEA Conference, Rise Up: Reimagining and Transforming Educational Practices. This year’s conference will be held in person from September 7–9, 2022 at the JW Marriott Desert Ridge in Phoenix. Please see the conference flyer to learn about Dr. Christopher Emdin, Art Cernosia, and David Edward Garcia. Additional national speakers and exciting conference events will be shared soon.

ADE/ESS is also pleased to announce the opening of registration for the 2022 IDEA Conference. The conference registration fee for professionals is $450 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 the issuance of purchase orders, so please do not delay in registering for the conference. Registration is anticipated to fill quickly. Due to the reduced capacity at this year's conference, ADE/ESS may cap registrations at the entity level in order to ensure that all stakeholders have an equitable opportunity to attend. ADE/ESS will communicate directly with your entity if this cap occurs. 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 for updates throughout the summer. Questions about the conference or registration can be sent to the IDEA Conference inbox.

Special Education Directors,

Please share the following virtual math professional learning opportunity with general and special education teachers who teach mathematics.

Creating Accessible Mathematics Classrooms (Grades K–5)

Register in advance for Creating Accessible Mathematics Classrooms.

Presenter:                 Andrew Gael

Date/Time:                Tuesday, June 21, 2022, 10:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m.

Format:                      Virtual (Zoom Meeting)

Fee:                            Free

Participants:             Educators in Grades K–5

Description:

This workshop aims to provide a foundation for mathematics teachers to work successfully with all students in grades K–5. Participants will critique and construct their understanding of ability and disability and how this understanding applies to the mathematics classroom. They will activate prior knowledge of Universal Design for Learning and reflect on best practices for working with students with disabilities. A major focus of the workshop is the design and implementation of instructional routines and activities as a way to increase student access to mathematical content.

About Our Speaker:

Andrew Gael is a national speaker who is the Curriculum Director of Mathematics, grades K–12, at the Cooke School and Institute, a school for students with disabilities in the neighborhood of Harlem in New York City. He also has worked with pre-service teachers at The City College of New York (CCNY). Additionally, he has consulted with Illustrative Mathematics and Desmos on the development of their middle school curricula. He has also developed and facilitated professional development courses for Mathematics in the City at CCNY and Mount Holyoke College.

He has been a member of NCTM’s Publishing Committee, where he was instrumental in the publication of Humanizing Disability in Mathematics Education: Forging New Paths. He has also contributed to publications such as: NCTM’s Math Tasks to Talk About blog, Becoming the Math Teacher You Wish You’d Had, Motivated, and the Global Math Department newsletter.

Please email Jenifer Fernandez or email Rob Hilliker with any questions.

Note: Accommodations must be requested at least one week in advance of the webinar.

DATA MANAGEMENT ALERT      

Special Education Data Updates Webinar Wednesday, May 18th  

   The Exceptional Student Services Data Management team will be hosting the next Special Education Data Updates live webinar on Wednesday, May 18th from 2pm – 3pm. This session will cover a variety of data topics that will include (subject to change):      

• Reminders
  • ODC Phase III Due Soon
  • Statement of Assurances
  • DDC Year-End Data Certification
  • Parentally Placed Private School Students (PPPSS)
  • IDEA Conference – Data Session
• Trending topics
  • Year-End Checklist / Best Practices
  • SEDD (5/18) – Exit and Preschool Transition
    • FY23 - What’s Coming up Next Year
• 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].