Special Education Directors,

Please see this attached memo from the Division of Developmental Disabilities (DDD) regarding school-aged DDD members who are not able to attend in-person school and who need support to engage in remote learning. DDD worked with AHCCCS and ADE/ESS to determine the services that could be helpful for DDD members during the COVID-19 pandemic and beginning September 8, 2020, DDD may assess for and authorize Attendant Care and Nursing services to support DDD members who are learning remotely. This assessment will include:

• Documenting member’s “school day” in the daily schedule section of the planning document.
• Determining member’s need for support during identified remote learning time. Examples include difficulty using the technology, need for supervision due to safety concerns, need for consistent redirection, physical support, behavioral support, or other similar need.
• Identifying the support available to the member for remote learning. Examples include parents/step-parents, primary caregivers, siblings, neighbors, or in-home school personnel.
• If parents/step-parents, legal representatives, or primary caregivers are unavailable, the reason why (e.g., work, school, other) must be documented.

If you have any questions, please contact the DDD Customer Service Center at 1-844-770-9500. Other resources can be accessed on the DDD webpage.

DATA MANAGEMENT ALERT   

FY20 Annual Data Collection (ADC) – Due Date Extension

Due to Student Information System (SIS) vendor updates, the due dates for ADC have been revised as follows:

September 21, 2020 – Discipline data due (ESS Discipline Data Collection application)

September 23, 2020 – Final Submission opens (ESS ADC application)

September 30, 2020 – Agency reports and electronic signature due (ESS ADC application)

Please direct questions to [email protected].

Special Education Directors,

Please see the information below from our colleagues with the Arizona Association of School Psychologists (AASP) regarding their upcoming all-day continuing education program on Behavioral Threat Assessment. Feel free to forward to your staff.

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(Annual Conference Series 1) Behavioral Threat Assessment and Management (BTAM): Best Practices for K-12 Schools

When: 24 Sep 2020 9:00 AM, UTC-07:00
Where: Webinar

How to register: https://www.aasp-az.org/event-3938185

Dr. Melissa Reeves (Full-Day Training via Webinar) will be presenting from 9:00 am to 3:30 pm on “Behavioral Threat Assessment and Management (BTAM): Best Practices for K-12 Schools” (6-hours NASP Approved CPD Session).

This workshop will focus on the process and procedures needed to establish a consistent school/district-wide approach to behavioral threat assessment and management utilizing a multidisciplinary team. Critical factors discussed will include: current statistics, legal cases, post-incident reviews, and early identification of warning signs, primary prevention strategies to "break the code of silence; an overview of threat and risk assessment models and tools; assessment procedures; and strategies for interventions, postventions, and working with difficult parents.  Case study examples and forms will be shared to illustrate the process.  

Participants will learn:

• how to establish a consistent school- or district-wide approach to behavioral threat assessment.
• the critical factors contributing to risk to include current statistics and early identification of warning signs
• best practice guidelines as established by prior legal cases and lessons learned reports
• primary prevention strategies to break the code of silence
• how to assess for risk using best practice guidelines and procedures established by the US Secret Service and US Dept of Education
• strategies for interventions and postvention
• strategies for working with difficult parents
• from case study examples and shared forms that illustrate the BTAM screening and full assessment process

Presenter Bio: Melissa Reeves, PhD, NCSP, LPC, is an Associate Professor at Winthrop University. She is the Past President of the National Association of School Psychologists (2016–2017), a nationally certified school psychologist, licensed professional counselor, and licensed special education teacher. She has over 19 years’ experience working in public schools, a private school, and day and residential treatment programs. Dr. Reeves is a coauthor of the PREPaRE Crisis Prevention and Intervention curriculum and travels both nationally and internationally training professionals in crisis prevention and intervention, threat and suicide assessment, trauma and PTSD, and cognitive–behavioral interventions. She recently joined Sigma Threat Management Associates as a senior consultant and is also an advisor for Safe and Sound Schools, an organization founded by two parents who lost their children in the Sandy Hook tragedy. She has coauthored multiple books and publications focusing on school safety and trauma.

This is a first in a series of four professional development days for the AASP Annual conference.

Technology Information

This event will be offered via a Zoom Webinar. This will include small group breakouts and interaction with Dr. Reeves. The workshop is all day with a one hour lunch break. Participants should ensure they have a reliable internet connection with speaker, microphone, and video capabilities.

Please note that you must be a current member of AASP at the time you register for the conference in order to obtain the member rate. It is recommended that you renew membership a week to ten days prior to registering for the conference event.

Registration on the AASP website allows for Purchase Order.

Special Education Directors,

Please join us for the next episode of Thursday Afternoon LEarning Series, or TALES, on Thursday, September 17 from 3:00 p.m.—4:00 p.m., when leaders from the Arizona Association of School Psychologists (AASP) present, “Considerations for Completing Educational Evaluations as Schools Reopen.”

As schools are working to support students’ safe return to school, they are also challenged with determining how to meet the needs of diverse learners, including identifying and making eligible those students who are in need of special education. Please join us as our presenters share considerations for completing initial and reevaluations as schools reopen after the COVID-19 school closure. Topics covered will include collecting additional data, SLD determination, and teleassessment.

Please click here to register. After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the meeting. Participant registration is first-come, first-served and is not limited to special educators – feel free to forward. Questions regarding this professional learning opportunity can be sent to Sherri Schwindt.

We look forward to seeing you there!

OSERS published updates to "A Transition Guide to Postsecondary Education and Employment for Students and Youth with Disabilities, August 2020" to advance the office's efforts in ensuring that all students and youth with disabilities are equipped with the skills and knowledge to achieve their post-school and career goals.

In this updated transition guide, OSERS added information about dual enrollment and the ABLE Act. OSERS also hopes this transition guide will help students and youth with disabilities and their families to better understand how the state education agencies (SEA), the local education agencies (LEA), and the vocational rehabilitation (VR) agencies work together to facilitate improved outcomes for students and youth with disabilities.

• A Transition Guide to Postsecondary Education and Employment for Students and Youth with Disabilities (August 2020) 
• Letter from RSA Commissioner and OSEP Director on the importance of collaboration between special education and vocational rehabilitation related to secondary transition 

DATA MANAGEMENT ALERT   

FY20 Annual Data Collection (ADC) – Final Submission 

 This is a friendly reminder that the FY20 ESS Annual Data Collection application is available and accessible to PEAs. Be aware, there are two separate due dates involved in this data collection reporting requirement. 

 Disciplinary incident data for students with disabilities is extracted from the ESS Discipline Data Collection (DDC) application located in the ESS portal available in ADEConnect. All discipline data reporting must be finalized by 5 p.m. on Tuesday, September 15, 2020 in the DDC application. 

 The Final Submission process for the FY20 ADC is planned to begin on September 16, 2020. ADC is due in its entirety by 5 p.m. on Tuesday, September 23, 2020. 

 To review ADC training videos, go to the ESS Data Management website and click on "Training Videos".  If you have any questions, direct them to [email protected]. 

Converging Ideas: Connections for Student Success!

Special Education Stakeholders, 

The ADE/ESS is pleased to present the opening of registration for Arizona’s 2020 IDEA Conference, Converging Ideas: Connections for Student Success! We are excited that the IDEA Virtual Conference is here and we are ready to open professional and personal development for this school year with rich and relevant learning opportunities. 

Throughout the 2020—2021 school year, the conference will feature 24 sessions targeted to professionals in the education community, and 18 sessions targeted to youth and families. The youth and family sessions will be held on Tuesdays from 7:00—8:00 p.m., and the professional sessions will take place on Thursdays from 2:45—4:00 p.m. IDEA Virtual Conference professional learning opportunities will be provided to participants FREE for the entire school year!!

The IDEA Virtual Conference Kick Off begins next week! The youth and family strand kick off is Tuesday, September 1 – and the professional strand kick off is Thursday, September 3.

Please note: The IDEA Virtual Conference will host learning opportunities in a regular schedule throughout the year as follows:

• Professional sessions will be held on the 1^st, 2^nd, and 4^th Thursday of every month from 2:45 p.m.—4:00 p.m.
• Youth and Family sessions will be held on the 1^st and 3^rd Tuesday of every month from 7:00 p.m.—8:00 p.m.

Information, session descriptions, dates, and registration information can all be found at /ideaconference. Session information will be made available approximately one month in advance on the website so that participants can reserve time in their busy schedules for important learning and connecting opportunities.

Please contact Aanya Rispoli for any questions related to the 2020 IDEA Virtual Conference. We appreciate all of the hard work being undertaken at the beginning of the school year and look forward to a productive year ahead.