New DE Policy & Procedures webinars
Annette watched the first webinar on exiting students from special education, and she says it’s excellent – definitely worth your time. You can watch the recording here. Recordings are also available on the DE website under Special Education Guidance. Here’s the information for the next webinar:
- Date: December 11 | 8:30 am
- Topic: Shortened School Days: Smart Use in Special Education
- Presenters: Rachel Bosovich, Ivan Gentry and Brittany Beverage
- Zoom link | Passcode: 431127
Session description: This session will cover when a shortened school day may or may not be appropriate for special education students. Participants will receive checklists to guide decision-making for students with medical or behavioral needs, helping IEP teams determine appropriate plans, including shortened school days or homebound instruction. Additionally, participants will learn how to access and use ACHIEVE data to make informed decisions for students and systems in special education.
Future 2025 dates in the Special Education Policy and Practice webinar series (topics TBD):
- January 15
- February 12
- April 9
- May 14
Hearing screenings for ‘25-’26
We’ve received many questions about universal hearing screenings for next year. As shared in the fall, these screenings are expected to move to a fee-for-service model. While this decision hasn’t changed, we’re in discussions with the DE to clarify our role from a child find perspective. If asked, please let people know we’re working to finalize the decision, but for now, it remains fee-based. We’ll share more with administrators later this winter. For further questions, they can reach out to Annette Hyde or their Regional Administrator.
IEP goals for students on alternate assessment
IEP goals are expected to include short-term objectives. While there’s no specific number required, each goal should go beyond just an annual target. IEP teams should use the advanced goal features to create more time-sensitive objectives for these students, following guidance from i3.
Parent verification & portal updates
ACHIEVE now includes a banner about age-of-majority students. Teachers need to review and validate these students’ IEPs. Statewide, 37,000 parents still need verification – please remind teachers to complete this if they haven’t yet. We’re also testing an issue with verifying surrogate parents and will share updates soon. All verifications must be completed by December 15. The Parent Portal launches in February 2025! See the FAQ for details. Two webinars for LEA and AEA Administrators (not AEA staff) will help districts prepare. Information has been shared via email and admin reports.
Evaluation timelines
Last month, we reminded staff to notify their RA if an evaluation is approaching the 60-day deadline (or 45 days for EAs). The Department of Education expects Central Rivers AEA to meet these timelines 100% of the time. We’ve discovered that ACHIEVE sometimes miscalculates these deadlines – this document provides more details. If you encounter this issue, please submit a ticket with detailed information so we can address it and ensure the timeline is accurate.
SE admin report
December’s SE Admin Report is now available for viewing.
PK, K & PK LRE charts
Clarification on when to choose “both” on the goal stepper for PK, K and PK LRE Charts can be viewed in this PK-K Clarification document.
Parent portal update
In our recent Team Rep discipline meeting, we discussed that AEA staff could share draft EERs with parents through the portal. However, after reviewing the Q&A, we’ve confirmed that parents won’t have access to the portal until after a student is found eligible and consent is signed. This means draft EERs will need to be shared using current methods, even after the portal launches. The portal is expected to go live in late February 2025. Stay tuned for more details and training opportunities.
Live documents, helpful resources and guides can be found on our staff website.
