1. TALK WITH ADE January 24, 2013 1

2. Special Education Certification grades k-12 Proposal: 2  Change from 6 to 2 certificates  Coursework and populations Mild-moderate (ID, TBI, ED, OHI, DD, SLD, ASD) Foundations, legal aspects, collaboration, assessment ELA instruction, math instruction, classroom management, language development and disorders Severe-profound (MD, ID, ASD, TBI, OI, SDD) Same foundation courses Classroom management, adaptive communication, instructional strategies across the curriculum

3. Speech-language technician moratorium 3  Those currently practicing as SLTs can continue to renew and practice within current scope

4. Important Points 4  January 1, 2016 in place  Juniors in college  Time to resubmit for Board approval  Can renew under new certification or old  Not a surprise to the field

5. SELECT COURSES

6. SELECT courses 6  4 new courses for special education directors:  Legal Aspects and Compliance  Compliance on a Shoestring for Small Schools & Charters  Introduction to Special Education Administration  School finance for Special Education Services  Course on feeding being developed And many more! Contact Amy Grey at amy.grey@nau.edu

7. RECRUITMENT & RETENTION EFFORTS Arizona Department of Education Lisa Aaroe 7

8. Arizona Education Employment Board (AEEB)  Listing of open positions  Includes an online application, certification requirements, and a variety of information for job seekers.  Offers email updates on newly posted positions. Average hits: 8,000-13,000 hits per day. http://www.arizonaeducationjobs.com/

9. Great Arizona Teach-In  Annual career fair to help schools find highly qualified candidates to fill their vacant positions.  Over 100 recruiters and 900 candidates each year. http://www.teachinaz.com/

10. Teach in AZ Resource:  Arizona certification  How to become a teacher in Arizona  Education websites, statewide shortages and statewide openings listed by zones.  Arizona School Recruitment and Retention Guide to assist Arizona districts and charter schoolshttp://www.teachinaz.com/

11. Recruitment  Newly designed recruitment flyers and brochures  Site visits  Recruitment fairs  Tuition assistance grants  Future Educators Association  Digital marketing  Facebook, Twitter, Jobing.com, Reruiting.com

12. Retention  Directors’ Institute  Teachers’ Institute  Attrition data  Mentoring programs  AZ-TAS documents  Special Education Director Handbook  CEEDAR Center

13. LONG TERM SUBSTITUTE IN SPECIAL EDUCATION

14. “Long-term substitute in special education” 14  30 cumulative days  30+ days continuous  10+ continuous days in the setting  After 11 th day in same assignment  Absence of 3 weeks  Over 14 school days  More than 20 days Salary increase after 20 days and again after 50 days **Can serve up to 120 school days **=ADE

15. How are parents notified?  Not at all  Letter to parents  Website 15

16. What are districts doing? 16  Washington Elementary School District  They seek retired WESD special education teachers to fill long- term sub positions; given their size, they are usually able to fill positions.  If a retired teacher is not available, they rely on existing sub pool with Special Education Certification and, if needed, they will obtain a contracted teacher.  All receive support from an assigned special education teacher a the school or district level.  IEP case management is assigned to another special education teacher.  Depending on the duration, or if there is a revolving door of subs assigned to a classroom, a parent letter is then sent home.

17. What are districts doing? 17  Litchfield Elementary School District (LESD)  They have identified a few specific subs that generally fill long-term sub positions but they do not have training beyond what they are given through the district and these subs are not special education certified.  LESD provides long-term subs with support and on the job training from their instructional coach who is special education certified.  The instructional coach completes all the paperwork (i.e., IEP’s, progress reports, etc).

18. What are districts doing? 18  Fowler Elementary School District and Peoria Unified School District (PUSD)  Both report finding quality substitute teachers for long- term special education positions can be challenging.  Require long-term and/or short-term subs to have our states substitute certification in place prior to placement.  A high school in PUSD reported that they generally cover classes internally by other certified special education teachers because it is very hard to find long-term subs in special education.

19. States with long-term sub certificates 19 Oklahoma Contracts with LRP Publications for DirectStep Online Modules. $59.00 each module (4 are required; need 80% mastery) Users have seven calendar days to complete all modules. Only good for 1 year California Emergency resource specialist permit with clear scope of practice Texas Guide with very clear delineation of settings, scope of work, and parameters Iowa Have to have Paraeducator certificate+ substitute authorization program (15 hours) if more than 5 days in classroom

20. Committee 20  10 members  Tasks  Clearly define “long term substitute in special education”  Create multiple letter types to notify parents  Analyze and choose best method for training  Create a guide (use Texas’ guide for ideas)