Special Education Spotlight Series for Administrators

The special education teacher shortage crisis continues to intensify as educators face unsustainable stress levels, complex responsibilities, and insufficient support systems. Special educators manage broader responsibilities, navigate stricter compliance deadlines, and often receive less institutional support than their general education colleagues, creating a perfect storm for burnout and turnover. Yet forward-thinking districts have discovered practical, cost-effective solutions that transform special education into a more sustainable and rewarding career path while improving student outcomes and protecting district resources. Join Nate Levenson, a recognized national expert and author who has consulted with hundreds of school districts across the country, as he shares actionable strategies from the most successful retention initiatives across the country. During this session, you’ll learn:

• Research-backed methods you can implement to help special educators specialize in their areas of strength, reducing stress and boosting achievement
• Streamlined approaches to your district’s meetings and documentation that maintain full compliance while reducing administrative burden
• Cost-effective strategies for strengthening site-based support and improving administrator-teacher communication
• Proven frameworks for creating more sustainable special education positions in your department that attract and retain quality educators

Student behavior management remains one of the most complex and legally challenging aspects of special education, with Functional Behavioral Assessments (FBAs) and Behavior Intervention Plans (BIPs) at the center of increasing litigation. Recent case law and federal guidance have created new expectations for how districts must approach behavioral supports under IDEA, making it critical for administrators to understand evolving legal standards and their practical implications. When FBAs and BIPs fall short of legal requirements or fail to effectively address behaviors, districts face significant compliance risks and potential due process challenges. In this session, special education attorney Brandon K. Wright, Esq., will analyze key legal trends and provide practical guidance to help your teams develop legally defensible behavioral interventions. By attending this session, you’ll gain:

• Critical insights into recent case law trends affecting FBA and BIP requirements under IDEA
• Updated understanding of federal guidance and how it aligns with current legal expectations
• Practical strategies for ensuring your district’s behavioral interventions meet FAPE standards
• Turnkey approaches to strengthen your district’s FBA and BIP processes

While many students with disabilities nationwide continue performing below pre-pandemic levels on NAEP assessments across all grades and subjects, one state has achieved remarkable success that breaks all previous records. Through strategic planning and effective implementation, Louisiana school districts transformed their approach to teaching students with mild to moderate disabilities, resulting in unprecedented growth that moved the state from 49th in the nation to exceeding the national average in mastery—the only state to show such dramatic improvement over a six-year period. This extraordinary achievement demonstrates that significant gains for students with disabilities are not only possible but replicable with the right strategies and commitment. In this inspiring session, Nate Levenson, who helped lead Louisiana’s transformation, will share the actionable strategies behind this historic success story that districts nationwide can adapt and implement. By attending this session, you’ll gain:

• Three common-sense best practices that drove Louisiana’s record-breaking student achievement gains
• Practical insights into what made Louisiana’s approach successful and how your district can replicate these results
• Strategic frameworks you can implement in your schools to build effective general education and special education partnerships

Extended School Year Services (ESY) determinations can be extremely challenging for IEP teams given that the IDEA statute and regulations provide only limited direction for how IEP teams should evaluate a student’s need for these services. While summer may still be a few months away, special education administrators should begin preparing their staff now with the knowledge and tools necessary to make educationally and legally defensible ESY determinations. Join school attorney Anne Mickey, Esq., as she reviews the essential considerations an IEP team must make when determining whether a student qualifies for ESY, the factors for determining the services that may be needed, and the most frequent issues that arise and complicate the provision of ESY services. By attending this session, you’ll gain:

• A toolbox of critical data points the IEP team should collect and review when making decisions concerning ESY.
• A step-by-step approach to navigating ESY discussions, including the data that supports a finding that a student’s progress would be “significantly jeopardized” without ESY services.
• Key insights from case law illustrating how courts analyze whether an IEP team’s determinations regarding ESY are procedurally compliant and substantively appropriate.
• An understanding of common problems that arise with ESY service implementation and proactive steps to address them.

No two learners experience school in the same way. Yet too often, students are defined by test scores, labels, or subgroup categories—leaving educators with instructional approaches that overlook the full spectrum of learner needs. Embracing student variance is not just about serving students with disabilities, but about fostering general education collaboration of inclusive practices that move all students forward. In this session, educational consultant Kate Martin will explore how special education administrators can lead a shift in mindset and practice, equipping teams with approaches and frameworks that unlock student potential across diverse classrooms.

In this session, you will gain:

• Turnkey, high-leverage approaches to activities that will help you support change in educators’ practice
• Best practices and practical insights into how student variance impacts expectations and instructional design
• Strategies to identify and address the design barriers that contribute to instructional and behavioral challenges

As an experienced administrator, you’ve likely navigated countless IEP challenges and built strong systems to support your teams. Yet from the courtroom perspective, school district attorneys are witnessing a concerning pattern: even well-run districts with seasoned leadership are making common IEP design mistakes that consistently result in legal disputes. With courts and hearing officers increasingly scrutinizing specific aspects of IEP design, administrators need updated guidance on the most widespread design mistakes that pose the greatest risk and how to steer their teams away from these dangerous waters. Join special education attorney Brandon K. Wright, Esq., for this session that cuts through fluff and complexity to give you a new perspective on the IEP design elements that matter most legally. During this session, you’ll gain:

• Clear identification of the most common IEP design mistakes that create serious legal vulnerabilities
• Updated analysis of how courts and hearing officers are currently ruling on these design issues so that you can prepare your teams accordingly
• Proven solutions your teams can implement to eliminate these common high-risk mistakes
• Practical guidance for coaching your IEP teams toward legally sound decision-making

For too long, schools have relied on the myth of the “average” learner, creating environments that overlook both student variability and the strengths diversity brings to a classroom. Special education administrators play a critical role in shifting this narrative—championing instructional design that fits students, rather than forcing students to fit the design. When educators design for difference, they unlock the conditions for all learners to demonstrate their full potential. In this session, special education consultant Kate Martin will provide special education administrators with practical tools to lead this shift across their schools and districts. By attending, you’ll gain:

• Turn-key resources for your teams to strengthen inclusive design
• New insights into why equality can unintentionally undermine fairness in learning environments
• Practical district-wide strategies to build shared ownership of meaningful inclusion with general education colleagues

The intersection of student safety and special education law is one of the most complex and sensitive areas facing administrators today. Join school attorney Anne Mickey, Esq., as she uses real-world legal dilemmas to conduct an in-depth analysis of the compliance errors that can occur when threat assessment procedures collide with special education law. This webinar will provide special education leaders with important legal insights that should be considered when determining how to proceed in a manner that protects both the school community and a student’s rights under the IDEA, Section 504, and other disability-rights laws. By attending this essential session, you’ll gain:

• The critical intersections and compliance traps between threat assessment procedures and federal laws, including the IDEA, Section 504, and Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act.
• The mandatory legal requirements for factoring the nature of a student’s disability into the threat assessment process.
• Best practices for legally integrating special education requirements into threat assessment determinations and subsequent disciplinary and instructional recommendations.