DATA MANAGEMENT ALERT    

Special Education Data Updates Webinar: Wednesday, October 15, 2025 

The Exceptional Student Services Data Management team will host the next live Special Education Data Updates webinar on Wednesday, October 15, 2025, from 2:00 to 3:00 pm. This session will cover a variety of data topics that will include:    

• Reminders  

• Trending topics  

• Top Three Integrity Errors 

• Q&A     

Please register by clicking this link. Registration is required to attend. If you have any questions, please email the ESS Data Management inbox.  

DATA MANAGEMENT ALERT 

Revised Preschool Outcomes Reporting Guidance

The Preschool Outcomes Reporting Guidance has been revised to provide clarity on what data needs to be submitted as well as when the data needs to be submitted, for preschool students who are receiving special education services. The following integrity errors have been updated:

• -40087
  • Updated Error Message: Preschool students in special education must be reported with three Preschool Outcome Assessments upon entry. Please refer to the ESS Preschool Outcomes Reporting Guidance document.
• -40088
  • Updated Error Message: Preschool students in special education must be reported with three Preschool Outcome Assessments upon exit. Please refer to the ESS Preschool Outcomes Reporting Guidance document.
  • Other Updates: This Integrity error will no longer begin failing on May 1st with the other end-of-year errors. Starting Fiscal Year (FY) 26, this integrity error will fail integrity 20 days after the end date of the preschool program until a preschool exit core is reported.

The revised Preschool Outcomes Reporting Guidance has been published on our ESS AzEDS SPED Reporting web page.                                                          

Please contact [email protected] with any questions regarding this update.   

DATA MANAGEMENT ALERT   

FY 2026 October 1 Data Collection Application will open October 2, 2025

Phase I of the October 1 Data Collection (ODC) application will open in 2 weeks. This phase includes the submission of your Public Education Agency (PEA), Special Education (SPED) student count and personnel Full-Time Equivalency (FTE) data. 

The ODC verification count is a crucial process consequential for federal reporting, determining federal allocations, and providing information for the state to make educational determinations over time.

All PEAs are required to verify the aggregate count of students receiving SPED services over October 1, including zero counts. This is an internal count using your student information systems and student rosters; AzEDS reports should not be used to gather Phase I Verification Count.

This data is due Wednesday, November 5, 2025. More information and training is available on the ESS October 1 Data Collection website.

Please refer to the Important Dates Website on the ODC timeline for a complete outline of deadline requirements for this data collection.

Please contact [email protected] with any questions.

DATA MANAGEMENT ALERT 

FY 2026 October 1 Data Collection Phase I Training

Annually, the Arizona Department of Education (ADE) is required to report special education data to the federal government. The October 1 Data Collection (ODC) is part of that process and is required by all Public Education Agencies (PEAs). ODC has three phases:  

1. Child Count Verification and Personnel  
2. Child Count Reconciliation 
3. Child Count Non-Reconciliation  

During Phase I, PEAs must provide ADE with the number of students participating in their special education program on October 1, 2025. PEAs will also report Personnel data and Parentally Placed students (if applicable). 

ESS Data Management invites you to attend our Phase I training session.

Virtual Training:                                                                  

Date:               Thursday, October 9, 2025            

Time:               10:00 AM – 12:00 PM

Registration:     Click here to register 

Please email ESS Data Management with any questions. 

We look forward to assisting you in meeting your data reporting requirements. 

DATA MANAGEMENT ALERT    

Special Education Data Updates Webinar: Wednesday, September 17, 2025 

The Exceptional Student Services Data Management team will host the next live Special Education Data Updates webinar on Wednesday, September 17, 2025, from 2:00 to 3:00 pm. This session will cover a variety of data topics that will include:    

• Reminders  

• Trending topics  

• Top Three Integrity Errors 

• Q&A     

Please register by clicking this link. Registration is required to attend. If you have any questions, please email the ESS Data Management inbox.  

This message has been sent to inform you that the Special Education Data Dashboard (SEDD) application is now open for Fiscal Year 2025-2026. SEDD is a one-stop shop for public education agencies (PEAs) to securely review their SPED data collected over the fiscal reporting year and certify said SPED data at year-end. Effective this year, PEAs can now access, and are expected to review, their SEDD data year-round.

Navigating to the SEDD application

1. Navigate to ADEConnect
2. Click "View Applications"
3. Locate the parent/district level entity for your organization.
4. Click the "Exceptional Student Services Portal" link
5. Locate the "Data Collection and Reporting" section
6. Click the "Special Education Data Dashboard" link
   1. If the link is grayed out, you do not have access to the SEDD application.

Accessing the SEDD Application

Access to the SEDD application is granted by a PEA’s local ADEConnect Entity Administrator. Only one role, assigned at the parent/district entity level, should be assigned per user.

• ESS SEDD: LEA User
  • Allows a user to access the SEDD application. The user can review all current and prior data housed inside the application.
• ESS SEDD: LEA Signer
  • Same access as above.
  • Allows a user to certify SEDD data during the certification window.
  • This role should only be assigned to Special Education Directors, Superintendents, Business Managers, CEOs, Charter Holders, or equivalent titles.

Technical Assistance

An updated training and user guide are coming soon.

If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact us.

ESS Data Management
Exceptional Student Services
Arizona Department of Education
Email: [email protected]
Phone: 602-542-3962
Data Management Webpage

DATA MANAGEMENT ALERT  

Upcoming change for Fiscal Year 2026 - Modification to Exit Code W3: Expelled or long-term suspension 

An update to enrollment withdrawal code W3: Expelled or long-term suspension has been introduced in Fiscal Year (FY) 2026. The AzEDS team has separated this code into two exit codes in an effort to further validate SPED reporting and ensure accurate data for the state. The two exit codes are listed below: 

W31: Long-term suspension 

W3: Expelled before scheduled end of school year 

Through FY25, the existing withdrawal code, W3, applies to both expulsions and long-term suspensions. In order to meet federal reporting requirements, we must be able to identify expulsions. Currently, ESS is using an annual free-form survey within the Special Education Data Dashboard for the PEAs to clarify which withdrawal codes refer to expulsions. Adding a W31 code for expulsions will improve data quality and eliminate the need for the free-form survey. 

Relevant Statutes and Requirements: 

Section 618 of IDEA 

EDFacts files FS144 and FS006 

The SPED Exit Validation Matrix has been updated for this change and published on our ESS Data Management website.  

Please contact [email protected] with any questions regarding this update.    

DATA MANAGEMENT ALERT

New Guidance for SPED Data Reporting

The following guidance documents are now available on the ESS Data Management website, under the AzEDS SPED Reporting section:

Ensuring Compliance in Key Scenarios

This guidance document outlines key scenarios relevant to reevaluations, developmentally delay (DD), and preschool severe delay (PSD) disability reporting, kindergarten-age children who remain in preschool, and incoming students from another state.

Online Environments

Arizona Online Instruction (AOI) entities have reporting requirements specific to the online environment. This guidance document outlines factors for data reporting, SPED LRE codes, LRE percentage calculations, and voucher reporting for AOIs determined to be the last home school district for students.

Ungraded Elementary Students

The criterion for ungraded elementary students is detailed in this guidance document to assist PEAs in determining eligibility for this designation.

Please feel free to email the Data Management inbox with any questions.

DATA MANAGEMENT ALERT

Beginning of the Year ESS Data Management Training

The Exceptional Student Services (ESS) Data Management team is pleased to announce Beginning of the Year ESS Data Management training for the 2025–2026 reporting year. This training will be offered virtually and recorded for those who cannot attend.

During this training, our team will provide updates on the annual IDEA 618 requirements, review reporting to AzEDS, give an overview of ESS data applications and surveys, and share where to find resources available to you.

Please register using this link:

Virtual Training via Teams: Thursday, August 7, 2025, 9:00–12:00 p.m.

Please email ESS Data Management with any questions. 

We look forward to seeing you!