BUDG-25 reports for all school districts have been posted to the School Finance website.  FY 2025 May BUDG-25 reports have been calculated using the FY 2025 May BSA-55 information.

• District BUDG-25 reports are available to download from this School Finance website. For further instructions on how to navigate the website, please view this Hot Topic.

• District BUDG-75 reports are available to download from the School Finance website

• District BSA-55 reports are available to download from the School Finance website

Please contact the Budget Team ([email protected]) if you have any questions.

Thank you!

It's hard being a new teacher. It's hard being a special education teacher. It's really hard being a new special education teacher. That’s where Teach Camp comes in!

Teach Camp is a professional learning opportunity designed specifically for special education teachers preparing for their first, second, or third year in the classroom. Beginning special education teachers who attend our three-day summer camp will make connections with other new teachers from across the state while learning about topics critical to their success in the coming school year.

This year’s campers were surveyed, and 100% of them agreed that Teach Camp “increased my work-related knowledge; 99% agreed that Teach Camp “increased my work-related motivation.” When asked if they would recommend Teach Camp to other new special education teachers, 99% said YES.

Here’s what some of our campers said they liked best about the Teach Camp experience:

• “The best part of the training, in my opinion, was how we were guided on how to prepare, conduct IEPs, and how to monitor and keep track of students' performance.”
• “The training was very well designed to keep participants engaged and learning important, useful information. The opportunities to interact in small groups to reflect on learning were great.”
• “How they have narrowed down everything for us. They said all the right things I needed.”
• “Meeting other teachers who are in the same boat and sharing ideas with each other.”
• “The details about IEP writing and brain breaks. Fun!”

It’s not too late to send your beginning special education teachers to Teach Camp! 

Teach Camp Eligibility:

• We know there are many pathways to becoming a special education teacher in Arizona. Recent graduates from traditional teacher preparation programs, alternative certified teachers, and veteran general education teachers transitioning to special education are all welcome.
• Teach Camp is available to special education teachers who will begin their first, second, or third year of teaching special education in the fall of 2025.
• Participants must be directly employed by a school district or charter as a special education teacher.

The cost for Summer 2025 Teach Camp is $250 per teacher and includes:  

• 3-day summer “camp” to be held July 8-10, 2025, at ASU SkySong, 1365 North Scottsdale Rd, Scottsdale, AZ 85257
• Follow-up support throughout the school year, including virtual sessions and newsletters 
• A one-year membership to the Council for Exceptional Children  
• Additional valuable resources

Registration:

Registration for Teach Camp is open until Friday, June 13, 2025, on a first-come, first-served basis. Registration must be approved by the special education director and completed by the district or charter organization, not the special education teacher. Please note that there is a limit of ten registrations for each district or charter. More than ten teachers from any one district or charter will be placed on a waiting list. Please be aware that we may reduce the group size per district or charter organization to accommodate the attendance of more districts/charters. On-site registration is not available.   

Begin the registration process for Teach Camp!

Please email the ESS Recruitment and Retention Inbox with any questions about Teach Camp.   

In line with the end of the 24-25 school year, ADE/ESS would like to offer a reminder of the Arizona State Board of Education’s (SBE) rule changes related to secondary transition planning and graduation:                                                                                      

• The student’s estimated graduation date must be included in their Individualized Education Program (IEP) and aligned with their transition plan (A.A.C. R7-2-401(G)(4)(A)(c)).
• Schools are required to provide written notification to parents of a student’s anticipated graduation date at least one year before the expected high school graduation date (A.A.C. R7-2-401(G)(4)(A)(c)(i)).

If you have students who are expected to graduate in May 2026, it is time to provide written notification to parents.

The ADE/ESS Secondary Transition team is introducing “Getting Ahead to Go Beyond,” Arizona’s initiative to promote effective best practices to increase graduation rates and influence postsecondary success. Please visit the Secondary Transition Services Rule Change webpage for more information, guidance, and resources.

Thank you for your attention to these critical updates.

Are you looking for specific targeted support for students with Autism?

The ADE/ESS/Academic Achievement and Inclusive Practices unit is pleased to announce summer professional learning opportunities with STAR Autism Supports (SAS). STAR Autism Support has been a leader in autism teaching strategies, in building capacity for districts to effectively serve students with autism spectrum disorders and other developmental disabilities. SAS has worked with over 2,500 school districts and over 25,000 educators across the United States and throughout the world. Their unique, practical approach provides school districts with the curriculum resources and a continuum of professional development activities to address the educational needs of students from early childhood through post-secondary.

Summer STAR and Links Professional Learning Opportunities are offered at no cost and in multiple locations across Arizona.

The STAR Program includes detailed lesson plans, teaching materials, data systems, and a curriculum-based assessment for teaching in the six curricular areas of receptive language, expressive language, spontaneous language, functional routines, academics, and play & social skills for students in elementary grades.

• Phoenix, June 22 23 at Helios Education Center
• Tucson, June 10-11 at Sunnyside Unified School District
• Flagstaff, June 23-24 at Northern Arizona University
• Yuma, June 26-27 at Yuma Elementary School District
• Phoenix, July 17-18 at Deer Valley Unified School District

The LINKS Curriculum (Linking Assessment and Instruction for Independence) is an evidence-based, comprehensive, web-based curriculum to teach upper elementary, secondary, and post-secondary students with autism and other developmental disabilities to be independent across school, community, and vocational routines.

• Phoenix June 4-5 at Helios Education Center

• Virtual June 16- 17

Participate with your team in a two-day workshop for an opportunity to receive fully funded primary or secondary district coaching visits from STAR Autism Support. This initiative aims to assist your team in effectively implementing strategies throughout the year, with additional coaching support available to help reinforce and sustain implementation efforts.

To qualify for coaching visits, school teams attending must include the following participants:

✔ Special Education Teacher

✔ General Education Teacher or District Coach

✔ Related Service Staff or Paraprofessional

Register for the summer STAR and LINKS Professional Learning Opportunities HERE.

For additional questions and support, contact Academic Achievement & Inclusive Practices.

The chapter on Career Technical Education Districts (CTEDs) in the School Finance Manual has been updated. It is now available on the School Finance webpage under School Finance Guidelines & Manuals. 

Arizona’s 2025 Post School Outcomes (PSO) data collection season starts on June 1, 2025, and runs through September 30, 2025. As of May 14, 2025, nearly 10,000 former students are eligible for the PSO survey across 284 public education agencies (PEAs). This survey includes students with IEPs who exited by graduating, dropping out, or aging out during the 2023–2024 school year. It is crucial for Arizona to adequately represent the 2025 PSO data collection statewide. Indicator 14 is a results indicator that seeks 100% participation for Arizona’s annual survey requirements. ESS uses this data for PEA Determinations for special education implementation. 

The ADE/ESS Secondary Transition Team is excited to announce a new feature that will enhance the PSO data collection experience. Starting June 1, when the PSO season opens annually, PSO application users listed in ADEConnect will receive automated emails. To ensure the effectiveness of this feature, please verify that the appropriate staff members are assigned to the PSO Survey role and update, if needed. 

For PEAs with multiple campuses, users will receive an email for each site name. This new feature will enhance your ability to track the PSO Survey status within your PEA, ensuring you are promptly informed if further data collection is needed at any specific site. Please share this information with the PSO application users for your PEA. 

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ):  

• How do I update the PSO application user role? 
  • ADE Application roles are set at the local entity level and need to be updated by an ADEConnect Entity Admin (EA). To locate the district or charter's ADEConnect EA, please follow this link: FindEA. 
  • Ask the required staff to connect with your PEA's EA to request access to the PSO Survey Application. 
  • Your PEA’s EA will submit an access request. The approval process is automatic and will be completed within about 20 minutes after completion.    

• Why am I getting multiple emails?  
  • Each email you receive includes data collection progress for each campus associated with your PEA. This ensures you have detailed and specific information for each site, helping you manage and monitor them more effectively.    

• How will this work for tuitioned-out students?   
  • For PEAs with tuitioned-out students, you will receive an email for eligible former students associated with your district-level entity ID. These notifications will include the district or facility of attendance details. We recommend working with the most recent PEA to obtain contact information for these students.  

Questions or Comments? Please feel free to email the PSO Inbox with any questions or comments. This is a new feature, and we appreciate your patience as we work to improve it.  

Thank you for your attention to this critical update. We are confident that these changes will provide you with better tools to manage your data effectively. For more information about PSO, please visit our PSO website or the PSO Wakelet page.  

Bill would address pronoun usage, protect space for girls

PHOENIX – State schools’ chief Tom Horne says he is surprised at the governor’s veto of legislation that would have required schools to inform parents when a child requests to use a pronoun other than their biological sex and protect girls from biological boys being in their restrooms, showers and locker rooms on campus.

Legislation sponsored by Sen. John Kavanaugh (R) - Fountain Hills, would have prohibited a public school employee from knowingly addressing a minor student by a pronoun different from the child’s biological sex or a first name not listed on school records without first getting permission from the parents. The measure would also have limited access to restrooms, locker rooms, showers, and hotel rooms on overnight trips to students of the same biological sex.

Horne said, “It’s surprising to me that the governor did not recognize the legislation’s value in promoting common sense, girls’ privacy, safety, and the rights of parents to be fully informed about what their children are doing while at school or related activities. Public schools are entrusted to educate children, not to interfere with the rights of parents to raise their children as they see fit. This veto is contrary to overwhelming public support for protecting girls and parental rights.”

He added, “The vetoed legislation would affirm those rights and would have codified protection for girls who deserve to have private spaces such as restrooms and locker rooms where they are not exposed to biological males. In the past several years parents have made it clear they do not want schools to override their role as parents, and they have also made it clear that girls have the right to privacy without the presence of biological boys in places like locker rooms and restrooms.”

Under the Arizona Parent’s Bill of Rights (A.R.S. 1-602) schools are prohibited from keeping information from parents.

DATA MANAGEMENT ALERT  

FY26 Statement of Assurances (SOA) due June 11, 2025

The FY26 Statement of Assurances application is open for submission. All public education agencies (PEAs) must submit the IDEA Statement of Assurances (SOA) through the ESS Portal within ADEConnect. This is required before any FY26 activities in the Exceptional Student Services portal are allowable. The portal will block any PEA that has not completed the SOA effective July 1, 2025, which is when FY26 begins. 

The application is now open for submission and closes on June 11, 2025. 

The SOA must be submitted by the Superintendent, Charter Holder, or Special Education Director of your PEA before FY26 IDEA funding applications are approved in the Grants Management Enterprise system. 

• The PEA must assign the role of ESS Special Education: Signer in ADEConnect to the individual who will review, sign, and submit the Statement of Assurances. 

• PEAs that do not apply for IDEA funds are still required to submit the SOA. 

Please direct any questions to [email protected]. 

DATA MANAGEMENT ALERT 

FY25 Parentally Placed Private School Student Survey (PPPSS) is now open and due August 13th, 2025 

The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) 2004 requires that each public school district with geographic boundaries maintain its records and provide to the State information related to parentally placed private elementary and secondary school students covered under §§ 300.130 through 300.144. 

The application is now open and will close for submissions on August 13th, 2025. 

 The PEA must assign the role at the district level of ESS Data Surveys: User in ADEConnect to the individual who will submit this survey. 

• Instructions: Parentally Placed Private School Students 

• FAQs: Parentally Placed Private School Students

Once the role is assigned, please log in to ADEConnect, navigate to the Exceptional Student Services Portal (ESS), and select the Data Surveys link within the "Surveys and Assurances" section. From there, you can click on the "Take Survey" button located in the “Parentally Placed Private School Student Survey" section to start the survey. 

Upon completion, the application will display a "Thank you for submitting" page.  

Please direct any questions to the ESS Data Management Inbox. 

ADE/ESS is pleased to announce that registration for the 2025–2026 Special Education New Director Symposium (SENDS) is now open!

The purpose of this professional learning opportunity is to prepare new special education directors for the practical operation of a special education system. Topics covered in SENDS include compliance and legal requirements, fiscal issues, assessment, general supervision, and ADE supports and resources.

Eligibility
New special education directors directly employed by Arizona public education agencies in their first or second year of being a special education director (including any previous positions) in the fall of 2025 are eligible to attend SENDS.

Registration
The $100 registration fee for SENDS includes:

• Registration for the in-person kick-off session on Tuesday, September 16, 2025, at 100 N. 15th Avenue, Phoenix, AZ 85007 
• Follow-up webinars scheduled during the 2025–26 school year 
• A one-year membership to the Council for Exceptional Children (CEC) and CEC’s Council of Administrators of Special Education (CASE) special interest division

Registration is open until Tuesday, September 2, 2025.

Travel Reimbursement
Funding is available for travel costs for districts and charter organizations that are traveling 51 miles or more from the school district or charter office to 100 N. 15th Avenue, Phoenix, AZ 85007.  Reimbursements will be made to the district or charter organization, not the special education director, via the Arizona Procurement Portal. Please note that APP registration and an additional completed State Procurement Office Form will be required.  Information regarding travel reimbursement from eligible PEAs will be provided once registration is completed.  To be considered for travel reimbursement for SENDS, the initial registration form must be completed by August 15.

Register for the Special Education New Director Symposium (SENDS) training!

If you have questions about SENDS, please email the ESS Recruitment and Retention Inbox.