September is Suicide Prevention Awareness Month; in Arizona, some 1400 individuals die by suicide annually. But you can help. We have more resources than ever to offer community members to help everyone prevent suicides.

1. Get trained. The Arizona Department of Education offers in person and online suicide prevention trainings, including offerings in Spanish. 
2. Talk to someone. Resilient Arizona offers free crisis counseling to anyone in Arizona. Call 2-11 or visit: www.resilientarizona.org.
3. Visit the AHCCCS website for resources by priority population and county.
4. Sign up for monthly emails for updates on training, events, grants, and more. 
5. Invite our staff to tell you more. We have a team available to present (via Zoom) on suicide prevention. There is no cost involved. 
6. When in doubt, call the crisis line for next steps on how to help someone who may be suicidal. 

• 988 - mental health crisis line.
• Maricopa County, served by Mercy Care: 1-800-631-1314 or 602-222-9444.
• Cochise, Graham, Greenlee, La Paz, Pima, Pinal, Santa Cruz, and Yuma Counties, served by Arizona Complete Health - Complete Care Plan: 1-866-495-6735
• Apache, Coconino, Gila, Mohave, Navajo, and Yavapai Counties served by Health Choice Arizona: 1-877-756-4090.
• Gila River and Ak-Chin Indian Communities: 1-800-259-3449
• Salt River Pima Maricopa Indian Community: 1-855-331-6432.

The FY2022 Statewide Recalculation has been completed and a list of results can be seen in the file linked below; Charters and Districts are listed alphabetically.

FY2022 Statewide Recalculation Adjustment

Positive SRC Adjustments will be included in the FY2023 September payment as a lump sum adjustment to FY2023 Equalization on the BSA64-1 report for September 2022.

Negative SRC Adjustments will be included in the FY2023 September payment as an adjustment to FY2023 Equalization on the BSA64-1 report for September 2022 and will be taken over the entire fiscal year; 3/12ths taken in September and 1/12th each payment thereafter.

Pursuant to A.R.S § 15-915, hardship requests are available. Please complete the Hardship Application and submit to [email protected] by 9/30/2022.

With the hardship application, a minimum of 75% must be adjusted in FY23 and 25% will be adjusted in FY24. Adjustments will begin with the September payment. Please include all questions regarding these adjustments in your e-mail, with the completed form attached. Exceptions for severe scenarios may be made.

Questions or concerns regarding the recalculated ADM/SPED should be submitted through a Help Desk School Finance Account Analyst Support Request.

Please see Guidelines for Requesting Prior Year Corrections to State Aid or Budget Capacity (ARS § 15-915)

September's data capture for the October 24th payment is 9/15/22 at 5pm. 

Please ensure data is reconciled and free of integrity errors prior to the data capture date. Review the following reports in AzEDS: 

• INTEG15 – ensure data is free and clear of membership ADM Integrity errors 
• STUD10 – validate all students are listed in AzEDS 
• ADM15 – ensure all students expected to generate funding are indicated as fundable 
• ADM20, SPED20, and EL20 – ensure ADM amounts for each ADM type  

Important Note: FY23 Calendars need to be submitted, approved, and certified for ADM and funding to be generated. 

The following videos provide general information related to the data reconciliation process: 

• Introduction to Data Verification Reports: http://youtu.be/ou9Jst9qnsg 
• Introduction to Data Verification Reports 2: https://youtu.be/_m3uEo3OGRI 
• Introduction to Integrity: http://youtu.be/PYzBAEZmiSs 

Prior payment reports can be found here: https://schoolfinancereports.azed.gov/. 

Please submit a School Finance HelpDesk ticket if data assistance is needed. 

Special Education Directors,
 

Project EASEL, in partnership with ADE, would like to invite you to tune into the Exploring Strategies for Social-Emotional Learning (SEL) fall and spring professional learning series. We plan to share a variety of information and strategies that will support your understanding and implementation of assertiveness, self-efficacy, and self-regulation. 

Details for the upcoming SEL session:

Middle School Students Can Self-Regulate: Strategies for Supporting Self-Regulation

September 20, 2022, 3:00–4:00 p.m.

Description: Do your students have difficulty turning in homework, focusing on academics during class, studying for tests, completing all aspects of projects, or managing their emotions?  Self-regulation instruction can help. Self-regulation instruction and practice can support students in completing tasks, reaching goals, and managing their emotional reactions. During this one-hour webinar, you will learn instructional activities that build and support self-regulation, including how to support students in developing detailed plans and help them to predict and plan for potential setbacks as they work toward accomplishing a task.

Registration is required for all Project EASEL sessions. Please register in advance for Strategies for Supporting Self-Regulation.

Please review this flyer for upcoming Project EASEL sessions with updated details. If you have any questions, please email Pattie Noonan.

Integrity Rule -10140 impacts students that have a first membership day other than the first 10 instructional days and have an absence value that is equal to their reported FTE on that day. Students in PS, an AOI or an alternative school, where minutes of attendance are reported, must have attendance minutes reported on the first day of their membership.

Example 1: First instructional day is 8/8/22, student begins membership as a new student on 8/30/22. On 8/30/22 the student is marked absent for the entire day. This membership will fail Integrity code -10140.

Solution:  Enrollment begins on the student’s first day of attendance.

Example 2: A student attends an AOI, membership begins on 11/10/2022. No minutes of attendance have been reported for this student’s membership on 11/10/2022. This membership will fail Integrity code -10140.

Solution:  Membership must begin on the first day minutes of attendance are reported.

For additional clarification or questions about your integrity errors, please submit a HelpDesk ticket to School Finance Account Analyst Team. 

Special Education Directors,

Please share the following literacy professional learning opportunities with general and special education teachers.

The following virtual sessions are being offered via Zoom and are free to attend. Click the session link to view the session description and to pre-register.

Creating Culturally, Linguistically, and Inclusive Math Spaces: Using Interactive Read-Alouds for Grades K–12 

Tuesday, September 13 from 3:30–5:00 p.m.

Experience how to use the Interactive Read-Aloud strategy to introduce math topics, engage in high-interest problem-solving, and develop students’ reasoning.  

Establishing a Consistent, Organized, and Respectful Learning Environment through Classroom Libraries for Grades K–12

Tuesday, October 25 from 3:30–5:00 p.m.

Engage in research, practices, and strategies to create an inclusive classroom library space where all students can self-select books they love, understand, and read fluently.

Putting the L in S.T.E.M. for Grades K–12

Tuesday, November 29 from 3:30–5:00 p.m.

Focus on creating meaningful literacy and STEM connections! This session is appropriate for special and general education teachers.

Please email [email protected] with any questions.

Special Education Directors,

ESS collects data each year through the Teacher Attrition Survey to make informed decisions about recruitment and retention efforts in Arizona. Participation in the survey is mandatory for all public education agencies in Arizona.

For the past few years, the survey has opened in February and closed in May of each fiscal year. This school year, the Teacher Attrition Survey will open on November 1, 2022, and close on January 31, 2023.

Answers to frequently asked questions regarding the Teacher Attrition survey can be located online.

For additional questions regarding the Teacher Attrition Survey, please email the ESS Recruitment and Retention Inbox. 

DATA MANAGEMENT ALERT       

Special Education Data Updates Webinar Wednesday, September 21st 

The Exceptional Student Services Data Management team will be hosting the next Special Education Data Updates live webinar on Wednesday, September 21st from 2pm – 3pm. This session will cover a variety of data topics that will include (subject to change):   

• Reminders 
  • Recorded Sessions 
  • FY23 Updates Document 
  • Parentally Placed training (Districts only) 
• Trending topics 
  • New SPED Director/Data Manager Toolkit 
  • ODC Overview 
• Per Your Request 
  • Discipline Data current review 
  • Assessments 
  • Need Exit Codes and use of SPED09 
  • Preschool Outcomes Warning Errors and what they look at 
• Top 3 Integrity Errors 
  • -40079 
  • TBD 
  • TBD 
• Q&A    

Registration is required to attend: Register for Special Education Data Updates webinar.       

For questions, please contact ESS Data Management via email at [email protected].    

Special Education Administrators,

Special Education Learning Experiences for Competency in Teaching (SELECT) is a federally funded program sponsored by the Arizona Department of Education/Exceptional Student Services and is offered through the Institute for Human Development at Northern Arizona University. SELECT courses are recommended for special and general education teachers, administrators, related service personnel, paraeducators, and other interested individuals.

Certified school personnel can take SELECT classes for certificate renewal hours. SELECT classes can be taken for university credit for those teachers or administrators who are required by their school districts to have official transcripts and for those who may need to transfer hours out of state (tuition and associated fees apply). The classes can also be taken for professional growth contact hours for free.

To continually improve the SELECT course offerings, please take the Needs Assessment Survey to provide information about where you work, what you do, and what training you think would be the most valuable to the professional growth of special education and general education personnel who work with students with disabilities. Please share this survey with your colleagues and staff.

For more information, please email the SELECT inbox.

Some 1,400 Arizonans die by suicide annually; it is the eighth leading cause of death in the state. And yet, we can all play a role in helping to decrease this number in our communities. Remember to WAIT:

W: Watch for signs of distress and uncharacteristic behavior, including an increase in substance use, sleep pattern changes, discussing death or suicide

A: Ask, “Are you thinking of dying by suicide?”

I: It will pass. Reassure the person you’re speaking to that suicidal thoughts are treatable, and you will walk alongside them to get care.

T: Talk to others. Call the crisis line for immediate guidance on next steps.

• 988
• Maricopa County served by Mercy Care:
  1-800-631-1314 or 602-222-9444
• Cochise, Graham, Greenlee, La Paz, Pima, Pinal, Santa Cruz and Yuma Counties served by Arizona Complete Health - Complete Care Plan:
  1-866-495-6735
• Apache, Coconino, Gila, Mohave, Navajo and Yavapai Counties served by Health Choice Arizona:
  1-877-756-4090
• Gila River and Ak-Chin Indian Communities:
  1-800-259-3449
• Salt River Pima Maricopa Indian Community:
  1-855-331-6432

For more crisis resources, see the AHCCCS Crisis web page.