Exceptional Student Services
Accessible Educational Materials (AEM)
AZ FIND/Child Find Info for Families
AZ FIND/Child Find Info for Schools
Early Childhood Special Education
Parent Involvement Survey Info for Families
Parent Involvement Survey Info for Schools
Post School Outcomes Survey (PSO)
Empowerment Scholarship Accounts (ESA)
MTSS/Multi-Tier System of Supports
AZ State Board for Charter Schools
Secure Care is the education students with disabilities receive in schools and instructional programs in juvenile detention centers, the Arizona Department of Juvenile Corrections, county jails, and the Arizona Department of Corrections. The Secure Care team works with facilities to support and monitor the successful reentry of students in secure care facilities to public schools and post-secondary opportunities.
Program Specialist
(602) 364-3032
AZ Qualified Professionals List
COVID-19 Special Education Guidance
Early Childhood Special Education
Empowerment Scholarship Accounts (ESA)
Exceptional Student Services (ESS)
Least Restrictive Environment (LRE) Codes
Program Support and Monitoring
Procedural Safeguards Notice (PSN); Aviso de las Salvaguardias Procesales
Understanding Special Education
Tip of the Week Archive: Q & A about the IDEA Regulations
Page revised 08/2025
The Arizona Department of Education (ADE) Office of Dispute Resolution provides several options for parents and Public Education Agencies (PEAs) to address and resolve special education conflicts: mediation (34 C.F.R. § 300.506); a due process hearing system (§ 300.507); and a state administrative complaint system through which ADE can investigate alleged procedural violations of the IDEA (§§ 300.151 through 153).
Dispute Resolution also offers Facilitated IEP as an additional option for resolving special education conflicts between parents and PEAs..
Parents and school staff are encouraged to communicate and work together to reach an agreement that is in the best interest of the child. Parents may also request in writing that the PEA reconvene the IEP team to discuss concerns.
Each PEA has a special education director or coordinator who can assist the IEP team in finding a mutual agreement if problems still exist. To find contact information for the special education director or coordinator, visit the ADE Public School Search and type the name of the PEA in the search bar on the left side of the screen.
Every state must develop and submit for federal approval a State Performance Plan (SPP) that outlines the actions the State will take to implement the purposes of the IDEA and that explains how the State will evaluate its progress in these areas. In an Annual Performance Report (APR), each State must report on its progress and on the progress of children with disabilities toward meeting the goals established in the APR.
IDEA requires states to submit data and to annually report data on the status of meeting indicator targets.
Current and Historical IDEA Part B Data by SPP/APR Indicator
Watch the video below to learn about the 18 indicators in the State Performance Plan (SPP) and Annual Performance Report (APR). Using the story of a hypothetical child named Miguel, we illustrate how these indicators are interconnected and how they inform special education data reporting.
Child Find is a component of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA ’04) that requires Public Education Agencies (PEAs) to locate, identify, and evaluate all children with disabilities, aged birth through 21. PEAs are school districts and charter schools.
Child find applies to children who are:
Note: Charter schools identify, locate, and evaluate all children with disabilities within their population served who are in need of special education and related services.
Arizona Health Care Cost Containment System (AHCCCS) operations are funded substantially from federal, state, and county resources. AHCCCS is the agency that develops the policies and administers the Medicaid School-Based Claiming program through a third-party administrator (currently, the Public Consulting Group or PCG) and in collaboration with the Arizona Department of Education. AHCCCS is the only entity that may submit claims to the federal agency (Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services or CMS) to receive federal financial reimbursement for allowable Medicaid costs.
Arizona Health Care Cost Containment System (AHCCCS) contracts with a single entity or organization to act as a third-party administrator to:
The purpose of the DSC program is to allow public education agencies (PEAs) to receive reimbursement for the cost of providing Medicaid-covered medical services to Title XIX (Medicaid) eligible students. Medicaid reimbursements to PEAs are based on actual costs of providing Medicaid-allowable services to students, rather than a defined claims fee structure. In February 2013, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) re-approved a quarterly cost-reporting process instead of requiring an accrual-based accounting process.
Direct Medicaid reimbursement for certain medical services provided by PEAs requires a cost-based methodology. Medicaid services are “services that are medically necessary and provided to Medicaid recipients by PEAs in accordance with an individualized education program (IEP) under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA).” These services include:
To be reimbursable through the Arizona Medicaid program, a) the need for the service(s) must be documented in the student’s IEP; b) the services must meet the criteria in the approved Medicaid State Plan; c) the services must be delivered in accordance with the IEP; d) the services must be provided by an approved provider type; e) the provider must participate in the random-moment time study (RMTS) process; f) the services must be properly documented; and g) the student must be eligible for Medicaid services. The LEA must also have submitted interim claims throughout the year for each individual service for those costs to be reimbursed.
The purpose of the Medicaid Administrative Claiming (MAC) program is to allow PEAs to receive reimbursement for Medicaid administrative outreach activities that are done routinely within the school setting.
The quarterly Random-Moment Time Study (RMTS) is an integral part of the Medicaid School-Based Claiming (MSBC) program as it is used to determine how much time is spent on Medicaid-allowable activities for both Direct Service Claiming (DSC) and Medicaid Administrative Claiming (MAC) programs. Specifically for DSC, RMTS is used to determine how much time direct service and personal care providers spend doing Medicaid-related services. For MAC, the RMTS is used to determine the amount of time direct service and administrative staff spends performing administrative and outreach activities that support the proper and efficient operation of the state Medicaid program. PEAs are only reimbursed for costs of those staff that are included in the RMTS. The PEA’s DSC reimbursement will be calculated annually through the annual cost report. Factors that determine the reimbursement amount for the LEA are the cost of providing health-related services; the percent of time spent doing allowable Medicaid direct services (RMTS results); the unrestricted indirect cost rate; the individualized education program (IEP) ratio; and the federal medical assistance percentage (FMAP).
The Arizona Department of Education/Exceptional Student Services (ADE/ESS) is currently updating the PEA Determinations, which are scheduled to be implemented with the publication of the October 2026 PEA Determinations.
Upcoming PEA Determinations Description Guide
PEA Determinations Policies and Procedures
Under section 616 of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act 2004 (IDEA 2004), States are required to make a determination for all public education agencies (PEA) of their performance on identified special education criteria.
Special Education Determination Categories
Instructions for All Improvement Plans
Page revised 10/29/25
The Multi-Tiered Behavior Supports is a three-year training series that will assist district, charter, or school teams with the development of a school-wide approach for positive behavior management practices. This training is based on School-Wide Positive Behavior Intervention and Support (SW-PBIS) evidence-based elements.
Cost:
For more information, email Celeste Nameth.
The College and Career Competencies (CCC’s) Project, formally known as AZ CCCTT/Project EASEL, is a collaborative initiative led by the Arizona Department of Education and the University of Kansas Research Collaboration that works to train educators to develop career-equipped, lifelong learners. This project is a free professional learning opportunity available to educators and leadership teams. Teams will learn to systematically teach skill competencies and academic learning standards simultaneously, thereby improving academic achievement, engagement, and post-school outcomes.
View the College and Career Competencies (CCC's) Project webpage to learn more.
For information regarding the College and Career Competencies (CCC's) Project Professional Learning Workshops, email Lauren Friend.
Positive Behavioral Interventions & Supports
Intervention Central—Learn specific techniques to help with a variety of classroom behaviors from defusing/de-escalation to self-management skills.
The Basic Functional Behavior Assessment (FBA) to Behavior Support Plans (BSP) training consists of 7 online modules created by Portland State University. The modules should be completed in order with time in between each module to complete the homework assignment for hands-on application of the skills learned in each module before moving on to the next module. A pace of about one module per week is recommended, though in some cases more time may be needed to complete the homework tasks assigned in a module.
Basic FBA to BSP Online Training
For a complete list of The IRIS Center discipline training modules, see the IRIS Resource Locator under Behavior and Classroom Management
Office of Special Education Programs (OSEP) Dear Colleague Letter from August 2016 emphasizes the requirement that schools provide positive behavioral supports to students with disabilities who need them and clarifies that the repeated use of disciplinary actions may suggest that children with disabilities may not be receiving appropriate behavioral interventions and supports.
Behavior/Mental Health Project Coordinator
Lauren Friend
602-542-3124
MTBS Specialist
Celeste Nameth
602-542-5445
Page revised 3/16/26