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DATA MANAGEMENT ALERT: SEDU Webinar for September

DATA MANAGEMENT ALERT: SEDU Webinar for September

Mon, Aug 31, 2026

DATA MANAGEMENT ALERT        

Special Education Data Updates Webinar: September 16, 2026  

The Exceptional Student Services Data Management team will host the next live Special Education Data Updates webinar on Wednesday, September 16, 2026, from 2:00 to 3:00 pm. This session will cover a variety of data topics that will include:    

  • Reminders  
  • Trending topics  
      • Vouchers
      • October 1 Data Collection
      • FY27 Updates
      • New Relationship Request Procedures
  • Integrity Error Review 
  • 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: Updated AzEDS SPED11 – Preschool Outcomes Report CSV Download

DATA MANAGEMENT ALERT: Updated AzEDS SPED11 – Preschool Outcomes Report CSV Download

Fri, Aug 14, 2026

DATA MANAGEMENT ALERT 

Updated AzEDS SPED11 – Preschool Outcomes Report CSV Download

 

The SPED11 – Preschool Outcomes Report found in the AzEDS Reports Portal has been updated to enhance data transparency for Public Education Agencies (PEAs). The CSV download now includes a new CreatedDate column, which indicates the date each preschool outcomes record was reported to AzEDS. This report provides a compilation of preschool outcomes scores for students receiving special education services that have been submitted to the Arizona Department of Education.

To access the SPED11 report in AzEDS, users must have the AzEDS Data Coordinator: SPED Reports role in ADEConnect. If you do not have this role assigned, please contact your local ADEConnect Entity Administrator for assistance. You can locate your PEA’s entity administrator through the ADEConnect website.

 

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

OPERATIONS UPDATE: New October 1 Special Education Count Dashboard Now Available

OPERATIONS UPDATE: New October 1 Special Education Count Dashboard Now Available

Thu, Aug 13, 2026

Special Education Directors,

 

ADE/ESS is pleased to announce the launch of the state October 1 Special Education Count Dashboard (Federal - Child Count and Educational Environments), the first publicly available ESS dashboard for featuring federally reported IDEA Section 618 data. It provides interactive access to annual special education child count data, allowing users to explore information by disability category, age, demographics, and other characteristics.

 

The October 1 Special Education Count Dashboard represents an important milestone in the agency’s commitment to making special education data more accessible, meaningful, and user-friendly for educators, administrators, families, policymakers, researchers, and the public.

 

View the dashboard: Federal Child Count and Educational Environments Data | Department of Education

 

Please explore the dashboard and share this resource with colleagues and stakeholders who may benefit from access to these data. ESS looks forward to continuing to expand public access to special education data in the future.

 

Exceptional Student Services
Arizona Department of Education

Exceptional Student Services website

Office: 602-542-4013
 

Federal Child Count and Educational Environments Data

Federal Child Count and Educational Environments Data

State October 1 Special Education Data Collection

The federally required Child Count and Educational Environments data collection is an annual snapshot of children ages 3–21 receiving special education and related services under IDEA. In Arizona it is referred to as the October 1 Special Education Data Collection.

It captures the number of eligible children by age, disability category, and demographic characteristics, as well as the educational settings in which they receive services (e.g., general education classrooms, separate settings, or other placements). This data is used to ensure compliance with federal reporting requirements, monitor least restrictive environment (LRE) practices, inform funding and policy decisions, and support program evaluation and improvement.

For more information regarding the collection, please visit the ESS Data Management - October 1 Data Collection webpage.

 

Public Reporting Links:

School Year 2023-2024

School Year 2022-2023

School Year 2021-2022

School Year 2020-2021

2021-2025 October 1 Special Education Student Counts by Public Education Agency

2021-2025 October 1 Special Education Student Counts by County 

Private Special Education Schools and Emotional Disabilities–Public (ED-P) Programs

Private Special Education Schools and Emotional Disabilities–Public (ED-P) Programs

The Arizona Department of Education (ADE)/Exceptional Student Services (ESS) approves Private Special Education Schools that provide specially designed instruction to students placed by public education agencies, ensuring they meet established state criteria. ESS also oversees Emotional Disabilities–Public (ED-P) Programs, which deliver intensive, specialized services for students whose needs cannot be met in traditional special education settings. Through the ESS Operations team, the Education Program Specialists review and support both private providers and public district programs to ensure compliance and high-quality services. On this webpage you will find program requirements for both public and private schools, as well as approved and prospective providers.

Information for Prospective Applicants 

If you are interested in starting a new ED-P program at your PEA or becoming an Approved Private SPED School, please fill out this form, and one of our Special Education Program Specialists will reach out to you.

Public Education Agency-Placed vs. Parent-Placed Students in Private Special Education Schools

Public Education Agency-placed (PEA): A public district or charter school determines that one of its students is to be placed outside its PEA into a private placement after considering other, less restrictive options. Students placed in such programs generally present with significant emotional, behavioral, and/or educational needs.  For PEAs to generate funding for PEA-placed students, the receiving private special education school must be approved by the Department of Education's Exceptional Student Services Unit. Approved special education schools are regulated and monitored by the Department of Education as it relates to services provided to publicly funded students.

Parent-Placed: A parent places their child in a private special education school and independently covers tuition. This also includes parents who utilize Empowerment Scholarship Accounts to pay for their child’s private school tuition. The Department of Education does not have jurisdiction over these programs.

Contact Us

Phone: (602) 364-4016

Email: [email protected]

Residential Vouchers - Residential Treatment Center Placement

Residential Vouchers - Residential Treatment Center Placement

Residential vouchers are for students who are placed in residential treatment centers by state placing agencies and IEP teams. When a state placing agency places a student into a residential treatment center, it is the responsibility of the home school district to determine if the student is eligible or non-eligible for special education per A.R.S. §15-765(E) and A.R.S. §15-1183(B). The vouchers provide funding to the residential treatment centers for the educational services that they provide.

        Information on Institutional Vouchers - State Institutions                                      Information on the Empowerment Scholarship Account (ESA)

Contact ESS Vouchers

Email ESS Vouchers

[email protected]

Phone: (602) 542-4555

Page revision date: August 19, 2026

ESS Data Management

ADE Logo, Exceptional Student Services, Data Management

ESS Data Management

The Exceptional Student Services (ESS) Data Management (DM) team is responsible for the collection, review, validation, verification, and analysis of Special Education data in Arizona as required under Section 618 of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA).

Sign up for Data Management Alerts

AzEDS SPED Reporting

AzEDS SPED Reporting

Discover useful tools for those who submit data for students with disabilities to the Arizona Education Data Standards (AzEDS). Find relevant AzEDS codes, tables that illustrate which needs may be reported with which service codes, and more.

Links to Tools & Resources

 

October 1 Data Collection

October 1 Data Collection

The Arizona Department of Education (ADE) is required to report Special Education data to the federal government annually. The October 1 Data Collection is part of that process and occurs in three phases.

Links to Tools and Trainings 

October 1 Data Collection Manual

Additional SPED data reporting guidance and tools can be found on our AzEDS SPED Reporting page.

Phase I Training will be held on October 1, 2026, at 1 P.M. 

To register please click here

FY27 Due Dates

Visit the ESS Important Dates page for all due dates.

Phase I: Personnel & Verification Count

Phase I data collection begins by having each PEA count the number of students who are provided SPED services on October 1. PEAs are also required to collect the number of full-time equivalent personnel (employed and contracted) to provide special education and related services on or about October 1 of the reporting year. More in-depth details can be found in the October 1 Data Collection Manual. Each link should navigate to the appropriate section in the manual, depending on your web browser's functionality and plugins.  

Phase II: Reconciliation

Phase II is the process in which PEAs ensure that all the students who were receiving SPED services on October 1st are reported in AzEDS without errors.

Phase III: Non-Reconciliation

Phase III is only for the PEAs that could not match the number of SPED students submitted in Phase I with the number of SPED students in AzEDS during Phase II. If a PEA is required to complete phase III, they will be notified by ESS Data Management.