On July 31, 2023 PA Bureau of Special Education Director Carole L. Clancy sent a PennLink to local educational agencies (LEAs) titled 2023-24 Special Education Compliance Monitoring Schedule. The memo states that the Pennsylvania Department of Education (PDE) has the responsibility to ensure that all LEAs providing services, whether directly or by contractual arrangements, administer special education services and programs that are compliant with applicable state and federal laws and regulations. To fulfill this responsibility, PDE has established administrative procedures for monitoring program implementation, including evaluating the appropriateness, effectiveness, and accountability of special education services and programs.

PDE has developed the schedule for compliance monitoring for the 2023-24 school year in which 123 school districts and charter schools of varying size across the commonwealth will be monitored. The list of selected LEAs is included at the end of this Penn Link. Additional monitoring reviews, if deemed appropriate, may be designated as the school year progresses.

For the 2023-24 school year, the Cyclical Monitoring for Continuous Improvement (CMCI) process continues to be a combination of virtual and onsite components. Verification activities include digital and onsite review of student documents; studies of service delivery; and analysis of policies, procedures, and outcomes. This hybrid CMCI process will include:

• Virtual Components
  -Facilitated Self-Assessment submitted by the LEA, and verification of the information reported in the Facilitated Self-Assessment.
  -Administrative and Exit Interviews
  -Parent and Teacher Interviews

• On-Site Components
  -Student Sample File Review
  -Classroom Observations

Training for this monitoring process is designed as a series of web-based training modules. These modules will be available on thePaTTAN website and Leader Services website in late July. Relevant LEA personnel must complete the trainings and report date of completion to the chairperson by September 11, 2023.

These training modules review the current monitoring process; Facilitated Self-Assessment submission; documents to be submitted; managing web-based documentation; and provide additional resources to assist LEA personnel to prepare for the monitoring process. District superintendents, charter school chief executive officers, special education directors, and additional appropriate personnel at LEAs who will be monitored, will benefit from completing these training modules to familiarize themselves with the monitoring process. Thank you in advance for your cooperation in complying with this federally mandated requirement. PDE recognizes the time and effort required by each LEA to successfully participate in these monitorings. The Chairperson assigned to each monitoring will contact the LEA for follow up. Should you have any questions regarding the 2023-24 monitoring schedule included below, please contact Kelli Franklin at [email protected].

On July 28, Bureau of Special Education Director Carole L. Clancy sent a PennLink to all LEAs titled State Performance Plan Data Requirements – Postsecondary School Survey (Cohort 4 Exit). The message states that accountability requirement under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act of 2004 (IDEA) mandates that each state determine the extent to which students are achieving transition outcomes (State Performance Plan – Indicator 14). To meet the federal reporting requirement, each local education agency (LEA) is mandated to administer Exit and Post-School Surveys to students who have graduated, aged out or dropped out with individualized education programs at a frequency of one time, over a five-year period, based on the LEA’s assignment to a targeted sampling year (Cohort 4).

The following information specifically addresses the Exit Process administration for 2023-24. LEAs assigned to Cohort 4, as listed below, are required to address the following:
Participate in the Pennsylvania Post-School Outcome Survey Overview for Cohort 4 webinar, which is scheduled for September 21, 2023, from 9:00 a.m. to 11:00 a.m. The webinar will provide information concerning the administration of the Exit Process. Registration is required and may be accessed at: https://www.pattan.net/Events/Webinar/Course-1838/Events/Session-38479
Participate in the February 21, 2024, Exit Survey training webinar from 9:00 a.m. to 11:00 a.m. Registration for this event is required and can be completed when registering for the September webinar. Information regarding accessing and entering information into the online system will be presented during this webinar.

Visit the PDE website to see a list of those LEAs that are assigned to the 2023-24 Cohort 4.

For more information on the Pennsylvania Department of Education, please visit PDE’s website.

On July 28, 2023 the Pennsylvania Department of Education (PDE) announced that processing timelines for In-State Level I certificates have been reduced by approximately 10 weeks since last year. The Department also launched a new feature on its website to improve transparency and responsiveness in the educator certification process. The certification “clock” on PDE’s Certification page will show, in real time, the length of time needed to process a certificate once all required information is submitted to the Department.

The online clock shows that, as of July 28th, an educator can expect their certification to be processed in the following timeframes:

-In-State Level I Certificates: 2-4 weeks
-Level II Certificates: 4-6 weeks
-Add-On Certificates: 1-3 weeks
-Emergency Certificates: 2-4 weeks

The new processing timelines reflect an approximate 10-week improvement in response time since last year for In-State Level I Certifications.

To reduce processing times, PDE increased staffing – hiring four new full-time employees, three temporary employees, and one summer annuitant, and evaluated the process to prioritize Instructional I certificates. The team is working around the clock to process certifications and respond to more than 1,500 emails per week.

Earlier this year, Governor Shapiro unveiled a plan to improve the Commonwealth’s licensing, permitting, and certification processes, beginning a comprehensive review of how long it takes agencies to process applications and how workers and businesses apply online.

Additionally, last year PDE revamped its website to allow current and prospective educators to more easily access information related to certifications. The site restructure used analytics to determine which pages were most highly visited and prioritized them in this effort. The Certification page is consistently one of the most visited pages on the PDE website.

Changes to the Certification page include more easy-to-follow breakdowns on common topics that educators are searching for; condensed and updated frequently asked questions; a step-by-step guide and instructional YouTube video for first-time users; and more. For more information on the Pennsylvania Department of Education, please visit PDE’s website.

The Pennsylvania Department of Education (PDE) announced that $1.5 million in grant funding is available to establish or expand opportunities for practicing paraeducators in Pennsylvania schools to become special education teachers at no cost while actively learning and working in their school. PA Secretary of Education Dr. Khalid N. Mumin sees the grants as a way to “create a robust pipeline of high-quality educators is by allowing paraprofessionals to earn credentials while they’re already working in the classroom [and can] transition seamlessly from paraprofessional to educator.”

The grants will create new special education career pathways for paraeducators; increase the number of practicing paraeducators earning certifications, and/or postsecondary credits/degrees; and increase the number of practicing paraeducators pursuing PK-12 special education teacher certification through enrollment in a PDE-approved special education PK-12 certification program.

Intermediate units (IU) that partner with at least one community college located in Pennsylvania and at least one local education agency (school district, approved private school, career technical education center, charter school, cyber charter school, or chartered school for the deaf or blind) may apply for the grant.

IU grant recipients must design and deliver a program to ensure paraeducators within their IU region can participate in networking with other paraeducators, receive academic support, attend courses at no cost, and obtain advanced Credentials of Competency for Special Education Paraeducators in Pennsylvania and/or associate of arts degrees. They must also partner with at least one community college to design and deliver a program to ensure completion of all required program competencies within a two-year period, provide instruction through a combination of in-person and virtual options to meet the needs of paraeducators working full-time, and establish or expand credit for completion of program competencies fulfilled on-the-job. Finally, grant recipients must partner with one or more schools in the IU region to provide paraeducators with mentoring by experienced special educators during the school year and provide scheduling flexibility to allow time for coursework during the school day. 

Applications must be submitted by 11:59 PM on Friday, August 11, 2023. Applicants may request up to $50,000, and funding for each successful grant application will be available until December 2025.

For more information on the Pennsylvania Department of Education, please visit PDE’s website.