EDS795 The Special Education Director (3 cr.)

In this course the core competencies specifically required by Minnesota of school district leaders for licensure as a director of special education are analyzed and applied. Among the topics are federal and state laws, rules and procedures governing special education: statutory regulations regarding board meeting procedures that affect special education governance; management of special education program models acceptable in Minnesota: processes and procedures for analyzing student and district data; and the use of and accounting procedures for various resource allocation models.

Upon completion of the course, students are expected to be able to do the following:

1. Identify and evaluate programs, resources, and agencies/organizations available to children with special needs and their families.
2. Analyze and evaluate special education administrative and service models used in Minnesota, including provisions for needs assessment, program development/design, and assessment of outcomes.
3. Identify and critique policies, procedures, and issues regulating special education services.
4. Interpret state and federal regulations governing the monitoring of special education programs, including Minnesota’s Continuous Improvement Monitoring Process
5. Interpret and apply key requirements of IDEA and No Child Left Behind legislation that affect special education students and programs.
6. Analyze and recommend approaches to recruit, train, and retain highly qualified special education staff.
7. Create strategies for relating to special education advocacy groups, including instructional staff, other district administrators, outside agencies, school board members, and Minnesota Department of Education.
8. Describe and evaluate when to use assistive technologies and specialized instructional strategies to support special education programs and students.