The Iowa Department of Education’s Special Education Policy and Practice webinar series is back for the 2025-26 school year! Administrators with special education responsibilities are invited to attend.
Through the Special Education Policy and Practice webinars, participants will learn more about important and emerging special education policies and how to apply them within Iowa schools. The webinars will also provide opportunities for participants to connect with Department team members from the Department’s Division of Special Education and ask specific questions.
The first webinar in the series is set for Sept. 10 and will highlight ACHIEVE and general supervision. Discussion will include an overview of how the state ensures implementation of IDEA through general supervision responsibilities, including duties to prevent, inform, detect and correct. Participants will also learn more about ACHIEVE reports and how Prior Written Notice is incorporated in an effective general supervision system.
Each webinar session is held from 8:30-9:30 a.m. The full schedule with planned session topics is listed below:
- Sept. 10, 2025: ACHIEVE and General Supervision
- Oct. 8, 2025: Accessible Educational Materials and Assistive Technology on the IEP
- Nov. 12, 2025: Secondary Transition with Work-based Learning and Four Plus Programming
- Dec. 10, 2025: Unique Placements, including Out-of-State and Residential, PMIC
- Jan. 14, 2026: Behavior and Discipline
- Feb. 11, 2026: Connecting Alternate Assessment (DLM) to Instruction and Licensure
- March 11, 2026: Extended School Year
- April 8, 2026: FAPE - Special Requests
- May 13, 2026: Dispute Resolution
- June 10, 2026: End of Year Program Evaluation (ACHIEVE) and Year-to-Year Data Comparison
Registration is not required to attend the webinar sessions. All participants can join the webinars via Zoom using the passcode 431127.
Past webinar sessions and associated materials can be found on the Department’s Policy and Practice Webinar Series and Recording webpage.
Questions regarding the Special Education Policy and Practice webinar series can be directed to Mary Beilke, education program consultant, at mary.beilke@iowa.gov.