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COVID-19 and Special Education
Overview
These Exceptional Student Services Unit (ESSU) webpages are continuously expanding to support educators who serve, and families of Colorado children with disabilities through the provision of Special Education-specific information and resources during the COVID-19 pandemic.
State & Federal Guidance
This section organizes guidance provided by the U.S. Department of Education, State Of Colorado Agencies including the CDE Exceptional Student Services Unit.
Learning Supports for Students With Disabilities
This section provides resources across a wide multitude of disability topics.
Resources for Families of Students with Disabilities During COVID-19
This section provides access to resources for families and caregivers of children with disabilities, as they support their children during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Disability & Topic Specific Information
Autism Spectrum Disorder
Brain Injury & Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder (FASD)
Deaf and Hard of Hearing
Facility Schools Information
IEP Tele-Facilitation
Serious Emotional Disability, Social Emotional Learning, Mental Health & Behavior
Significant Support Needs
Speech & Language
Transition Age
Visual Impairment, Including Blindness
Virtual Office Hours
After the time of remote instruction, the Office of Special Education has been fielding many phone and email questions regarding how best to support the accessibility, behavior, learning, social-emotional, and transition needs of learners with disabilities. In response to requests from the field, the following office hours have resumed:
- Autism Spectrum Disorders
- Blind/Visually Impaired (B/VI) Sound Bites
- Deaf and Hard of Hearing Listen, Learn, Ask, Answer
- New or Near-New Special Education Directors - Lunch Connect Meetings
- School-Based Mental Health and Special Education
- Secondary Transition
- Serious Emotional Disability, Social Emotional Learning, Mental Health & Behavior
- Significant Support Needs
- Speech-Language Pathology Office Hours
Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD)
Beginning August 12, 2022, Brooke Carson and the ASD team will host office hours during the school year on the following Fridays each from 12:30 - 1:30 PM on the following Fridays:
- August 12, 19, 26
- September 9, 16, 23, 30
- October 7, 14, 21
- November 4
- December 2, 16
- January 6, 20
- February 3, 17
- March 3, 17
- April 7, 21
- May 5, 19
School Year ASD
Zoom Meetings
Meeting ID: 816 3285 8576
Blind/Visually Impaired (B/VI)
Tanni Anthony will be offering Sound Bite sessions, a Virtual Monthly Professional Learning /Conversations this Fall.
Sound Bites are 2022-23 opportunities for personnel trained to work with learners with visual impairment, including blindness to gather once a month for professional learning and conversations on improving educational assessment and programmatic practices. Some sessions will be restricted to teachers of students with visual impairments (TVIs).
The dates are as follows from 3:30 to 5:00 PM.
- October 19, 2022
- November 16, 2022
- January 18, 2023
- February 15, 2023
- March 15, 2023
- April 19, 2023
- May 17, 2023
Register Sound Bites/
BVI Office Hours
All participants must register no later than two weeks in advance for each session.
Deaf and Hard of Hearing Listen, Learn, Ask, Answer
Join the Deaf and Hard of Hearing Leadership team as they discuss various topics around Deaf Education. Each conversation will be held from 3:30 - 5:30 on the date listed below.
Registration links by date & topic
- September 15: Educational Audiology (Registration)
- September 22: READ Act (Registration)
- October 6: Understanding Assessment and the Starfish (Registration)
- October 20: Communication Plan (Registration)
- November 10: Goal Writing (Registration)
Learn More about Listen, Learn, Ask, Answers sessions here.
New or Near-New Special Education Directors - Lunch Connect Meetings
The Director Mentors, Frances Woolery-Jones & Mary Gomez will host virtual opportunities for new or near-new directors of special education directors members to ask questions, stay up to date on various topics and network with each other.
Lunch Connect Meetings are scheduled for 12:00 PM - 1:00 PM on the following dates:
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September 23, 2022
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October 21, 2022
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November 18, 2022
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January 13, 2023
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February 17, 2023
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March 17, 2023
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April 21, 2023
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May 12, 2023
Meeting Link
This meeting is open to only new or near-new Directors of Special Education. For more information email Mary Gomez, at gomez_m@cde.state.co.us, or Frances Woolery-Jones, at woolery-jones_f@cde.state.co.us.
School-Based Mental Health and Special Education
Krista Klabo will resume office hours in fall 2022.
Office hours will be the third Tuesday each month from 8:00 AM - 9:30 AM.
The content will focus on Coaching and Consultation as a Related Service Provider.
Session dates & topics of focus are:
- September 20, 2022 - Intro Coaching and Consultation as a Related Service Provider
- October 18, 2022 - Coaching and Consultation with Families
- November 29, 2022 - Adult Learning Principles
- January 17, 2023 - Coaching and Consultation with General Education Teachers
- February 21, 2023 - Implementation Science
- March 21, 2023 - Coaching and Consultation with Support Professionals and Other School Staff
- April 18, 2023 - Coaching and Consultation with Administrators
Register for School-Based
Mental Health Office Hours
Registration for the School-Based Mental Health will close two weeks prior to each session.
Secondary Transition
Gail Lott will offer Secondary Transition office hours on the second Tuesday of each month from 3:30- 4:30 PM on the following days:
- October 11, 2022
- November 8, 2022
- December 6, 2022
- January 10, 2023
- February 14, 2023
- March 14, 2023
- April 11, 2023
- May 9, 2023
Register for Secondary
Transition Office Hours
All participants must register no later than two weeks in advance for each office hour.
Serious Emotional Disability, Social Emotional Learning, Mental Health & Behavior
- October 4, 2022 - New FBA and BIP
- November 1, 2022 - Data Collection/Progress Monitoring
- December 6, 2022 - Serious Emotional Disability VS Social Maladjustment
- January 3, 2023 - PTR-Early Childhood
- February 7, 2023 - Gifted and Twice Exceptional
- March 7, 2023 - Alternative to Suspension
- April 4, 2023 - Manifestation Determination Review
- May 2, 2023 - Restraints and Seclusion
Register for SED, SEL
& Behavior Office H ours
All participants must register no later than two weeks in advance.
Significant Support Needs
Gina Herrera will host office hours/SSN Power Hour on the first Wednesday of each month from 3:30 PM - 4:30 PM.
All participants must register no later than two weeks in advance for each power hour.
- September 7, 2022
- October 5, 2022
- November 2, 2022
- December 7, 2022
- January 4, 2023
- February 1, 2023
- March 1, 2023
- April 5, 2023
- May 5, 2023
- June 7, 2023
Speech-Language Pathology Office Hours
Beginning in October, Shani O'Brien will hold monthly office hours from 9:00 am - 10:00 am on the following Mondays:
- October 10, 2022
- November 21, 2022 - The November office hours have been cancelled.
- December 19, 2022 - The December office hours have been cancelled.
- January 9, 2023
- February 13, 2023
- March 13, 2023
- April 10, 2023
- May 8, 2023
Register for SLP
Office Hours
All participants must register no later than two weeks in advance.
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