UPCOMING EVENTS
SELA is excited about another year of amazing learning opportunities!
SELA is excited to share with you our Administrator Academy offerings beginning in January 2025!
Friday, January 24, 2025
Not for a Lack of Appropriate Instruction: The LEA's Guide to Eligibility for Specific Learning Disability (Virtual) - Admin Academy #4123
February 7, 2025
Dispute Resolution for Special Education (Virtual) - Admin Academy #4125
Friday, March 7, 2025
Disability, Language & Culture: Supporting English Learners Suspected of Having a Disability and English Learners with an IEP (Virtual) - Admin Academy #4142
See below for additional information and registration links
SELA January Sessions
SELA January Admin Academy: Not for a Lack of Appropriate Instruction: The LEA's Guide to Eligibility for Specific Learning Disability (Virtual)
Admin Academy #4123
Presented Virtually by: Amy Magers
Date/Time: Friday, January 24, 2025 from 8:30 am - 12:30 pm
Click Here to register for this Academy
Here is the link to join the Kickup Platform - If you have not not previously taken a workshop through SELA or NSSEO, you will need to register in Kick up before registering.
(A $15 fee will be assessed for seeking Admin Academy credit)
Description of Academy:
This academy provides participants with tools and knowledge to critically evaluate their RtI/MTSS system for evaluation of students with Specific Learning Disability (SLD) and allow for more meaningful participation in eligibility determination conference meetings. Participants will understand the eligibility process and requirements for SLD eligibility in Illinois as a foundation for the following three outcomes:
1. Participants will be equipped with knowledge and tools in which to evaluate their school’s MTSS, leaving with concrete next steps for improvement.
2. Participants can critically analyze instructional systems as they apply to individual recommendations for eligibility for SLD through the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA).
3. Participants will be adequately prepared and knowledgeable when serving as an LEA when SLD is under consideration by integrating their understanding of MTSS and the following considerations of SLD eligibility: lack of appropriate instruction, responding to parent referrals and outside evaluations (such as for dyslexia) when RtI has not been implemented, and addressing other barriers to successful SLD eligibility.
About the Presenter:
Amy Magers began her career as a school psychologist and has served students in both small, rural schools as well as a large urban school district in Illinois. Amy has served as a Special Education Administrator, so her educational focus is on meaningful educational evaluations, legal issues in Special Education, and ensuring students have access to a Free Appropriate Public Education. Always a school psychologist, she also has interests in creating robust MTSS systems, social-emotional learning, and data literacy.
SELA Feburary Sessions
SELA February Admin Academy: Dispute Resolution for Special Education (Virtual) Admin Academy #4125
Presented Virtually by: Kaitlin Atlas
Date/Time: Friday, February 7, 2025 from 8:30 am - 1:00 pm
Click Here to register for this Academy
Here is the link to join the Kickup Platform - If you have not not previously taken a workshop through SELA or NSSEO, you will need to register in Kick up before registering.
(A $15 fee will be assessed for seeking Admin Academy credit)
Description of Academy:
This Dispute Resolution for Special Educators - Special Education Leadership Academy will provide administrators with the legal framework of the dispute resolution procedures in the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act. The trainers will provide administrators with practical advice for each step of the dispute resolution process for reaching accord with families in an attempt to preserve the relationship between the school district and the family. Finally, the academy will provide attendees with advice on how to determine which matters are worth litigating and which matters are wise to settle.
About the Presenter:
Kaitlin Atlas concentrates her practice on student and special education related issues arising in both the public and private school sectors. Kaitlin regularly works with clients on due process matters, student discipline matters, and developing policies and procedures. Kaitlin enjoys proactively counseling clients to maintain compliance with state and federal laws. Kaitlin is an active member of the National Association of School Attorneys and the Illinois Council of School Attorneys. She is a frequent speaker at the Illinois Alliance of Administrators of Special Education, the Joint Annual Conference, and at school districts throughout the state. Kaitlin also regularly serves as a guest lecturer for school law classes. In her free time, Kaitlin enjoys spending time outside with her dog, her friends, and her family.
SELA March Sessions
SELA March Admin Academy: Disability, Language & Culture: Supporting English Learners Suspected of Having a Disability and English Learners with an IEP (Virtual) Admin Academy #4142
Presented Virtually by: Lydia Kvinta & Assma Daifallah
Date/Time: Friday, March 7, 2025 from 8:30 am - 1:00 pm
Click Here to register for this Academy
Here is the link to join the Kickup Platform - If you have not previously taken a workshop through SELA or NSSEO, you will need to register in Kick up before registering.
(A $15 fee will be assessed for seeking Admin Academy credit)
Description of Academy:
This course emphasizes on working with English learners suspected of having a disability and English learners who have an IEP. It will help stakeholders identify behaviors resulting from limited English proficiency and/or cultural characteristics and differentiate them from behaviors that may indicate a disability. It will provide guidance on how to establish positive relationships with EL parents and meet requirements tied to translations and interpretations. It will help modify MTSS to better serve English learners. It will explain requirements related to evaluating ELs for special education services, and provide guidance on writing an IEP for ELs that is compliant with state and federal regulations.
About the Presenters:
Lydia Kvinta - Lydia Kvinta has a master’s degree in applied linguistics and a master’s degree in special education and extensive experience as a special education teacher and administrator. For the past eleven years, she has been working as a Principal Consultant in the Special Education and Multilingual/Language Development Department at the Illinois State Board of Education specializing in supporting dually identified students, English learners with an IEP. Lydia frequently presents at state and local conferences, and she has a proven track record as an adult trainer working at the Walden University Graduate College, Department of Special
Education. Lydia grew up in Europe, in a multilingual environment, where three languages were spoken at home on a daily basis. She later learned five additional languages and is still fluent in four. She is the author of four books published in the United States.
Assma Daifallah - Assma Daifallah is an experienced educator and advocate with a background spanning over a decade of teaching and educational leadership. She specializes in supporting English learners and improving school systems to ensure equity and access for all students. Assma’s work at the Illinois State Board of Education included monitoring schools for compliance with English learner policies and spearheading policy revisions, such as changes to the state’s bilingual rules. Currently, as part of the American Institutes for Research, she focuses on school improvement initiatives, leveraging her expertise in culturally and linguistically responsive practices. Assma’s doctoral studies in Interprofessional Leadership at Kent State University explore interdisciplinary strategies to address systemic inequities. Her passion lies in the intersection of disability, language, and culture, with a commitment to improving outcomes for English learners suspected of having disabilities. She brings a unique perspective informed by her Palestinian-American heritage, her professional journey, and her goal of advocating for transformative education policies at the national level.
Statewide Special Education Directors Conference
SELA will be hosting the 2025 Statewide Special Education Directors’ Conference June 9 & 10, 2025!
Please Note
NSSEO has moved to a new professional learning platform called KickUp. This will provide you with a user-friendly way to register for professional development events throughout the year and to track your professional learning hours. We have phased out Learning Stream, and as of June 1st, 2024, all registration links will be through Kick Up.
To begin, you can simply click on this link to begin creating your account. Please note: you will need to use your district email address for your account creation and log-in. After the initial setup, you can always visit pulse.kickup.co to access your PD information. If you are not a part of a school district, please use the email address you use the most and it will allow you to generate a successful account! Once you have established your profile, it will take you a brief moment to register for the event or events you choose!
Once you have your account, you can register for our events using the links above.
For registration questions, please contact Katie Krafton at kkrafton@nsseo.org
