By Dr. Derek Ihori and Dr. Alexia Melara

Daily practice guidance for special education directors, superintendents, assistant superintendents and other district-level leaders.

District-level special education administrators navigate many situations other administrators do not -- from leading the department’s vision, to coordinating resources, to justifying decisions made. This professional development guide delves deeply into the day-to-day practical aspects of these unique responsibilities:

• Ideas for effective personnel management including hiring, training, discipline and evaluation
• Guidance on managing the department, from developing a procedural manual to using spreadsheets to easily track staff caseloads and compliance with assessment due dates
• How to build a strong working relationship with the school district's attorney and collaborate to effectively address legal issues
• Insights and checklists on handling legal cases: prioritizing, analyzing their legal defensibility, and understanding the costs of proceeding to due process
• Strategies to communicate complicated aspects of special education to stakeholders, including Board of Education members and union leadership
• Keys to building credibility with all levels of stakeholders to improve professional effectiveness
• And more

Works hand in hand with Key Principles for School Staff and Key Principles for School Administrators to ensure consistent training across all levels -- giving everyone a shared foundation of knowledge plus targeted expertise to carry out their unique role in building a culture of inclusion.