Blog
Notes from people who have sat at the IEP table.
Compliance, retention, assessment and district leadership, written by former directors, psychologists and case managers.
District Leadership
Measuring compliance on SPP/APR Indicators 11, 12 and 13 across a district
How the three IDEA timeline and transition compliance indicators are calculated, where districts lose points, and how to track them all year.
Dr. Anjali Rao · Sep 17, 2026 · 8 min read
- Teacher Retention & OperationsStreamlining the Prior Written Notice (PWN) workflowPrior Written Notice is one of the most cited procedural errors in IEP file reviews. A seven-element checklist and a workflow that gets PWNs right every time.Aug 25, 2026 · 7 min
- District LeadershipDistrict-wide standards alignment for life skills and functional IEPsHow to connect functional and life skills IEP goals to grade-level content standards without losing the functional purpose, with a district framework.Jul 23, 2026 · 7 min
- Teacher Retention & OperationsHow to run an efficient IEP meeting in 45 minutesA 45-minute IEP meeting is possible without shortchanging parents. The work happens before the meeting. A minute-by-minute agenda from a former case manager.Jun 16, 2026 · 7 min
- District LeadershipHow special education directors can prepare for cyclical state monitoringA director's year-long plan for state monitoring: self-review, file sampling, root cause analysis, and correcting noncompliance the way states verify it.Jun 11, 2026 · 7 min
- Instructional & AssessmentProgress monitoring that holds up in a state auditWhat monitors check when they open an IEP file, and how to build CBM aim lines, decision rules and progress reports that answer every question.May 14, 2026 · 7 min
- Teacher Retention & OperationsWhy paperwork is a leading driver of special education teacher attritionSpecial educators rarely leave because of students. They leave because compliance work crowds out teaching. What directors can change this year.May 5, 2026 · 6 min
- Legal & ComplianceThe anatomy of a non-defensible PLAAFP statementA weak PLAAFP undermines every goal, service and placement decision built on it. Here are the five defects we see most and a full before-and-after rewrite.Apr 14, 2026 · 7 min
- Instructional & AssessmentHow to write measurable behavioral goals for students with ADHDOperational definitions, real baselines, and goals that name a replacement behavior: a practical method for ADHD behavior goals that hold up.Apr 9, 2026 · 7 min
- Legal & ComplianceNavigating SPP/APR Indicator 11: fixing the 60-day evaluation bottleneckIndicator 11 is a 100% compliance target. Here is where 60-day initial evaluations usually slip and the operational fixes that keep them on time.Mar 24, 2026 · 7 min
- Instructional & AssessmentTranslating WISC-V cognitive profiles into targeted classroom accommodationsHow to move from WISC-V index scores to accommodations a teacher can deliver on Monday, with a worked profile and the cautions that keep it defensible.Mar 12, 2026 · 7 min
- Legal & ComplianceHow the Endrew F. standard continues to reshape IEP goal defensibilityNearly a decade after Endrew F., hearing officers still ask one question of every goal: was it appropriately ambitious for this child? Here is how to answer it.Mar 10, 2026 · 7 min
The SpEd Compliance Brief
Monthly updates on IDEA Part B rulings, OSEP policy letters and state monitoring trends.
Cut IEP drafting time by 60% while strengthening legal defensibility.
See how TPA Ventures drafts standard-aligned goals from raw psych evaluations in under 3 minutes.