Assessment Team Leadership
The Assessment Team Leadership Exemplar Lead is a Local Educational Agency (LEA), Special Education Local Plan Area (SELPA), or County Office of Education (COE) and provides a model for effective assessment team collaboration including administrative support. This Exemplar provides knowledge of the range of assessment team models (i.e. Regionalized Assessment Teams or Diagnostic Assessment Teams) and tangible ways that preschool assessment teams can ensure high quality and comprehensive assessments occur for the preschool age child. This Exemplar Lead provides resources to assist with guiding appropriate administrative decisions related to preschool transitions, assessments, and programming.
Exemplar Leads for Assessment Team Leadership
Lincoln Unified School District
Thomas Crocker is the Executive Director of Special Education and Health Services in the Lincoln Unified School District where he has spent more than 8 years overseeing and coordinating preschool programs, including the development of a robust preschool assessment team, inclusive opportunities for students that include participation in state funded preschools, and a board approved full inclusion preschool classroom. Thomas has worked diligently to maintain collaborative relationships between his staff and regional center service coordinators to support timely transitions between Part C to Part B services. In the Lincoln Unified School District, preschool assessors continue to support students through direct and indirect services throughout preschool programming experiences, ensuring continuity of care and case management, which creates strong parent/district relationships and improved outcomes for students. In addition to work within the school setting, Thomas has served as a part time instructor teaching courses in early childhood education and other special education credential programs.
Assessment Team Leadership Resources
One major transition required within IDEA is when children turn 3 years old and transition out of Part C Early Intervention Programs into Part B Services for School-Aged Children. This document provides an At-A-Glance look at transition activities and timelines for Part C to Part B Transitions under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA).
Learn about the importance of making data-driven decisions and, using the Improvement Data Center (IDC), and take a walk through of the DRDP Outcomes Data in this presentation.
Support Materials
Learn about Early Childhood Education Local Educational Agency (LEA) Child Find and Assessment Obligations, Assessent Timelines, and the Importance of Making Positive First Impressions when assessing young children and working with their families.
Support Materials
Attend the Feb 25th event: Setting Up For Success - Developing an Assessment Team for Early Childhood Special Education Part 2
Learn varying ways that LEAs, SELPAs, and/or COEs work to build effective assessment teams that are equipped to identify the needs of all earlychildhood learners who are referred for an assessment.
This series will provide information on a variety of models and approaches that are actively, and effectively used in the field of early childhood. Participants will be provided with opportunities to engage with the presenters and ask questions. If you are looking for ways to improve or restructure your current assessment team approach, this series is for you!
Support Materials
In this video, CalECSE Network Exemplar Lead Carrie Rodrigues highlights the importance of early assessment and discusses the best practices in the assessment of students prior to their transition into a kindergarten setting, with insight from school administrators and a parent who have seen the benefits of these practices firsthand.
