The authors believe that the "Journal of Research on Leadership Education" can lead the effort to reduce the communication barriers among academics in a variety of fields, professions, and countries. Its common ground is a commitment to prepare outstanding future leaders for educational settings. The authors urge readers to pay attention to the…

Within the population of students with disabilities there is a broad range of levels of expenditures. A few students with very high levels of needs can have a serious impact on the budget of an individual school district. The recent IDEA reauthorization allows state-level "local educational agency risk pools" to help distribute the…

IDEA Part B funds have more than doubled between the 1999 and 2003 fiscal years, from $4.3 billion to $8.9 billion. This is an increase from 8% to 13% of total special education spending. Increases in federal funds can theoretically support "program growth" by providing fiscal relief to states and districts facing rising special…

The shortage of special education teachers is due in part to high attrition, especially among new entrants. Improving teacher retention and quality requires a holistic view of new teachers' needs, an understanding of the contexts in which they work, as well as the types of support that are needed. A leader's model highlights major considerations…

Despite differences in geographic location, district size, and student characteristics, district special education leaders reflected similar views on opportunities and challenges of NCLBA. Challenges included making AYP, meeting the highly qualified teacher requirement, addressing budget shortfalls, aligning of federal policies, predicting the…

This article discusses how an urban middle school designed to reflect a Schools for Thought model has demonstrated that urban schools can achieve excellent results on statewide testing for all students, including those with disabilities. Key school features are highlighted, including the use of "cross-talk" to stimulate discussion and student…

This article discusses urban teacher shortages, the interaction between poverty, ethnicity, and academic performance, and how licensure contributes to poor results in urban schools. Two partnerships between local universities and school districts to address these shortages are described. The need to prepare general and special education teachers…

This article describes how the Clark County School District in Las Vegas was reorganized to provide a greater emphasis on site-based management and a responsive centralized support system. Central to the reorganization was the development of a single division to support students with special needs. Barriers to collaboration are discussed. (CR)

A special education lawsuit against the Baltimore City Public School System resulted in a consent decree that evolved into a systemwide management plan. By 1997, the system collapsed and a city-state partnership integrated special and regular education. The focus on outcomes for court disengagement instead of student outcomes is discussed. (CR)

This article discusses Ontario's new Special Education Grant that provides funding on the school board's total enrollment and on an identified student basis. This new approach to funding was designed to minimize administration, in that only the highest-need students are identified for funding purposes. Implementation issues are examined. (CR)

This brief article notes a trend toward more reactive school administration practices in response to increased regulatory requirements and identifies problems encountered by special education administrators contributing to this reactive approach. It reports on one school district's proactive development of a "Unified Support Services Process and…

District and building-level administrators are often responsible for the hiring and supervising of related services personnel. Thus, a deeper understanding of the personnel issues that exist in the related services disciplines becomes important. What we know about the supply and demand, professional preparation, and certification and licensure of…

Physical therapy in school settings focuses on outcomes and is based on meeting the educational needs of the child or student. Despite the expansion in delivery models beyond direct one-to-one intervention, and the use of multiple team members, to achieve outcomes for students in educational environments, there continue to be shortages of physical…

For the past ten years, concerns have been voiced about the preservice preparation of occupational therapy (OT) practitioners to work in schools and early childhood programs. States and local districts have long complained of shortages of occupational therapists (OTs) in these settings. In addition, the "Twenty-Second Annual Report to…

The majority of graduate programs in communication sciences and disorders train generalists who may not be prepared for the unique demands of employment in the schools (e.g., curriculum-based assessments, classroom-based interventions, collaborative consultation) because the complexities of caseloads and the roles and responsibilities of…