Talking Out of School

4 Ways to Support Students with Special Education Needs Digitally

District leaders are under increasing pressure to support the individual needs of students with disabilities, who comprise approximately 15% of national public school enrollment.
One way to help students with special needs is by providing a digital learning environment. One study* revealed that online learning has provided this population with added flexibility and convenience to manage and absorb information at their own pace, along with individualized learning opportunities that address their specific challenges.
In this podcast, a digital learning expert with experience developing online, blended, and hybrid programs for special and gifted education students will provide school and district administrators with best practices to support students with special education needs in the digital learning environment.
GUEST:
Nikki Callaghan, Director of Exceptional Student Education, FlexPoint

EPISODE 38: Why digital media literacy is a gift for students now, live from FETC

Arming students with the skills to traverse the internet responsibly is education's latest challenge, says these two leaders live from the Future of Education Technology Conference. 

EPISODE 37: Why supporting faculty mental health is enormous for classrooms

"We oftentimes don't think much about training with adults on social-emotional development, but we're not done growing," says Karen G. Foley, president and CEO of JPA Chicago.

EPISODE 36: How this district improved academics during the pandemic

Johnston County Public Schools Superintendent Eric Bracy used ESSER dollars to pay for a high-quality, research-based curriculum. Now, the move is paying off.

EPISODE 35: Why tech needs diversity in more ways than one

Cybersecurity, artificial intelligence and diversity are three of the top issues in K12 IT departments. They are also the big themes at next month's FETC 2025. 

What K-12 Leaders Can Learn from Alternative Delivery Construction Projects

Over the years, Director of Purchasing Gary Kerbow has been tasked with daunting construction projects when helping Hurst Euless Bedford ISD expand.
Once, the board of trustees needed a recently acquired building up and running as quickly as possible, but copper thieves had looted the entire infrastructure, requiring extensive rewiring. Another time, Gary had to determine the full scope of repairs when creating offices for new management staff in an existing warehouse space.
Most construction veterans would consider these requests near impossible, and they would be if Gary didn’t have certain procedures and tools in place. In this podcast, Gary will speak about the lessons he’s learned from these and other projects at a number of school districts in North Texas.
Key Takeaways: 
What superintendents need to know when assigning similar time-sensitive tasks 
Best practices for vetting vendors to ensure difficult projects are completed on time 
When procurement directors need to reconsider where and how they procure critical parts 
How staffing levels and needs impact renovation/construction projects 
How to streamline construction projects through collaboration and communication 
Ways to innovate the scope of work for all contractors, subcontractors, and suppliers 
Speakers
Gary Kerbow, Director of Purchasing, Hurst Euless Bedford ISD
817-399-2036
garykerbow@hebisd.edu
 
Will Leisure, Account Manager, Gordian
w.leisure@gordian.com
817-964-7441
 
RESOURCES
K12 Contact: K12Team@gordian.com
https://www.gordian.com/solutions/industry/k-12/

Episode 34: AI meets inclusion at FETC 2025

On the latest episode of District Administration's Talking Out of School podcastI, FETC featured speaker Kimberly Zajac share ideas for using the efficiencies of artificial intelligence to make instruction ever more inclusive.

EPISODE 33: How to choose the right edtech for your district

Today, we're joined by Francie Alexander, senior vice president of efficacy and consulting research at Houghton Mifflin Harcourt (HMH), to discuss the pressures placed on edtech companies to produce results in school districts around the country. She also shares her advice for those in charge of selecting edtech tools for their districts and how to choose the most effective product.

EPISODE 32: What is a small language model?

You’ve probably heard about AI's large language models. But what is a "small language model" and why might this fine-tuned version of artificial intelligence work better in K12? 

EPISODE 31: Regaining connection with conflict resolution

An incendiary presidential election, compounded by social media and cable news, is pushing us further away. But as superintendents and community leaders, we can bridge the gap, Katy Anthes says.