Improving Systems, Practices, and Outcomes

Updated regularly: Coronavirus (COVID-19), Remote Service Delivery and Distance Learning

Services

We offer a variety of technical assistance activities and supports including conferences, peer learning communities, products, and individualized TA designed to build system capacity to improve outcomes for children with disabilities and their families. These opportunities range in intensity, from self-paced exploration to intensive multi-year assistance, to meet the needs of our clients. We also provide TA in partnership with other OSEP-funded early childhood TA centers.

2020 State Learning Opportunities

The OSEP-funded Early Childhood Technical Assistance (TA) Centers are pleased to announce a variety of new and ongoing opportunities to build individual and state capacity around implementation of IDEA 0-5. We hope this information will assist you as you consider which TA opportunities best fit your needs and priorities.

The Early Childhood TA response during the COVID-19 crisis

During the COVID-19 pandemic, we are all working to address the best way to proceed with our work and our personal lives. We have adopted the following principles as we continue to focus on the importance of relationships and embody the principle of flexibility and responsiveness to the needs of our clients.

  1. Nobody signed up for this.
    • Not for the sickness, not for the social distancing, not for the sudden end of our work in our offices or with our colleagues or in making the adjustments to our work plans.
    • Not for the disruption of our planned work, not for the uncertainty of what our work looks like in the future.
    • Not for the impact that this may have on our own families as we seek to continue support of our clients as they navigate continued services for children with disabilities and their families.
  2. The humane option is the best option.
    • We are going to prioritize supporting each other and our clients.
    • We going to prioritize simple solutions that make sense for the most; our work with each other and our work with states.
    • We are going to prioritize sharing resources and communicating clearly within our staff and with our clients.
    • We recognize the important contributions we can make to supporting the disability community as this time, in particular related to systems, practices and outcomes.
  3. We cannot just do the same TA.
    • Some of planned TA will need to be delayed.
    • Some of the planned TA will need to be "re–purposed" and new TA developed to meet the immediate needs of clients.
    • We will need to seek solutions to the issues that clients are dealing with now and in the future.
  4. We will foster TA solutions to the programmatic and data related issues clients are facing.
    • We will seek innovative, as well as providing tried and true solutions.
    • We will foster peer to peer sharing, learning and support.
    • We will support clients in keeping their professional social connections.
  5. We will remain flexible and adjust to the situation.
    • While we believe this situation is temporary, the timeline is unknown. We will need to adapt; we will remain open to this and look for solutions.
    • Everybody needs support and understanding in this unprecedented moment.

General Technical Assistance

We offer general TA that our clients can engage with at their own pace and convenience. This includes online tools, reports, modules, streaming webinars, and other resources found on our website. See our upcoming events, including webinars, conferences, and a calendar containing TA activities and opportunities from four Early Childhood IDEA Centers.

Targeted Technical Assistance

We respond to individualized TA requests based on a specific state's needs to build individual leadership or state system capacity. Our targeted TA services range in intensity from planning and consultation supports, to onsite trainings or stakeholder meeting facilitation. State coordinators can contact their ECTA state contact with individualized TA requests.

We support peer-to-peer learning through learning communities based on cross-state priorities, such as inclusion, measuring outcomes, and procedural safeguards.

Intensive Technical Assistance

We offer intensive TA to a limited number of states each year based on state and national priorities. Our intensive TA is designed to result in improved state and/or local system capacity to implement evidence-based practices. Intensive TA requires strong commitment and a stable partnership between the state and our staff. State coordinators can contact their ECTA state contact for more information about ECTA’s intensive TA offerings.