Add an Endorsement

Special Education

Program Description

The Special Educator Endorsement Program is a ROPA-approved, 24-credit sequence of coursework and practical experience designed to prepare eligible Vermont licensed teachers for the Vermont special educator endorsement. Upon completion of the program, VT-HEC will recommend successful candidates to the AOE for endorsement.


New cohorts begin every summer. Each cohort is affiliated with Vermont State University.

If you don’t have a Vermont teaching license, learn more about earning your initial license.

Application and Program Requirements

The first step of the application process is for the candidate to communicate with the VT-HEC Special Education (SE) Director to learn about the program and for the director to learn about your goals and your academic and professional background. This will help you and the SE Director determine if VT-HEC’s SE program is the right program for you.

Applicants must have:

  • A current VT teaching license
  • A school site at which they can conduct the applied course practicum activities

If you decide to apply, you will need to complete a VT-HEC Special Educator Endorsement application form. In addition to the completed and signed application, candidates will need to provide additional documentation to support the application. The Candidate Agreement form lays out what you, as a candidate in the VT-HEC SE program, are committing to. It also spells out the commitment the VT-HEC SE program is making to you.

All applicants must provide copies of their college transcripts (unofficial copies are acceptable) and a letter of support from a supervisor or employer who is familiar with the candidate’s work and who can speak to the candidate’s abilities and professionalism. 

For questions or to request application materials, contact Joy Wilcox at [email protected]

Program Timeline + Course Descriptions

These courses are designed to meet the competencies for licensure as a special educator in Vermont.

Year One

This course examines the legal and ethical issues embedded in the provision of special education services to individuals with disabilities and their families.  The course addresses the historical treatment of people with disabilities from a service delivery model perspective.  Significant legislation and court decisions will be addressed along with current special education legal requirements and local, state, and community issues impacting services.  Specific attention will be given to ways in which disability may be viewed as a form of diversity.  Additionally, important frameworks and concepts including the social construction of disability, self-determination, inclusion, collaboration with diverse families, and person-centered planning will be explored in-depth.

This course has been designed to help special education graduate students gain some of the critical assessment skills and knowledge they will need to be successful special education professionals. The course has been divided into three, 2-credit sections and will be organized around three-course themes.

  1. Assessment in Special Education: Achievement Testing and Report (late August through early October) – (2 credits) – assessment instruments, procedures and practices, legal issues in assessment
  2. Interpretation of Assessments: (Mid-October through December) – (2 credits) – use cognitive and academic achievement evaluation results to deepen understanding of varied learning profiles
  3. Special Education Comprehensive Evaluations: (Early January through mid-February) – (2 credits) – leading the comprehensive evaluation process resulting in a comprehensive evaluation plan, the determination of special education eligibility, and the special education comprehensive evaluation report

Students will learn to develop and implement systemic and proactive procedures that address problem behavior in the building, classroom, and individual student levels. Emphasis on creating or modifying learning environments and interactions that promote social and academic achievement. Students will be required to perform a full functional behavior plan as part of this course requirement.

Students will learn to develop and implement systemic and proactive procedures that address problem behavior in the building, classroom, and individual student levels. Emphasis on creating or modifying learning environments and interactions that promote social and academic achievement. Students will be required to perform a full functional behavior plan as part of this course requirement.

Year Two

The focus of this course is to provide participants with the necessary components to create an effective school program for students with complex needs. Emphasis will be placed on choosing and utilizing appropriate assessment procedures, utilizing structured teaching strategies, creating individual educational programs, and collaborating in the general education setting. This course will look at all areas of development for children with low-incidence disabilities including cognitive, motor, social, communication, safety, domestic living, and recreation/leisure. Students will also learn the rules and regulations that drive their professional responsibilities relative to the development of IEPs and will become competent at leading a team through the IEP process, resulting in an appropriate and meaningful IEP for each student.

This course is designed to help participants identify students who experience a reading disability and who have barriers to learning to read. Participants will gain critical assessment skills necessary to evaluate students’ development and strengths and weaknesses in literacy and use this information to design appropriate instruction and support for these students.

The internship experience is competency-based, reinforcing course content as well as exposing the intern to important experiences and opportunities to ensure the development and implementation of effective programs for learners eligible for special education services. Interns receive direction, guidance, and direct feedback from a field-based mentor as well as a VT-HEC/Spec Ed supervisor. Together they design an individual student plan, based on a self-assessment plan (SAP), to track obtained competencies and set goals for identified needs. Along with formative evaluation based on direct observation of the intern’s performance, summative evaluation in the form of grades on internship products will be provided by VT-HEC Supervisors. Students must have successfully completed four of the required VT-HEC Special Education courses including Special Education Assessment (all 3 sections) and Meeting the Instructional Needs of all Students: Moderate to Severe Disabilities, in order to be eligible for the internship.

This course is designed to help participants identify students who are learning disabled and at-risk in the area of math. Participants will gain critical assessment skills necessary to evaluate students’ development and strengths and weaknesses and use this information to design appropriate math instruction and support for these students.

GUIDING YOU WITH EXPERTISE

Course Instructors

  • Sarah Schoolcraft, M.Ed.

  • Kathy Christy M.Ed., NBCT

  • presenter photo

    Kara Griswold, M.Ed.

  • Andrea Drolet

  • Mandy Couturier, M.Ed.

  • Sarah White

  • Mary Lundeen, M.Ed.

  • Loralyn LaBombard, Ed.D.

  • Lori Cassidy, M.Ed.

  • Abigayle Smith

Upcoming Offerings

View All

  • (Canceled) Special Educator Academy

    (Canceled) Special Educator Academy

    October 16,

    2024

    3:30 pm

  • Special Education Legal Update: Recent Developments and Common Concerns

    Special Education Legal Update: Recent Developments and Common Concerns

    October 18,

    2024

    8:30 am

  • Executive Function Skills: Strategies for Identifying and Overcoming Learning Barriers

    Executive Function Skills: Strategies for Identifying and Overcoming Learning Barriers

    October 30,

    2024

    8:30 am

  • Self Regulation in Young Learners: A Framework for Understanding and Reframing Behaviors

    Self Regulation in Young Learners: A Framework for Understanding and Reframing Behaviors

    November 8,

    2024

    8:30 am

  • Establishing and Maintaining Effective Educational Support Teams

    Establishing and Maintaining Effective Educational Support Teams

    November 15,

    2024

    8:30 am

  • Using a Pattern of Strength and Weakness Approach to Determine SLD

    Using a Pattern of Strength and Weakness Approach to Determine SLD

    December 6,

    2024

    8:30 am

  • Writing Measurable IEP Goals and Objectives to Monitor Educational Benefit

    Writing Measurable IEP Goals and Objectives to Monitor Educational Benefit

    December 13,

    2024

    8:30 am