Special Programs is the IDOE’s statewide platform for IEP and student support management. It centralizes case management, documentation, and state reporting while enabling consistent implementation of accommodations and support services for students receiving special education services and those with English learner status. Below is a suite of resources covering training, access, and other key enablement materials.
Training on IDOE Special Programs is available through the Special Programs Academy.
The training for IDOE Special Programs follows a blended model:
Asynchronous Learning
- Course Name: Special Programs Academy
- Learning Management System: Schoology
- What to Expect: A self-paced course in Schoology including asynchronous videos, training materials and resources, learning checks, and module exams.
- Due Date: You must complete the course and receive certification to gain access to your school/district Special Programs site. Detailed certification requirements are outlined in the course.
Live Zoom Sessions
Session Type: Office Hours and Application of Learning Sessions via Zoom
Schedule: A schedule is shared in the Special Programs Academy course
What to Expect: Open Q&A and review of training topics via a virtual session with your PowerSchool trainer
Expectation: Encouraged, but not required for certification
Any questions, comments, or concerns related to training materials, learning checks/modules exams, or course content in Schoology can be entered via the Question Board within your course. There is a response time of up to 2 business days.
Any other concerns or requests should be directed through the official IDOE Special Programs Training Request Form. There is a response time of up to 3 business days.
The Training Request Form can be used for:
- Signing up for training
- Requesting login information (for email addresses that were invalid)
- Resetting of Schoology password
- Requesting to switch training groups
- Missing course
A key, optional, feature is access to the Special Programs Parent Portal, where parents can review and print finalized documents as well as send electronic messages to their student’s teacher of record. The Parent Portal will be available at a future announced date.
In order for parents to login, corporations must report the parent’s home/personal email with a legal designee status for each student to Data Exchange. Please work with your SIS to report these data accurately. This was due August 31, 2025.
Once this data has been collected in Data Exchange, parents will be able to access the Special Programs Parent Portal via their Access Indiana account. To apply for an Access Indiana account, please visit https://access.in.gov.
IDOE Special Programs also includes embedded technology that allows for collection of electronic digital signature for documents. All parent information collected in your Student Information Systems for parents with the status of “Legal Designee” will be stored in Special Programs and the email used for collection of digital signatures on IEP and ILP related documentation.
If your Student Information System does not provide a “Legal Designee” status, teachers of record can manually enter contact information (name, email address) in IDOE Special Programs for collection of digital signatures.
Have an idea for a system improvement? Please use the Ideas Portal in PowerSchool Community to submit your suggestions so they can be reviewed and considered for future updates. Note: You will need to sign into the PowerSchool Community or create an account in order to submit or vote on ideas. When adding an idea for IDOE Special Programs select the product of 'Special Programs' and for category select 'Indiana'.
The IDOE Special Programs Support Collection is available for public viewing inside the Learning Lab.
