Technical Assistance and Dissemination

Staff working together looking at a computer

Purpose

The OSEP Technical Assistance and Dissemination to Improve Services and Results for Children with Disabilities (TA&D) program is the primary source of support for technical assistance, demonstration projects, dissemination of information, and implementation of scientifically based research under Sec. 1463. of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA).  The purpose of the TA&D program is to improve results for children with disabilities by:

(1) providing technical assistance (TA);
(2) supporting model demonstration projects;
(3) disseminating useful information, and 
(4) implementing activities that are supported by scientifically based research. 

The OSEP Model Demonstration projects are a way to bridge the gap between existing research and practice at the school and program level by demonstrating how to implement and sustain evidence-based practices in the field. The TA&D centers support states and local systems to implement, evaluate, and scale-up the practices or models that have been identified as being effective to improve outcomes for children with disabilities. 

Current Investments:

OSEPs current TA&D program investments are comprised of Technical Assistance Centers that support improved outcomes for infants, toddlers, and students with disabilities.  The TA&D projects utilize implementation science and evidence-based practices to ensure outcomes for TA recipients are met. The TA&D projects strive to leverage resources to expand their overall impact and capacity and to produce products and services that are consistently high-quality, relevant, useful, cost-efficient, culturally responsive, scientifically-based, and sustainable to improve services provided under the IDEA to improve results for infants, toddlers and children with disabilities and their families.  

Performance Measurement Information and Resources

The Department of Education has established a set of performance measures that are designed to yield information on various aspects of the effectiveness and quality of the program. Learn More


Additional Resources for Grantees

The Department of Education Office of Special Education Programs is pleased to provide additional resources to support your work with individuals with disabilities. Learn More


Engage OSEP logo

Engage OSEP Site Information

The following resources are presented by the Department of Education Office of Special Education Programs (OSEP) to support grantees in collaborating with one another. Learn More

Performance Measurement Information and Resources

The OSEP Government Performance and Results Act performance measures for the Technical Assistance and Dissemination Program are:

  • Program Performance Measure #1: The percentage of Technical Assistance and Dissemination products and services deemed to be of high quality by an independent review panel of experts qualified to review the substantive content of the products and services.
  • Program Performance Measure #2: The percentage of Special Education Technical Assistance and Dissemination products and services deemed by an independent review panel of qualified experts to be of high relevance to educational and early intervention policy or practice.
  • Program Performance Measure #3: The percentage of all Special Education Technical Assistance and Dissemination products and services deemed by an independent review panel of qualified experts to be useful to improve educational or early intervention policy or practice.
  • Program Performance Measure * #4: The cost efficiency of the Technical Assistance and Dissemination Program includes the percentage of milestones achieved in the current annual performance report period and the percentage of funds spent during the current fiscal year.  

* For Program Performance Measure #4, please use the following project performance measure when you report against this target within the annual performance report: “(X) milestones completed out of (X) milestones proposed for the current reporting period.” and “Milestone” is defined as a scheduled event signifying the completion of a major deliverable or set of deliverables or a phase of work. “Deliverable” is defined as a technical assistance and dissemination product or service.

Model Demonstration Performance Measurement

Performance Measurement Information and Resources

The OSEP Government Performance and Results Act performance measures for the Model Demonstration Projects are:

  • The percentage of effective evidence-based program models developed by model demonstration projects that are promoted to States and their partners through the Technical Assistance and Dissemination Network; and
  • Pilot Program Performance Measure: The percentage of effective program models developed by model demonstration projects that are sustained beyond the life of the model demonstration project. 

Performance Measurement Resources

The purpose of this training is to describe the process of collecting the program measured and clarify what's expected in the 2022 data collection. It will describe the Program GPRA Performance Measure requirements, share results from last years’ collection, suggest ways to enhance the quality of grantee submissions, demonstrate the website grantees will use to upload materials, review the schedule for the data collection, and respond to grantee questions.  This webinar can be viewed here.

The purpose of the training is to describe the process of collecting the program measures for OSEP this year and to clarify what is expected from you. It will describe the program GPRA performance measures, suggest ways to enhance the quality of your submissions, and then demonstrate the website that the grantees will use to upload materials. It will also review the schedule for the data collection and, answer questions for participants who are part of the live event. This webinar can be viewed here.

Full 2022 Annual Performance Report Package for the Technical Assistance and Dissemination to Improve Results for Children with Disabilities Program (CFDA 84.326)

The purpose of this training is to describe the process of collecting the program measured and clarify what's expected in the 2023 data collection. It will describe the Program GPRA Performance Measure requirements, share results from last years’ collection, suggest ways to enhance the quality of grantee submissions, demonstrate the website grantees will use to upload materials, review the schedule for the data collection, and respond to grantee questions.  This webinar can be viewed here.

The purpose of the training is to describe the process of collecting the program measures for OSEP this year and to clarify what is expected in the 2023 data collection. It will describe the program GPRA performance measures, suggest ways to enhance the quality of your submissions, and then demonstrate the website that the grantees will use to upload materials. It will also review the schedule for the data collection and, answer questions for participants who are part of the live event. This webinar can be viewed here.

Additional Resources for Grantees

Full Fiscal Year 2021 Annual Performance Report (APR) Package for the Technical Assistance and Dissemination to Improve Results for Children with Disabilities Program (CFDA 84.326).

Originally this recorded webinar was on the OSEP TA&D Program Performance Measurement for GPRA Data Collection Involving 84.326 Centers, and was held March 19, 2018.  The original recording is no longer available, but the PowerPoint used during the event, and the transcript from the webinar have been saved as a resource.

This is the FY 2019 Annual Performance Report for grantees under the Technical Assistance and Dissemination Program (84.326)

Access these resources for guidance on meeting the Federal Government's standards for accessibility for websites, media or literature.

This webpage has multiple resources that were created to help with work related to providing Technical Assistance.  Resources include documents, webinars, and links to websites that will provide additional resources and information.  Resources on this page include:

  • How States Access TA from ED-funded Centers (PDF)
  • CIPP Webinar "How Do We Evaluate Technical Assistance?" ( PDF)
  • 2014 Project Director’s TA&D Session Summary: TA Takeaways (PDF)
  • Learn What Your Peers Are Doing in Intensive TA Focus Group Results (PDF)
  • OSEP Accessibility Guidance: 508 Compliance Resource Lists (website)
  • OSEP Conceptual Framework (website)

OSEP has developed a project conceptual framework to articulate the underlying components that we envision for all TA&D projects.

List of technical assistance produces for teaching and assessing students with disabilities.

Engage

A Google groups listserv has been established for TA&D grantees and OSEP project officers. If you would like to be added to the listserv, please email osepideasthatwork@air.org 

The Office of Special Education Programs (OSEP) at the U.S. Department of Education has instituted a new strategy to enhance collaboration opportunities with grantees and other stakeholders. This Engage OSEP site will enable OSEP to virtually bring together a variety of stakeholders to share information and to work together to improve results for infants, toddlers, children, and youth with disabilities. This site has been designed to give OSEP staff, grantees, and stakeholders a place to work together to solve complicated issues, facilitate informal knowledge sharing, exchange thoughts and ideas, and share resources, while also providing a place for collaborative creation of new knowledge.

Visit the new Engage OSEP Site at:  https://engage.osepideasthatwork.org/