Special Services Providers

To ensure every child in Colorado has access to great educators who are supported in their professional growth evaluation requirements under Senate Bill 10-191 are intended to provide meaningful, annual evaluations for all licensed personnel including principals, teachers and other education professionals who are licensed by the state.

In their work to help implement S.B. 10-191, the State Council for Educator Effectiveness (SCEE) identified nine categories of special services providers (referred to as other licensed personnel in law) and outlined quality standards and elements applicable to all special services provider groups. The overall intent is to ensure that special services providers’ (SSPs) evaluations provide meaningful and actionable feedback allowing for continuous improvement of practice.

To learn more about special services providers evaluations, please download our fact sheet.

CDE created a State Model Evaluation System for SSPs to support districts in their implementation of Senate Bill 10-191. While not mandatory, this system provides an option that focuses on SSPs' professional growth and aligns with State Board of Education rules.

The model system has been guided by recommendations of the State Council for Educator Effectiveness (SCEE), pilot districts and other Colorado educators.

You can navigate the content of this page here:

• SSP Quality Standards
• SSP Rubrics
• Resources for Using the Revised SSP System
• Training Resources
• Practical Guides for Evaluating Educators with the State Model System

SSP Quality Standards

SSPs will be rated on Quality Standards that measure professional practice and student learning over time. SSPs will be evaluated on four Quality Standards (view two-page SSP Quality Standard overview):

• Half of the evaluation will be based on the four Quality Standards that measure professional practice: service expertise, positive learning environment, effective services, and professionalism. The Quality Standards can be measured using the state-developed rubric that identifies the practices necessary to achieve the standards.
• At least fifty percent of the evaluation shall be based on at least two measures of student outcomes, in which measures shall be aligned with the role and duties and the individual SSP being evaluated. Data used in evaluating SSPs shall be collected from the sites, or a representative sample of the sites, at which the SSP provides services.

Special Services Providers Rubrics

Resources for Using the Revised SSP System

These resources are to aid districts/BOCES as they transition to the changes in the State Model Evaluation System for SSPs:

• View a high level overview of the changes to the State Model Evaluation System for SSPs.
• View a detailed document created to further explain the changes in scoring for both the professional practice and overall effectiveness ratings for SSPs.  
• View a process summary of the revision process for SSPs.

Training Resources

The Colorado State Model Evaluation System Training Toolkit for SSPs ensures schools, districts and BOCES have access to the latest information and resources to support staff trainings. All materials found on the website are completely customizable in order to reflect district/BOCES values and needs. 

Practical Guides for Evaluating Educators with the State Model System

Throughout the development, pilot testing and validation study of the Colorado State Model Evaluation System, groups of educators and their evaluators with unique roles and responsibilities expressed concerns that the materials didn't provide adequate guidance. They requested additional guidance regarding evidence/artifacts that may be used by such specialized providers. In addition, they asked about specific practices to “look-for” to guide their observations and help ensure that all licensed personnel receive fair, valid and reliable evaluations.

In response, CDE initiated the development of a set of guides written by practitioners for practitioners. They are intended to provide informal advice to educators and their evaluators to help them understand the evaluation process within their specific context. 

NOTE: These practical idea guides are in the process of being aligned to the recently revised SSP rubrics and will be available later in the 2019-20 school year. The initial guides aligned to the original five quality standards are available below for reference.

• Practical Ideas for Evaluating School Counselors
• Practical Ideas for Evaluating School Nurses
• Practical Ideas for Evaluating School Psychologists
• Practical Ideas for Evaluating School Speech-Language Pathologists 

Please contact educator_effectiveness@cde.state.co.us if an alternate version of this document is needed.