Options for Completing the Administrative Leadership Academy

Nov 17, 2025 | Administrative Leadership, Mentorship

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Shortages of special education teachers in Nebraska remain a significant statewide challenge. The 2024-25 Nebraska Teacher Shortage Summary identified special education as the highest teaching shortage area. Administrators face both hiring and retention challenges. Supporting special education teachers is critical to maintaining a qualified workforce. The Get SET Nebraska Administrative Leadership Academy (ALA) was created to educate and provide resources to district administrators.

 

ADMINISTRATIVE LEADERSHIP ACADEMY

Overview

Get SET Nebraska’s Administrative Leadership Academy (ALA) supports school administrators by promoting learning and self-reflection. Administrators can participate in a five-module learning series that includes engaging activities. This program provides best practices for attracting, recruiting and retaining special education teachers in a convenient, on-demand format.

In less than five online hours, administrators will learn about the following topics:

  1. Identifying current data on special education shortages.
  2. Attracting and recruiting special education teachers with a focus on retention.
  3. Supporting special education teachers through various leadership styles and activities.
  4. Enhancing knowledge of special education through personalized professional development.
  5. Developing a retention plan for schools or districts.
The current on-demand format has received positive feedback from administrators, particularly regarding its structure and content. As with all learning methods, the primary model may not reach all participants. Some individuals may prefer experiencing the ALA in person. This format may allow for networking opportunities and promote creative solutions through conversation. For this reason, Get SET Nebraska aimed to assess the impact of attending an in-person ALA learning opportunity.

ALTERNATIVE IMPLEMENTATION

Methods

A full-day, in-person training session took place in June 2025 in Columbus. Trainers delivered the Get SET Nebraska Administrative Leadership Academy through didactic instruction and small-group discussion. For details on the training, see the Administrative Leadership Academy professional development plan. Each participant received bound copies of the ALA learning guide and engaged actively throughout the session. Participant growth was assessed using pre- and post-measures from the Get SET Nebraska Administrator Efficacy Survey on which participants rated their self-efficacy on a scale from 1 to 9, where 9 indicated a high level of efficacy and 1 represented limited to no efficacy.

Findings

Analysis of survey data indicated that in-person training led to administrator self-efficacy growth. However, these results should be interpreted with caution, as the sample was small (i.e., 9). Results suggest that the conversations encouraged by in-person training fostered an impactful learning environment.

Overall, the results showed an increase in self-efficacy among all respondents. The smallest increase recorded was +0.793, while the largest was +2.143. The areas of greatest growth were identified as follows:

Training Participant Self-Efficacy

Recommendations

Based on the training results, participants reported that the in-person training was impactful and provided valuable information to support special education teachers. Previous data also indicated that a group of professionals found the on-demand, self-paced materials to be effective. Since districts know their staff best, Get SET Nebraska provides options for resources that may work best for your school or district. We recommend that districts review the following implementation strategies and select the option that suits their needs.

1. Individual — On-Demand Training Opportunity

Participants can access all materials on the Get SET Nebraska website for a personalized and self-paced learning experience. Anyone interested can register to use the Get SET Nebraska Administrative Leadership Academy materials available on the site. Simply register, follow the provided instructions, and you’ll be all set to begin your learning journey!

Learn More and Register

2. Group — On-Demand Training Opportunity

Several teams assembled their administrators to participate in the on-demand
learning format. This format enables the group to utilize web-based information as a
guide while allowing them to pause and discuss the content of the learning materials.
Collaborating as a group can assist the district in developing the special education retention plan outlined in Module 5.

Learn More and Register

3. District-Wide, ESU or Other Large Group In-Person Training

Some individuals may learn better when they can network and converse with other administrators. Sharing ideas is beneficial and can increase retention planning capabilities. Offering a district-wide, ESU-wide or other large group training may be helpful. Don’t worry! You do not have to be an expert to lead a whole group training. Get SET Nebraska has created a Professional Development Plan for the day. The professional development plan guides you through the online materials and offers conversation starters and activities to lead discussions.

View PD Resources to Guide Your Training

Questions?

For guidance or support on how to use this resource, contact Pam Brezenski at pbrezenski@esu13.org.