Loretta (Lucky) Mason-Williams

So excited to share this!

Supporting STEM teachers: Insights from the Noyce program | Brookings Join the Brown Center on Education Policy at Brookings on February 23rd for a discussion on the state of the K-12 STEM teacher workforce.

Excited to learn from @SPARC_Center researcher @LiFengBetty! We're in Year 2 of our @NoyceProgram in
@bingtlel - such a great opportunity for pre-service STEM teachers!
www.brookings.edu/events/suppo...

🌟Supporting the #SpecialEducation teacher workforce requires collaboration. This week, SPARC Center experts @lmasonwms.bsky.social and @afgilmour.bsky.social share insights from our first year of research with the Coalition for Teaching Quality.

Read our findings: sparccenter.org/research-fin...

IDEA at 50 The landmark federal law ensured access for students with disabilities. Now it’s time to focus on outcomes.

"...two enduring challenges—staffing shortages and reliance on individual advocacy—reveals the ongoing struggle between policy ideals and implementation realities."

www.educationnext.org/idea-at-50-l...

✨What does the #SpecialEducation teacher workforce look like within and across states? Our new interactive data visualizer tool looks at the composition, stability, and distribution of the workforce in our seven partner states.

Explore the tool: sparccenter.org/data-explore...

💡“Our shortages aren’t really from not having enough people; it’s having people teaching the wrong thing.” - @afgilmour.bsky.social

Check out this article from Education Week which features research from our recent working paper on the #SpecialEducation teacher workforce.

Screenshot from the SPARC Center Data Explorer. The graph looks at the percentage of special education teachers (SETs) who changed schools by school-poverty level. Seven states are included: Hawai‘i, Indiana, Massachusetts, Pennsylvania, Texas, Virginia, and Washington. For each state, there are three dots showing the percent of SETs moving schools at low-poverty schools, middle-poverty schools, and high-poverty schools. In all states except Hawai‘i, the rate is highest for high-poverty schools.

Did you know recruitment and retention of #SpecialEducation teachers varies widely by school contexts, including by poverty level, enrollment demographics, and location?

🔎Explore more with our data visualizer: sparccenter.org/data-explore...

Really excited to have this piece out on the Brown Center Chalkboard blog with @lmasonwms.bsky.social, @afgilmour.bsky.social, & @lizbettini.bsky.social on the importance of targeted solutions to special education teacher staffing challenges. See below!

So much important information in this graph!!

“Chronic special education teacher shortages leave many students with disabilities without access to the instruction and support they need to meet learning and lifetime goals.” @ted-cec.bsky.social @cec-dr.bsky.social

States face different special education staffing challenges that require targeted responses | Brookings Special education teacher turnover varies by state, calling for targeted, locally informed policy solutions.

"As we have demonstrated, different states face different #SpecialEducation teacher turnover problems. This suggests that the most promising solutions might vary across states."

Read more about our recent findings in our article with @brookings.edu: www.brookings.edu/articles/sta...

And being recognized for her award as a Presidential Early Career Scholar, bestowed on her by @josephbidenfan.bsky.social

@sparccenter.bsky.social co-director @lizbettini.bsky.social challenging @ted-cec.bsky.social members to think critically about the #specialeducation teacher workforce

@SPARC_Center researcher & president of the @ted-cec.bsky.social of @CECMembership LaRon Scott kicking off our annual meeting!

🔍Our new Working Paper uses consistent variables across states. Leveraging Common Education Data Standards and Statewide Longitudinal Data Systems enables meaningful cross-state comparisons of the #SpecialEducation Teacher workforce.

Read more: sparccenter.org/research-fin...

States face different special education staffing challenges that require targeted responses | Brookings Special education teacher turnover varies by state, calling for targeted, locally informed policy solutions.

An essential step to building a strong special education workforce is designing policies at all levels that make them want to STAY.
www.brookings.edu/articles/sta...

Excited to spread the word!

Such important work- with clear suggestions for how much still needs to be done! I hope a few doc students are paying attention- maybe a dissertation idea or two? @ted-cec.bsky.social

Excited to circulate another @caldercenter.bsky.social WP! Another study from my dissertation, w/ @roddy-theobald.bsky.social‬. Using data from WA, we track individual paraeducators to predict exit from the state education workforce. Ungated WP here: ‬ tinyurl.com/3wtfrm2m
🧵 below:

Sage Journals: Discover world-class research Subscription and open access journals from Sage, the world's leading independent academic publisher.

🎓 Is having a dual-certification in #SpecialEducation and general education better than having one certification? SPARC Center co-director @afgilmour.bsky.social and Tiffany Lam reviewed the research to learn more on this topic: journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/...

Looking forward to hearing more from my @SPARC_Center collaborators- we’ve learned a lot in a year that can help inform policymakers & practitioners!

Teacher Shortages by Subjects Across States As a supplement to the State Teacher Shortages 2025 Update tool, this analyses includes data on the number of states reporting shortages by teaching area (i.e., special education, science, mathematics...

Another report released on the shortage of #SpecialEducation teachers. The @SPARC_Center research team works with state leaders to investigate policies contributing to shortages, turnover, & instability.

learningpolicyinstitute.org/product/teac...

Prepping to explain to NYS members of Congress & anyone who will listen why we need to pay greater attention to #specialeducation workforce issues @cec-ted-policy.bsky.social @cecmembership.bsky.social @ted-cec.bsky.social

What questions do you have about using state or district data to investigate #SpecialEducation workforce issues?

I’m sure I know a few doc students who might be interested! @cec-dr.bsky.social @cec-ted-policy.bsky.social

Need more resources focused on #specialeducation? Visit sparccenter.org

Important resource for districts considering opportunities for building and stabilizing the #specialeducation workforce, incorporating research from my @sparccenter.bsky.social colleagues @roddy-theobald.bsky.social, @afgilmour.bsky.social, & @lizbettini.bsky.social.

Excited to promote this @sparccenter.bsky.social session at the ECS National Forum on Ed Policy!
web.cvent.com/event/a08f74...

a man in a suit and tie is laughing with his mouth open ALT: a man in a suit and tie is laughing with his mouth open

#irony.

Also- learn more about how the open source community is supporting data governance to connect #specialed data with #slds data