Beginner Special Education Advocate Training (BSEAT®) is a national, 100% online, twelve-session course designed for individuals who are beginning their journey to become non-attorney special education advocates. Participants receive a certificate of completion upon fulfilling the course requirements.
Parent Training and Information Centers, disability rights nonprofit organizations, and advocacy organizations enroll their employees in BSEAT® because it provides a strong foundation in non-attorney special education advocacy. Parents also frequently take the course to learn how to better advocate for their own children, although the course focuses on advocating for families outside of their own. If you are interested in applying for SEAT 2.0 but have fewer than two years of experience advocating for children other than your own, we recommend starting with BSEAT®. We also recommend this course for individuals transitioning from school-based employment to advocating for families, provided they are no longer employed by a school.
The registration for the January 2027 class will open at 12:30 ET / 9:30 PT on October 22nd. The registration button will be added her at that time. You will pick one of the following sessions in your registration:
Sunday at 5 pm - 6 pm ET
January 10, 17, 24, 31 February 7, 14, 21, 28, Mar 14, 21, April 4, 11
Wednesday at 11 am - 12 pm ET
January 13, 20, 27, February 3, 10, 17, 24 March 10, 17, 24, 31, April 7
Thursdays at 1 pm - 2 pm ET
January 14, 21, 28, February 4, 11, 18, 25 March 11, 18, 25, April 1, 8
Fridays at 6 pm - 7pm ET
January 15, 22, 29, February 5, 12, 19, 26 March 12, 19, 26, April 2, 9
Topics Covered
Education is a Civil Right (history of the Disability Rights movement), Section 504 & ADA, Child Find, Free and Appropriate Public Education (FAPE), Least Restrictive Environment (LRE), Understanding Evaluations, the IEP Process, Post-Secondary Transition, Discipline, the IEP Document, Written Communication in Advocacy, Unauthorized Practice of the Law (UPL), Issue Spotting, Pre-meeting Preparation, Managing the IEP Conversation, Post-meeting Follow Up, Advocate Ethics, Advocating for Highly Mobile Students (unhoused, military), Advocating for Multilingual Families, Self-Advocacy, and more! Click here to review BSEAT's core competencies (PDF).
Audience
We recommend starting with BSEAT if you have fewer than two years of experience as a non-attorney special education advocate (advocating for your child or working within a school district does not count toward those two years of experience). No experience is required to register for the class. A certificate of completion is provided to students who complete the course requirements.
Class Format
100% online, personalized feedback from an instructor on two assignments, one assignment is graded automatically (multiple choice), Q&A and interactive activities led by an instructor during the live class, handouts and additional resources to support your advocacy, and a class discussion for extension activities to engage in course content and interact with peers. Please expect 4-5 hours of work a week (including class time). If that does not work with your current schedule, please check the Learning Center for different training opportunities (including on-demand learning paths).
All COPAA courses are developed using universal design principles, reflecting our strong commitment to equity and student success. If you would like to discuss ADA accommodations or have any general questions about our classes, please feel free to contact us. Contact Us
Registration
Registration for the Beginner Special Education Advocacy Training class will open at the end of October.
Cost
$799 for members | $925 for guest
A registrant has seven (7) days from the date of the class registration to request an adjustment to the member rate. The registrant must be an active member at the time the request is submitted. After seven days, no adjustment requests will be accepted. If you have a guest account and are experiencing difficulties upgrading to a membership account, please email [email protected].
Cancellation policy
Students receive a full refund if they are not accepted into the class. Specific cancellation information is provided in the registration for each cohort.
Scholarships
A limited number of qualified individuals whose family income is at or below two times the federal poverty level may apply for a COPAA training registration fee discount. BSEAT scholarships cover 80% of the course costs. After you register for the class (select “pay by check” when you get to the payment portion of the registration), immediately send your scholarship request with proof that you meet the poverty guidelines (i.e., the first two pages of your federal tax return) to [email protected]. Requests are considered on first-come basis. After receiving your scholarship documents, a COPAA Representative will contact you to confirm eligibility and availability of the scholarships. Click here for the current Federal Guidelines. Only students who are registered for the course are considered for a scholarship.
Registration Policy
Per COPAA bylaws, any individual who currently receives more than 50% of their income from a state or local education agency, or, in the case of an attorney, has represented such an agency or school district within the past five years, shall not be permitted to register or attend a COPAA educational event unless a formal exception is granted. Click here for more information regarding membership, guest membership, and the full eligibility policy.
