07/24/07 July Updates

Over the next few days, an update will be applied to SpEd Forms servers including improvements made to the program since April.

A complete list of support requests addressed in the update can be found at: https://support.spedforms.com/updates.asp

Over the last few weeks, we have received several questions about updated due process forms due to be released by the state. These forms are still in draft format. We have been advised that the Department of Education plans to release final versions in mid-August, upon which they will immediately be included in SpEd Forms.

Highlights of this update:

General Programming

1. Additional programming has been added to further reduce client side caching.

2. Internet Explorer users can now insert a page break in a text box on any page that the icon is available.

3. “Jump to” drop down menus have been added to most pages to allow for faster navigation to other sections of the program.

For administrators

1. Student Sharing Reports now allow the administrator to completely clear out the students current sharing list and only the newly selected case manager will appear.

2. “Provider” has been added to the search criteria for the Service reports.

3. “Find students over age 21” has been added to the built in reports to make it easier to find and delete those records.

4. Super Administrator’s can assign custom reports to specific districts and schools where the administrators will have access to them.

5. Services detail report now makes it easier for administrators to discriminate between ESL services and services delivered during the regular school year.

6. Integration with other school systems using SIF is now available.

7. A new MARSS record is automatically updated each time an IEP is finalized.

For teachers

1. The program now verifies the birth date entered on the setup pages and will warn the user if the date entered puts the student over the age of 21.

2. The general layout of the student’s form menu has changed. There are “tabbed” sections along the top that will allow for smoother navigation.

3. Edit setup and student sharing buttons have been added to the top of each section for easier access.

4. An ESL section is now available. The Home Language Questionnaire and Expanded Questionnaire are currently available and additional forms will be available soon.

5. Teachers can assign a new case manager and clear out current student sharing. The only user with access to the student will be the newly assigned case manager.

6. The contact person on the Notice of Procedural Safeguards can be modified.

7. The “Service Hours Report” has been added to the teacher report menu.

8. The LEP section has been added to the Spanish version of the IEP Assessment section.

9. Letter to Parents, located in MA Forms, now has a Spanish version available.

For third party billers

1. A paging mechanism has been added to allow the user to view and create larger batch files by selecting the number of records to display per page.

2. The NPI has been added to the Annual Data Report form, along with the district’s provider number.

3. Each individual date of service is now assigned a unique claim number that will allow for more accurate and specific tracking.

4. Claim Adjustment Reason Codes are now imported in the DHS Response file.

5. Each submission of an 837 claim file or 835 response file is now assigned a unique transaction ID number. The user can go back and look at any transaction submitted by a particular district, the date and type of file submitted and the number of claims with in the file.

The new user guide, reflecting the changes in SpEd Forms, is now available from:http://www.spedforms.com/guide/default.asp