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Susan Hayes

Susan Hayes

Program Director, Special Education Policy and Practice 

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Overview

Susan Hayes is a national expert in special education accountability and support systems and in state and local approaches to ensuring effective implementation of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA). As a Program Director at WestEd, Hayes supports education systems in creating more equitable teaching and learning conditions and outcomes for students with disabilities and their peers.  

Specifically, Hayes helps states critically assess and improve their special education policies and practices through her work with several federally funded technical assistance centers, including the National Center for Systemic Improvement (NCSI) and the IDEA Data Center (IDC). Hayes works closely with state clients on a myriad of special education priority issues such as developing and implementing effective general supervision systems, such as state monitoring systems; ensuring inclusive assessment and accountability policies for students with disabilities; navigating IDEA data collection, quality, and reporting challenges; and promoting greater collaboration between general and special education.

Prior to joining WestEd, Hayes served as an assessment coordinator for the Vermont Agency of Education. In this role, Hayes was the lead researcher of the study “Roots of Success: Effective Practices in Vermont Schools,” which included a large-scale survey of teachers and school site visits to identify a set of attitudes, beliefs, and practices associated with student success. Before joining a state education agency, Hayes was a research associate for Education Week, where she tracked and analyzed state and district education policies related to special education, teacher quality, and educational technology.

Education

  • EdD in educational leadership and policy studies, the University of Vermont
  • MS in education leadership and policy studies, Vanderbilt University
  • BA in history and education, Swarthmore College

Select Publications

Hayes, S. A., Nagle, K., Boyd, T., & Walters, S. (2020, October). The assessment data journey: Are we there yet? [Presentation]. Westat, IDEA Data Center, Rockville, MD, United States.

Hayes, S. A., Nagle, K., & Schiller, E. (2015). Performance indicators as a tool for measuring progress toward a SIMR [White paper, presentation]. IDEA Data Center, Rockville, MD, United States.

Hayes, S. A. (2009). Roots of success: Effective practices in Vermont schools [Presentation]. House Committee on Education, Vermont State Legislature, Montpelier, VT, United States.

Hayes, S. A., Desimone, L. M., Smith, T. M., & Frisvold, D. (2005). Beyond accountability and average test scores: Relating attributes of state education policies to cognitive domains in mathematics achievement. Educational Measurement: Issues and Practice, 24(4), 5–18.

Ansell, S. E. (2004). A new era of accountability for special education: State of the states [Workshop presentation]. Council for Exceptional Children National Symposium, New Orleans, LA, United States.

Ansell, S. E. (2004). Put to the test: States strive to incorporate students with disabilities into standards-based education. Education Week, Quality Counts, 75–87.

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