Rutgers University has been awarded a five-year, $3.75 million grant from the U.S. Department of Education to help forge the next generation of special education leaders.
Rutgers will lead the project — called Preparation of Administrators in Special Education, or PASE — in partnership with the University of South Carolina (USC) and Northern Arizona University (NAU). Training is anticipated to begin in January 2026.
The PASE program will prepare experienced special education teachers to become qualified leaders who oversee special education services in districts, early-intervention programs, private and parochial school networks, charter and state education agencies.
The program will recruit and select doctoral students from certified special education teachers who have at least three years of full-time experience working with students with disabilities. PASE is designed to prepare them for leadership roles in special education administration.
Because of a shortage of special education teachers, many states allow individuals to fill special education administrative positions without holding a special education certificate. This can lead to gaps in understanding the laws, policies and practices that protect students with disabilities.
PASE addresses this problem by ensuring that future district-level special education directors and supervisors have strong backgrounds in both special education and extensive administrative training and experience, improving the quality and consistency of support for students with disabilities.
“This October, when we celebrated National Disability Employment Awareness Month, we were reminded of the power of inclusion and the importance of expanding opportunities for all individuals,” said Christopher M. Span, dean, distinguished professor of the Graduate School of Education at Rutgers-New Brunswick.
“This grant represents a critical investment in that mission — building a strong leadership pipeline in special education and preparing administrators who are equipped with the knowledge, compassion and innovation needed to ensure that all students have access to the high-quality education and support they deserve.”
PASE scholars will earn a doctoral degree in education in about four and a half years through hybrid coursework taught by Rutgers education experts, internships, virtual seminars, research projects and a dissertation focused on improving special education administration.
Most of the funds will be used to cover doctoral students’ tuition and stipends, including books, travel and summer housing. Officials involved in the project anticipate 100% of the total costs of PASE will be financed with federal money.
“Project PASE integrates the fields of special education and educational administration to develop solutions for supervising and managing complex administrative challenges in the delivery of special education services for students with disabilities, such as planning, supervising, mentoring and the evaluation of evidence-based practices,” said Dake Zhang, PASE program coordinator and professor of special education at Rutgers Graduate School of Education.
“The program also emphasizes serving high-needs districts and high-poverty schools, as well as collaborating closely with families and communities.”
Rutgers students involved in PASE will complete the same coursework as other Rutgers students pursuing doctoral degrees in education, while participating in shared courses, internships and virtual seminars with peers at USC and NAU.
During the program, PASE scholars from the partner institutions will come to Rutgers for a two-week summer residential course. Through Rutgers, all PASE students and faculty will participate in a local historical field trip experience to educational sites in the New Jersey and greater New York area.
“As the mother of a child with severe autism, I am deeply gratified that this grant provides both financial support and a comprehensive curriculum to prepare special education teachers to become future special education administrators — ultimately improving services for students with disabilities,” said Zhang.
