Bloomington, IN — The Indiana Department of Education (IDOE) has launched a bold new initiative aimed at improving educational outcomes for students with disabilities across the state. The Indiana State Personnel Development Grant (IN-SPDG 2025), billed as the CELL School Leadership Initiative, will focus on strengthening school leadership, teacher collaboration, and family partnerships.
Funded through the U.S. Department of Education, this five-year project awarded to the Center on Education and Lifelong Learning (CELL) at the Indiana Institute on Disability and Community (IIDC) at Indiana University, will help build the capacity of Indiana’s principals and teachers to create inclusive, supportive learning environments where every student can thrive.
Four Goals to Drive Change
The CELL School Leadership Initiative is centered on four key goals:
Empowering School Leaders – Teach and support principals to use evidence-based strategies that improve instruction and behavior support for students with disabilities.
Expanding Special Education Leadership – Partner with Indiana universities to help more principals earn special education leadership credentials.
Fostering Collaboration Between Principals and Teachers – Strengthen partnerships through the Aspiring Special Education Leadership Institute (ASELI), where principals and teacher leaders will work together on school action plans.
Supporting Families – Partner with INSOURCE and the Indiana Institute on Disability and Community (IIDC) to help schools and families work together in supporting student success.
Building on Proven Success
The new grant builds on more than 20 years of successful SPDG projects in Indiana. Previous initiatives have led to fewer student discipline referrals, improved teacher effectiveness, and stronger systems to support inclusive education. Indiana’s graduation rate for students with disabilities has risen from 72% in 2015 to 85% in 2024 — but state leaders are determined to close the remaining gap between students with and without disabilities.
The CELL School Leadership Initiative brings together key education partners, including:
• The Indiana Institute on Disability and Community at Indiana University
• IN*SOURCE, Indiana’s parent training and information center
• The Indiana Council of Administrators of Special Education (ICASE)
• The Indiana University School of Education, Bloomington and Indianapolis
• Local school districts and education leaders statewide
Together, they will provide support, mentorship, and resources to more than 100 principals, 50 teacher-leader teams, and countless families across Indiana.
Looking Ahead
Over the next five years, the CELL School Leadership Initiative will create free online professional development resources for all Indiana educators, establish new principal training cohorts, and expand opportunities for family engagement in special education decision-making.
Dr. Pennie Gregory, director of CELL and the CELL School Leadership Initiative said, “We’re excited for the opportunity to help reimagine how special education lives within school systems by partnering with school leaders who are deeply committed to creating environments where every student thrives. Together, we can model what it truly means when we say ALL means ALL.”
For more project information, contact Dr. Pennie Gregory, Director