Support Services Conference 2025: Registration Now Open! October 6, 2025

Support Services Conference 2025: Registration Now Open!

Marty Olsen, State Assessment Trainer

2025 ABE Support Services Conference (Virtual)

Thursday, November 13 – Friday, November 14, 2025

Check out the exciting lineup of sessions that will be presented during the 2025 ABE Support Services Conference! Register to join us virtually as we learn from our friends and colleagues. We’ll reflect on what this past year has taught us and use those lessons to focus on building a stronger future for Adult Basic Education.

The Support Professionals Advisory & Resource Committee (SPARC), Southwest ABE, and the Minnesota Adult Basic Education State Staff, are jointly sponsoring this training opportunity for ABE program support staff, and all other interested staff. This annual event will be held virtually and is free of charge to all who register.

This conference is designed especially for support services staff that work in areas such as student registration and intake, student testing, data entry and management, and any other accountability role. This could also include teachers or managers with multiple roles who also serve as a program’s support staff.

Registration Deadline: MON. 11/10/25

SUPPORT SERVICES PRE-CONFERENCE AND CONFERENCE SCHEDULE

Pre-Conference: Thursday, November 13, 2025

Virtual implementation trainings for both CASAS and TABE will be offered for all staff involved in assessment. Participants will need to register separately for each Implementation training that they would like to attend (registration links below). A separate registration is also required for the Friday full-day conference.

9:00-12:00 – CASAS Implementation Training for New Staff (Marty Olsen)

1:00-4:00 – TABE Implementation Training for New Staff (Linda Keller and Dave Haugen)

Conference – Friday, November 14, 2025

9:00-9:45 – Opening Session featuring MN State ABE Staff

10:00-10:45 – Session 1 (Choose 1)

  • Remote Testing Panel (Linda Keller, Jeff Galbavy, Melinda Doll)
  • Intake Strategies and Testing Accommodations (Sheila Brandes)
  • Resettlement in Minnesota: Federal Trends and Local Services (Rachele King)

11:00-11:45 – Session 2 (Choose 1)

  • CASAS Recertification (Marty Olsen)
  • MN ABE Hotline (Caspian Edgeton)
  • All About GED Accommodations (Debbie Bergtholdt, Mellissa Hultstrand)

12:00-1:00 – Lunch Break

1:00-1:45 – Session 3 (Choose 1)

  • TABE Recertification (Linda Keller)
  • Using Canva with Outreach Materials (Erienne Nelson)
  • Tech Session TBD (TBD)

2:00-2:45 – Session 4 (Choose 1)

  • GED Data Detective: Solving the Readiness Puzzle with AI (Chrysti Nielsen)
  • Best Practice for Intake for Beginning ESL Literacy Learners (Patsy Egan and Rebecca Jarvis)
  • SiD: Back to Basics with Level Gains and Pre-Post Testing (Jenny Schlukebier and Mary Zimmerli)

More information

For general information about the conference, go to https://www.mnabeassessment.com/support-services-conference. The schedule, along with session descriptions will be posted there. Registered participants will receive a complete agenda with session descriptions and Join Links the week of the conference, using the email address they use for registration.

Please address any event or registration questions to Rachel Stiglitz, Chair of SPARC, at [email protected].

NOTE:  Registrations must be received by Monday, November 10. After registering, participants will receive a link to the Opening Session to be held on Friday, November 14, 9:00 am. Links to all other sessions will be shared during the Opening Session. If you have connection issues on the day of the conference, contact Rachel Stiglitz ([email protected]) or Marty Olsen ([email protected]).

We look forward to seeing you!

Marty Olsen, State Assessment Trainer SW ABE

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