Educators in student services and special education will find support for doing just that at the 2025 Every Child Counts Symposium, which will focus on “Empowering Leaders to Navigate New Frontiers.”

Attendees will learn from other courageous leaders — from a keynote speaker who has led a team to land a rover on Mars to presenters who chart new paths that create better outcomes for their students every day.

ACSA’s biggest conference of the year, the Every Child Counts Symposium will be held in San Diego this year at the Marriott Marquis, just a 15-minute drive from San Diego International Airport.

Presented by ACSA’s Student Services & Special Education Council, the Every Child Counts Symposium is designed for both beginning and veteran educators and focuses on the latest in the field of student services and special education.

This year’s planning committee has intentionally engaged with administrators and other educators in the field to ensure that conference topics are relevant and timely.

Special education and student services best practices are always changing in response to new laws, polices and research. Attendees at this symposium will get the very latest information from legal experts and practitioners on how to best serve students while remaining in compliance with state laws.

Attendees should plan to engage with their colleagues as there will be ample opportunity to network and learn from others in their field. Educators who work in student services, child welfare, foster youth, attendance, SELPAs and special education will find valuable information at this conference. Job titles that should consider attending include:

Attendees say this conference is a must for anyone in special education and student services.

“The Every Child Counts Symposium has a really comprehensive list of sessions that cover everything from IEPs, 504s, inclusion and supporting staff,” said Christina Zavala, SELPA director with Imperial County Office of Education, an attendee in 2024 who has been coming to the conference for several years. “I’m always taking resources back to my staff and colleagues. It’s a conference our SELPA values.”

Every Child Counts Symposium is known for its inspiring keynote presenters who share their stories and insights that are applicable to the important work of educators.

Adam Steltzner is a leader heralded for making the impossible possible. An aspiring rock star turned rocket scientist, he is praised as a cutting-edge innovator and a leader who literally brings out the very best in his teams. He serves as chief engineer of the Mars 2020 Mission & Rover Perseverance, which successfully landed on the Martian surface in 2021.

Emad Rahim was born in a concentration camp in the Killing Fields of Cambodia. He arrived to the United States with his family as a refugee living in Brooklyn, New York. After struggling with street violence, gangs, drugs, poverty, family abuse and dyslexia as an adolescent, he found his way through higher education to become an award-winning educator, entrepreneur, author, Fulbright recipient and TEDx speaker.

Marke Freeman is a speaker, director, basketball coach, and teacher who works with business entities and individuals around the world, instilling within them not only the mental foundations of success and the motivation to achieve, but also the actionable strategies that will empower them to grow, improve, and thrive.