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Does Alaska require autism training for school staff? What Alaska law asks, and where outside training fits

The short answer

We did not find a separate statewide autism-training mandate in the Alaska education sources we reviewed. Under Alaska's special education rule, 4 AAC 52.250(b), districts must provide and document at least six hours of annual training, in the aggregate, for aides providing direct special education or related services to a child, covering the child's disability, the child's IEP, instructional and safety procedures, and confidentiality procedures. Separately, the Alaska Department of Education & Early Development (DEED) says districts must provide crisis intervention training, from a DEED-approved program, to a sufficient number of employees.

What we found

On October 29, 2026, we read DEED's list of required district staff trainings, the special education aide rule as filed with the Lieutenant Governor in April 2026, DEED's restraint and seclusion page, DEED's teacher certification training requirements and DEED's eLearning course list. We also searched the full text of Alaska Statutes Title 14 (Education) on the Legislature's site, where autism appears only in a list of disability categories. We found no separate autism-training mandate in those sources. We could not complete a full-text search of Alaska Administrative Code Title 4. The nearest duties are below.

Related training rules for Alaska school staff

### Special education aides: six hours a year (4 AAC 52.250) The rule says who trains the aide:

"A person employed as a special education aide shall be trained by a special education teacher or specialist certificated under 4 AAC 12.330 or 4 AAC 12.365, or licensed under AS 08.11, AS 08.84, or AS 08.86 to provide the services with which the aide will assist."

And what the training covers. Subsection (b) applies "before a special education aide assists in providing direct special education or related services to a child, or concurrent with" providing those services:

"the district shall provide and document a minimum of six hours of annual training, in the aggregate, to the aide regarding (1) the child's disability; (2) the content of the child's IEP; (3) the instructional and safety procedures to be used; and (4) confidentiality procedures."

This wording took effect May 28, 2026. The amended rule requires supervision by the certificated special education teacher responsible for the child's program, by video conference or on-site. The child's IEP team determines the frequency for each program, and the district must provide supervision at least once every month.

DEED's list of required district staff trainings describes this rule as "minimum 6 hours annually" and says "20 eLearning courses available to satisfy requirement." For other staff, it lists "Special Education Training for Staff" under 4 AAC 52.260, with "Frequency is as determined by school district."

Source: 4 AAC 52.250, as filed April 28, 2026 (State of Alaska Online Public Notices); DEED, Required District Staff Trainings.

### Crisis intervention training for restraint and seclusion DEED's restraint and seclusion page says:

"This legislation states that a school district shall provide crisis intervention training to a sufficient number of its employees to meet the needs of the school population. This required crisis intervention training must be part of a crisis intervention program that has been approved by EED."

"To meet the Restraint & Seclusion training requirements, designated school personnel must complete one of the six crisis intervention training programs below as well as complete CPR and First Aid training."

DEED cites AS 14.33.125, AS 14.33.127, 4 AAC 06.175 and 4 AAC 06.177. The statutes say a teacher, teacher's assistant or other person responsible for students may physically restrain or seclude a student only if, among other conditions, "the person has received training in crisis intervention and de-escalation and restraint techniques that has been approved by the department under AS 14.33.127, unless a trained person is not immediately available and the circumstances are rare and present an unavoidable and unforeseen emergency" (AS 14.33.125(b)(4)). And:

"The governing body of a school shall ensure that a sufficient number of school employees receives periodic training in an approved crisis intervention program to meet the needs of the school population." (AS 14.33.127(b))

The programs the department approves must include training in evidence-based skills related to positive behavior supports, conflict prevention, understanding antecedents, de-escalation and conflict management, along with first aid and CPR (AS 14.33.127(a)). This is a state duty with its own approved programs. Our course does not teach restraint, de-escalation or crisis intervention.

Source: DEED, Restraint & Seclusion; AS 14.33.125 and 14.33.127.

### Training needed for an Alaska teaching certificate DEED's teacher certification page says applicants "must be able to demonstrate that the following mandatory training has been completed within the five years prior to the date of application." One of the four topics is "Alcohol or drug-related disabilities (AS 14.20.680)." DEED adds: "Only training approved by an Alaska public school district, or the Department of Education & Early Development (DEED) will satisfy this requirement."

Source: DEED, Teacher Certification, Mandatory Trainings.

### DEED's free eLearning courses DEED runs an eLearning library for Alaska educators. Its page says: "Registration is free and all courses are available to learners once registration is complete." Registration "is open to all Alaska public school employees, non-district Alaskans who support public school students, and those applying for an Alaska teaching certificate," and account requests are "subject to DEED approval." The course list includes a Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports (PBIS) course under Special Education. We did not find a course with "autism" in its title in the published list.

Source: DEED, eLearning; DEED, eLearning Training Courses.

Where outside training fits

Alaska's aide rule specifies the trainer's credentials, as quoted above in subsection (a). The rule does not say how an outside course would be accepted toward the six hours. DEED names its own eLearning courses for this requirement, and its own approved programs for crisis intervention. Ask your district or DEED which training to use for these requirements. We offer this course as introductory ABA training. We do not claim that it satisfies 4 AAC 52.250 or any other Alaska requirement, counts toward an aide's six hours, or counts toward any certificate. We do not claim a number of training hours for it.

What our Intro to ABA Level 1 course covers

The Intro to ABA Level 1 course teaches methods and techniques of Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA) for parents and caregivers, teachers, paraprofessionals and behavior technicians who work with a child every day. Topics include what autism is, what ABA is, pairing, errorless teaching and prompting, and active student responding. Complete the course and pass its 40-question final exam with a score of at least 80%. Completing this course earns a Special Learning certificate of completion. That certificate is not a continuing education (CE) certificate. It is basic training in ABA methods for daily practice, not a professional credential. We do not claim Alaska state approval or continuing education credit for this course.

A paraprofessional who took it wrote: "I want to learn everything I can to help my student succeed in the public school system. I found Special Learning's ABA level 1 course so fascinating and inspiring."

Two ways to start

Last reviewed: October 29, 2026.

See every state's school autism-training rules