Transcript: RSA Technical Assistance Webinar on Transition ...



Event ID:?3210570Event Started:?3/10/2017 1:44:07 PM ETWelcome to this technical assistance program in which we provide an overview of the transition guide to post-secondary education and employment for students and youth with disabilities. The guide was published in January 2017, and is available for download along with the transcript of this technical assistance program and PowerPoint slide at the National Clearinghouse of Rehabilitation Training Materials site you used to access this program.?The presenters are Genee Norbert, Office of Special Education Programs, Jessica Spataro, Office of Policy and Planning, and Tonya Stellar, Rehabilitation Services Administration. We will begin with Genee Norbert.?The first topic covered in the transition resource guide is transition planning, opportunities and programs to prepare students with disabilities for success. There are number of opportunities and programs available for students preparing to exit secondary school. Many of these education, and training opportunities involve formal and informal connections between educational, VR, employment, training, social services, and health services agencies. Specifically, high schools, career centers, community colleges, four-year colleges and universities, and state technical colleges are key partners. These partners offer federal, state and local funds to assist a student preparing for post-secondary education.?The PR guide provides examples of options, programs and activities that may be available as IEP teams develop IEPs to prepare the student for the transition to adult life. These opportunities include regular high school diploma, the alternate high school diploma, duel or concurrent enrollment, and early College high school. The guide provides the definition of a regular high school diploma and stresses the fact that the vast majority of students with disabilities should have access to the same high quality, academic coursework as all other students in the state. That reflects grade level content for the grade in which the student is enrolled, and that provides for assessment against grade level achievement standards.?The guide also provides pertinent information regarding alternate high school diploma, which may be an option for students with the most significant cognitive disabilities, dual or concurrent enrollment, and early College high school, is also discussed in further detail. The guide defines summary of performance, and its requirements under IDEA the summary of the students achievement and performance, can be used to assist the student in accessing post-secondary education and/or employment services.?Whether the student’s next step is employment, or entering a post-secondary training, or an educational program, it is important for students with disabilities to obtain as much work experience as possible to prepare for adult life. The guide provides parents and practitioners with viable options for students with disabilities to pursue during high school to prepare them for the ultimate goal of competitive integrated employment. These options discussed are, community-based work experiences, internships, mentorships, apprenticeships, paid employment, and career pathways. For example, as discussed on page 4 of this guide, community-based work experiences such as internships, apprenticeships and other on the job training experiences provide increased opportunities for students to learn a specific job, task or skill at integrated employment site. And to transfer the knowledge gained through real-time work experiences. The guide provides the intended purpose of each and the benefit of students with disabilities, participating in these work based learning opportunities.?Many of the opportunities, programs, and strategies discussed in this section involve partnerships between high schools, colleges, VR agencies, employers, workforce development boards, social service agencies, students, and their families, to identify and secure a career uniquely suited to the students or youth with a disability. It is essential that students and youth with disabilities along with family members and professional support staff, examine challenging programs to prepare students and youth with disabilities for their desire post-school goals.?The next section covers transition requirements, under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act and the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, as amended by title IV of the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act otherwise known as WIOA.?Pages eight through 11 of the guide contains information regarding services and key requirements of the IDEA and the Rehabilitation Act that facilitates the transition for schools to post-school activities, including post-secondary education, and competitive integrated employment. These requirements are in place for students and youth with disabilities to seamlessly access services, and supports to achieve their career goals.?The role of the IEP team members for transition services. What the IEP must include: responsibility of the school district, examples of how states implement transition requirements, description of services for youth with disabilities who are no longer in school, and a flowchart of key points in the transition process are also presented.?Tonya Stellar will now discuss transition services for students and youth with disabilities under the Rehabilitation Act.?State vocational rehabilitation agencies offer a continuum of services, to empower and assist individuals with disabilities to make informed choices about their careers, and to achieve competitive integrated employment including supported employment. The transition guide describes the continuum of services available through the VR program that includes pre-employment transition services, available to students with disabilities, and transition services available to students or youth with disabilities.?Services are customized for each individual's needs, and can be provided in a group setting or on an individual basis as appropriate. Certain services are available to students and youth with disabilities regardless of whether or not they have applied for VR services.?To be eligible for VR services, an individual must have a physical or mental impairment that results in an impediment to employment and requires VR services to prepare for, secure, retain, advance in, or regain employment. Individuals who receive supplemental security income and/or Social Security disability insurance benefits are presumed to be eligible for VR services. Unless there is clear and convincing evidence that they are unable to benefit from VR services.?Pre-employment transition services are provided to students with disabilities who are eligible for VR services, or potentially eligible for VR services.?All students with disabilities regardless of whether they have applied or have been determined eligible for VR services, are potentially eligible to receive pre-employment transition services. Students with disabilities are encouraged to submit an application, to the VR agency, as early as possible in the transition planning process. Described in the transition guide. Students with disabilities who need individualized VR services beyond the scope of pre-employment transition services, must apply and be determined eligible for the VR program to receive VR services under an individualized plan for employment.?As discussed in the transition guide on page 13, if the VR agency has implemented an order of selection or waitlist for services, a student’s position on the waitlist is dependent upon applying for VR services. So students who begin pre-employment transition services, before being determined eligible and placed on a waiting list, may continue to receive any and all pre-employment transition services.?The rehabilitation act as amended by WIOA created a distinct definition for the terms student with a disability, and youth with disability. A student with a disability is an individual with a disability who is enrolled in an educational program and meet a certain minimum and maximum age requirements, and is eligible for and receiving special education or related services under IDEA, or is an individual with a disability for purposes of section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act. The transition guide clarifies what constitutes an educational program on page 13, as well as the minimum and maximum age requirements. To summarize a student cannot be younger than the earliest age to receive transition services under IDEA, unless a state elects to provide pre-employment transition services at an earlier age. The student cannot be older than 21 unless state law provides for a higher maximum age for the receipt of services under IDEA, then the student cannot be older than that maximum age.?The age range for a youth with disabilities is broader than that for a student with a disability under the Rehabilitation Act, as amended by WIOA. A youth with a disability is an individual with a disability who is between the ages of 14 and 24 years of age and there is no requirement that a youth with a disability be participating in an educational program.?Pre-employment transition services are described on page 14 of the transition guide and are offered as an early start at job exploration. For students with disabilities that are eligible or potential eligible for VR services. Pre-employment transition services include job exploration counseling, work-based learning experiences- that may include in school, or afterschool opportunities, including internships, counseling on opportunities for enrollment in comprehensive transition or post-secondary educational programs at institutions of higher education, workplace readiness training to develop social skills and independent living, and instruction of self-advocacy including peer mentoring. VR agencies may coordinate the provision of pre-employment transition services with local educational agencies, as well as public entities administering educational programs, such as the juvenile justice system. Pre-employment transition services can be provided prior to or after submission of an application for VR services. These services can be provided to an individual in a group setting or on an individual basis.?Following the continuum of VR services transition services represents the next set of VR services available to students and to youth with disabilities and includes, group transition services and individualized transition services.?Group transition services discussed on page 14 of the transition guide can be provided to groups of students and youth with disabilities prior to or after submitting an application for VR services. Group services are not individualized, and are not specific to an approved IPE, however the services are beneficial opportunities that may include group tours of universities and vocational training programs, employer site visits to learn about career opportunities, and career fairs coordinated with the workforce development system, and employers.?Individualized transition services as the next step in the continuum must be provided to students who have been determined eligible for the VR program and have an approved individualized plan for employment or IPE.?The types of services provided will depend on the students, or use, individual needs, interest and informed choice, individualized VR services are highlighted on page 15 of the transition guide. Once a student or youth is determined eligible for VR services, he or she may develop an IPE with his or her representative as well as a VR counselor who will approve and sign the plan. The individual must be given the opportunity to make an informed choice in selecting an employment outcome, needed VR services, and providers of those VR services. The IPE must be developed no later than 90 days after the date of eligibility determination, and no later than the time each VR eligible student leaves the school setting.?IPE procedures are reviewed on page 16 of the transition guide.?VR agencies and schools are required to plan and coordinate pre-employment transition services and transition services. The formal interagency agreement with the state educational agency and VR agency is intended to facilitate a seamless delivery of services from school to post-school activity, including post-secondary education and employment. While these requirements can be technical it is important for students and their families to be aware of these agreements in order to understand roles and responsibilities during the transition planning process, and service delivery. The transition guide provides the minimum required components of a formal interagency agreement between the state VR agency and the state educational agency on page 17 and 18.?In summary the formal interagency agreement must include consultation and technical assistance, by the state VR agency to assist educational agencies in transition planning, transition planning that facilitates the development and implementation of the IEP, the roles and responsibilities including financial responsibilities of each agency, procedures for outreach to an identification of students who need transition services. Or and or pre-employment transition services.?Coordination necessary to satisfy documentation requirements with regard to students and Youth who are seeking subminimum wage employment, assurance that neither the SEA nor the LEA will enter into an agreement with the employer holding a 14 (c) certificate for the purpose of employing students or youth with disabilities at subminimum wage, and an understanding that nothing in the formal interagency agreement will be construed to reduce the obligation under IDEA or any other agency to provide or pay for pre-employment transition services or transition services that are also considered special education or related services and necessary for a free appropriate public education.?Additionally under IDEA these interagency agreements must include an identification of or method for defining the financial responsibility of each agency, the conditions terms and procedures under which an LEA shall be reimbursed by the other agencies, and procedures for resolving interagency disputes. The services that are needed to ensure FAPE are described on page 18 of the transition guide. It is expected that SEAs LEAs and VR agencies will work together to implement the provisions of the respective interagency agreements, and make decisions about whether the service is related to an employment outcome, or education attainment, a special education or related service, or customarily provided under IDEA or the rehabilitation act. These decisions must be made at the state and local level. By the SEA, VR and LEA personnel.?VR agencies can assist youth with disabilities who are no longer in school with exploring careers, identifying career paths, and coordinating necessary services to achieve their career goals. Youth with disabilities can receive group transition services, prior to or after applying for VR services as well as individualized transition or other VR services under an approved IPE. Page 19 of the transition guide details some of the VR services a youth with a disability may receive under an IPE. VR counselors can coordinate VR services with those services provided by employment related programs such as youth programs, funded by the US Department of Labor, and provided at American job centers.?Youth programs funded under title I of WIOA include five new program elements, financial literacy instruction, entrepreneurial skills training, provision of local market and employment information, activities that help youth transition to post-secondary education and training and education offered concurrently with workforce preparation activities and training for a specific occupation or occupational cluster.?Two well-known programs funded by the US Department of Labor are Job Corps and Youthbuild. For more information on these programs, please see the transition guide on page 19 for the link to the WIOA fact sheet youth program.?The Social Security administration or SSA funds the Ticket to Work program which provides career development services to beneficiaries between the ages of 18 and 64, allows eligible beneficiaries to obtain free employment services from an SSA registered provider and permits an individual to continue receiving SSA benefits and employment related services while pursuing employment. Employment related services and a link to the SSA work plan are provided on pages 19 and 20 of the transition guide.?The transition guide also includes examples of VR supporting students with disabilities, as well as SEA and state VR collaboration on page 20.?The transition guide includes a quick reference tool on page 22 for students and their families to better understand the coordination between IEP and IPE team members with respect to transition activities, as well as the key steps in the transition planning process and service delivery systems.?The alignment of the IEP and IPE processes facilitates a seamless service delivery process.?As students with disabilities transition from secondary schools to post-secondary education, training and employment, it is critical that they are prepared academically, and financially. Post-secondary options with the help of the VR program includes two and four-year colleges and universities, trade and vocational schools, adult education programs, and competitive integrated employment-including supported and customized employment.?Students and youth with disabilities pursuing post-secondary education, should take interesting and challenging courses to prepare for college, explore career interests by being involved in school and community based activities, including work-based learning experiences or internship opportunities. Discuss vocational and educational career goals with school guidance counselors and VR counselors if applicable, and explore programs of study college requirements, and admissions processes, and be an active participant during IEP and IEP meetings. Students and their families interested in higher education are encouraged to consider the college environment that provides the best educational program and support services to assist students with meeting their needs and career goals.?Page 24 of the transition guide includes links to tips for navigating the college application process, and a checklist to use when preparing for college.?To defray the cost of attending education, students and their families may wish to research possible options that exist to pay for college. Such as grants and scholarships, work-study, low interest loans, the transition guide on page 24 provides links to information related to the types of student aid and completing the free application for Federal student aid. Which provides access to grants loans, and work-study funds. Many states schools and private scholarships require that students submit a FAFSA before offering any financial aid.?Considerations for college selection may include types of schools, programs available, tuition and course, student enrollment, and disability support services available. The transition guide on page 25 includes links to college reference guides to assist students and families with choosing the college that is right for an individual, as well as to a college score card that provides data on outcomes and affordability.?When researching potential college programs, students and their families are encouraged to work closely with the disability support services office on campus to discuss disability related concerns and needs, and the disability support services available to students at the post-secondary school.?Information about the DSS office on campus can be found at the post-secondary school’s website.?Students with disabilities are encouraged to be well informed about their rights and responsibilities. Pages 24 and 25 of the transition guide, provides an overview of the rights and responsibilities of students with disabilities who are preparing to attend post-secondary schools, as well as the obligations of postsecondary schools.?There's also a link to additional information. A post-secondary school student with a disability is not entitled to the same services and support that the student received in high school under the FAPE, IDEA or section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973. Section 504 in title II of the ADA require that the post-secondary education institutions provide students with disabilities with accommodations.?Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act and the ADA set forth requirements related to the physical accessibility of facilities including those used for higher education purposes. Structural accommodations may include ramp availability, elevators, convenient parking, doorway and restroom facility modifications, and architectural barriers removal or modifications.?The VR program assists individuals with disabilities to acquire the knowledge and skills needed to achieve employment that can sustain economic independence. As such VR agencies may provide financial support to eligible individuals to pay for or offset higher education related expenses, or disability related expenses if included and approved in the IPE. VR support for postsecondary education, including allowable education related expenses, are detailed on pages 26 and 27 of the transition guide.?VR agencies are required to enter into interagency agreements or other mechanisms for coordination with public institutions of higher education in the state to ensure that the students with disabilities are able to access services that enable them to participate in education. These agreements must include the following, coordination of services, agency financial responsibilities, provision of accommodations and auxiliary aids and services, and procedures for resolving interagency disputes and reimbursement.?The following programs are provided through the US Department of Education, Gallaudet University, National Technical Institute for the Deaf or NTID, and Model Transition Programs for Students with Intellectual Disabilities into Higher Education or TPSID. These programs offer specialized opportunities for individuals with disabilities the transition guide on page 28 provides links to additional information for each of these programs.?The transition guide also provides examples of state and local collaboration to support post-secondary options for individuals with disabilities. Specifically autism services and supported education on pages 28 and 29.?VR agencies value early engagement with students and youth with disabilities to assist them in preparing for a satisfying career. VR counselors have specialized training to assist youth with assessing their interests, strengths, skills, and abilities in order to identify their career goals and develop their IPE to achieve those goals. Career development stages described on page 30 of the transition guide, include career awareness, career exploration, career preparation, and career placement.?Another work experience opportunity is on-the-job training. It's a type of community-based work experience through which an individual learns a specific skill taught by an employer in the work environment. It's an opportunity for an individual to be hired by the employer after a training period it's a career exploration opportunity, short-term, and can be a paid or unpaid work experience.?WIOA amendments to the Rehabilitation Act emphasize that individuals with disabilities, especially students and youth with disabilities are given the opportunity to train and work in competitive integrated employment, or supported employment that pays a competitive wage, in a location where workers with and without disabilities interact on a daily basis while performing their job duties.?Competitive integrated employment also offers the same level of benefits for all employees including those with disabilities, and offers the same opportunities for advancement for individuals with disabilities, and those without disabilities working in similar positions.?For additional information please review page 31 of the transition guide.?For youth seeking subminimum wage, page 31 of the transition guide provides an overview of what must occur prior to a youth beginning work at subminimum wage. A youth with a disability must satisfy certain service related requirements. VR agencies and LEA's must document the provision of these requisite services and VR agencies must provide youth with documentation of the completion of transition services under IDEA and the completion of pre-employment transition services under the rehabilitation act. School officials are responsible for providing the VR agency with documentation of the completion of appropriate transition services under IDEA consistent with the confidentiality requirements of the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act.?Supported employment is competitive integrated employment including customized employment, or employment in an integrated setting where an individual with the most significant disability is working on a short-term basis toward competitive integrated employment. It's also ongoing support services or extended services needed by an individual to maintain employment. It may be provided under an IPE to youth with most significant disabilities for a period of up to four years or until the youth turns 25 years old. An overview of supported employment services is provided on page 32 of the transition guide.?While supported employment matches the individual with a position and trains him or her to perform the essential tasks in that position, customized employment designs or tailors job tasks to meet the individual's interest, skills and abilities, as well as the needs of the employer's. Customized employment strategies include customizing a job description based on current employer needs, developing a set of job duties, work schedules, job arrangement, and determining a job location, using a professional representative chosen by the individual to work with an employer and facilitate the placement. And providing services and supports at the job location. The transition guide on page 33 provides a link to customized employment examples.?Lastly self-employment refers to an individual working for him or herself rather than working for an employer and being paid a salary or wage. VR agencies offer services and guidance to assist students and youth with disabilities to prepare for self-employment. The transition guide on page 33 includes a link to a self-employment fact sheet.?Jessica Spataro will now discuss supporting student made decisions and preparing for adult life.?That topic starts on page 35 of the guide. We see the best success in post-school transition when students are actively engaged in their own transition planning. The main areas to make this happen include setting high expectations, using person centered planning, supporting the student’s social and emotional needs, providing the student with the support to make their own decisions, and counseling the student and their families to make informed choices. The guide goes through each one of these areas.?Setting high expectations plays a critical role in successful transition from school to post school. If you think about the alternative, low expectations and negative attitudinal barriers of faculty and staff contend to inhibit performance and inhibit successful outcomes of students with disabilities. Therefore the guide focuses on setting high expectations for students with disabilities to promote successful transition and outcome.?To set high expectations, and foster a culture of success for all students with disabilities, it is important to establish a schoolwide culture of high expectations, provide rigorous coursework to students with disabilities, ensure that IEP goals are aligned with challenging academic standards, provide the opportunity for students with disabilities to access college and career ready standards and assessments, and ensure educators have the resources needed to support success.?Person centered planning is important when developing the IEP or the IPE. Person centered approaches to keep in mind are: including in the planning process, individuals who have a deep knowledge of the student’s academic and social history, viewing the student as an individual rather than as a diagnosis for disability, using everyday language in transition planning rather than professional jargon, and ensuring that goals are developed based on the students unique strengths, interests, and capacities.?Students with disabilities who have well developed social skills are more likely to be able to successfully navigate their post-secondary education, employment and community setting. IEP teams should take steps to provide opportunities for students to acquire appropriate social skills. Many of these opportunities can be integrated into the student's existing course of study. Specific strategies include role-playing, participation in social and emotional learning programs, and positive school climate. These strategies are discussed in more detail starting on page 36 of the guide.?Providing students with the support to make their own decisions is an important aspect of transition planning. Strong self-advocacy skills and self-determination skills are critical in successfully transitioning into post-secondary educational settings and the workforce. Key characteristics of self-determination include the ability to speak for yourself or self-advocate, solve problems, set goals, make decisions, possess self-awareness, and exhibit independence. Schools can help students develop self-determination skills by supporting students in establishing their own transition goals, ensuring that students are actively involved in IEP and IPE meetings, ensuring that students understand their IEP and IPE, helping students develop skills to direct their own learning, using person centered planning, and creating and maintaining a system that not only supports family involvement but also empowers families to support the self-determination of their children. For more details on what a successful self-determination looks like, please refer to pages 37 and 38 of the guide.?The next critical aspect of transition planning is discussed in the guide starts on page 38 and it addresses making informed choices.?When looking at informed choice there are many areas to understand including: the parameters of the informed choice, parental consent, the age of majority and guardianship. The guide goes into more detail but I will briefly walk through each one. As for the parameters of informed choice, the VR agency must provide its participants with the opportunity to exercise informed choice throughout the VR process. This includes making decisions about: employment goals, services and service providers, settings for employment and service provision, and methods for procuring services.?The VR agency assist participants by providing information, guidance and support to make and carry out these decisions.?It is generally the responsibility of the VR counselor to inform the individual about relevant requirements and options when developing their IPE. And as appropriate the VR counselor encourages participation of family members, or others in the VR process. This brings me to parental consent. The age of majority and guardianship which are all somewhat intertwined with one another.?Outreach to parents, family members, caregivers and representatives plays a critical role in the transition process. For students who receive services under part B of IDEA parental rights may transfer to the student when he or she reaches the age of majority under state law. The age of majority is the age that a state sets for a minor to become an adult and assume legal responsibility for him or herself. To find out more about the age of majority in your state you can refer to the resource link on page 39 of the guide.?Once the student reaches the age of majority, the student then has the right to make his or her own educational, employment, and independent living decisions. And as such VR agencies conduct outreach directly to the students. Therefore, parents need to be prepared for this outreach and contact directly with their adult children. The guide goes into further details about guardianship, and what happens if the adult student does not want to or does not have the capacity to have these responsibilities.?One final note to highlight is that teaching self-determination and exercising informed choice are not practices limited to only the most able youth with disabilities. Schools can help foster self-determination and VR agencies can enhance career decision-making to assist youth with disabilities including those with the most significant, complex or lifelong intellectual or developmental disabilities to achieve their desired post school goals.?We hope this presentation has been beneficial to orienting you to the Transition Resource Guide. At the end of the guide will find the glossary where we have a list of terms with definitions. You also find the endnotes section which provides sources of articles, and other important information discussed in the guide. If you have questions, we ask that you email your questions to the dedicated email box, TRGuideQuestions@ please include the topic of your question in the subject line of your email. We will compile the questions to assist in the development of future guidance. We thank you for your interest in post-secondary transitions.?[Event concluded] ................
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