Empowered Parents and Students Develop Powerful Transition IEP's
~by Jennifer Graham, TransitionMap Coordinator
IDEIA 2004 states Transition Planning should become part of the IEP by age 16. But experts say best practice is to begin planning for transition from school to adult life by age 14. These are tips that can help families build an effective Transition Plan.
During the early transition years, discuss:
- What kind of work your teenager wants to do.
- Transportation to and from work.
- Where your adult child wants to live someday.
- Social activities he/she enjoys.
- Any need for specialized medical care.
- Guardianship, power of attorney, and executor of your estate.
- Special needs trust funding for long-term needs.
The Transition IEP should:
- Be planned around the student's abilities and personal goals
- The student should attend and have a voice in every IEP.
- Support the student's and family's vision of the future.
- Include a variety of work experiences.
- Include representatives from
- Mental Retardation Services
- Vocational Rehabilitation Services
- Adult provider agencies
- Identify who will supervise those work experiences and teach job skills.
- Include a timeline of progress reports and who will write them.
- Specify that all work experiences are recorded with date, responsibilities, supervisor’s name, and performance reports.
- When appropriate, ask for a letter of reference.
The Transition IEP Team should build collaborations with:
- Employers
- Adult services agencies
- Community colleges/Vocational schools
- Physicians/healthcare providers with experience in treating specific disability in adults
- Recreational/fitness organizations for adults
- Local self-advocacy groups.
As the Project Manager of your child’s Transition IEP you should:
- Advocate for the best services available.
- Expect accountability, and deadlines to be met.
- Encourage independence and learn from failures.
- Seek advice from other experts when the plan is not working.
- Expect goals to be met; if team members are not meeting those goals, explore who else can join your team to access appropriate services.
- Be creative in your plan to find meaningful activities to keep your teen busy.
- Use your personal network to coordinate work experiences for your child with your high school and adult provider agency – during the high school years.
- Explore franchise opportunities.
- Consider volunteer work for neighbors, churches/synagogues, local non-profit
IDEIA 2004 mandates that Transition IEP's must include, no later than age 16:
- Appropriate measurable postsecondary goals based upon age-appropriate transition assessments related to training, education, employment, and independent living skills, where appropriate.
- which means the IEP team must include experts in assessing skills, abilities, and employability.
- Transition services needed to assist the child in reaching those goals, including courses of study.
- which means the school must provide instruction and experiences to help your child achieve transition goals
IEP's will be required to include:
A description of how the child's progress toward meeting the annual goals will be measured
and
A description of when periodic progress reports will be provided to the parents.
Transition Resources:
www.transitionmap.org (On-line community of SE PA transition resources)
www.ncset.org ( National Center on Secondary Education and Transition)
www.pacer.org ( PACER Center)
www.ncwd-youth.info (National Collaborative on Workforce and Disability) Jennifer Graham is a transition consultant helping to build collaborative communities to support transitioning teenagers with intellectual disabilities. She has developed the www.transitionmap.org Website for SE PA in conjunction with Ken-Crest, an agency serving children, youth and adults with disabilities. Her articles have been published in Exceptional Parent, Woman’s Day, The Lutheran and Advance Magazines. In March 2005, she coordinated a regional seminar for 450 participants on “Transition to the Future: Working Together” at Saint Joseph’s University in Philadelphia. Contact Jennifer at 215-641-1200 or email jennifermgraham@comcast.net.
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