Transitioning from School to Work

By law, children of all abilities are entitled to a free and appropriate education, but entitlement plays little part in the working world. Young adults with disabilities and their families may find they are ill prepared to navigate the workforce or the adult services system, having been a part of the academic system for the majority of their lives.

An Easterseals Job Training and Employment client at work

“School is an entitlement program,” explains Patrick Sandy, vice president, Rehabilitation Services, Easterseals Crossroads Rehabilitation Center, Indianapolis. “Many parents assume this type of system will continue on for their kids. There is an assumption that their kids will just go on to the ‘next thing,’ that the school will continue to guide their next steps and take care of them post-graduation. But this is not at all how it works.”

As part of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA), schools are required to assist students in preparing their transition plans beginning at approximately age 14 (age varies by state). Ideally, transition plans should be devised based on input from parents, students (to the extent possible) and involved school officials, who together determine the education, recreation, employment and residential opportunities students wish to pursue. Transition planning also may include application assistance for vocational rehabilitation, introduction to available adult vocational services, and connection to service providers like Easterseals. Transition plans should be revisited each year to ensure students’ successful progression toward post-graduate goals.

Without adequate resources to fund staff devoted to helping students with disabilities in their transition — or to educate parents on the importance of their involvement — students may fall through the cracks. “Parents frequently don’t show up for planning meetings because they don’t understand their importance,” Sandy says. “Especially if parents come from depressed socio-economic circumstances or have disabilities themselves, this is really the last thing on their minds. They just assume the school will take care of everything.”

According to Ruth Antonucci, director of job training and employment at Easter Seals Massachusetts, parents hold the key to ensuring a successful transition from the academic system to the workforce. “Parents need to light a fire under the school districts,” she says. “Parents are the key initiators in connecting their kids to the services they need. If they are not comfortable knowing all the nuances of their children’s rights, then they can hire a professional advocate to advise them during team meetings. But, the point is, they must be at these meetings.”

Unfortunately, many students and their families learn too late how ill-prepared they are to enter the workforce and meet the requirements of a job. “Students come to us after they have already gone out into the workforce and lost their jobs,” says Sharon Odden, vice president of programs for Easterseals Northern Rocky Mountains in Montana. “That is why it is so important to start planning early. Students with disabilities and their families need to start looking at SSI coverage as soon as possible and get themselves on waiting lists for services, so when they do become eligible for services through vocational rehabilitation, there will be a program available to them.”

As a school-to-work transition service provider, Easterseals offers both in-school and job-based services to students with disabilities (services vary from state to state). As part of the work-based learning program, Easterseals helps students get accustomed to the work environment through structured training, mentoring and placement at apprenticeships. Easterseals also offers graduates a variety of job training and employment services to further assist them in their quest for a fulfilling professional life.

“Transition services help parents and students sort out what makes sense for them and connects them to that…these services fill in the gaps,” Sandy says. Contact Easterseals to learn more.

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