What is a Transition Plan and Why is it Important?
A transition plan is a portion of the IEP designed to prepare a student for independent functioning in the community at large after high school graduation.When your child leaves high school at either 18 or 21, their legal entitlement to a free public education ends. At that point, you and your child are faced with significant decisions about vocational training, continued education or immediate job placement, as well as with decisions regarding where the student will reside and how the student will care for their personal needs.
These are decisions that all young adults face. But, the options available to students with disabilities may be more limited and the choices more complicated. Thus, additional planning is required. According to the law planning for the transition from school to adult life is required to begin at age fourteen (14), but, it may begin even younger. Moreover, the transition plan is required as a formalized as part of the student's Individualized Education Program (IEP).
The annual transition plan is developed by the student, parents and school staff in cooperation. It should consider issues such as:
· Employability
Development of pre-employment skills
Development of general business skills
Development of specific technical/vocational skills
Preparation for college; if appropriate
Ability to get to and from work
· Independent Living
Basic self-care skills
Life skills
Finances
Mental Health issues
Social issues
Housing
Nutrition and exercise
· Community Involvement
Participation in clubs or sports
Participation in religious organization
Networking with support providers
What particular transition services are provided should be based on the individual student’s needs, interests and preferences. They may include such items as:
· Remedial instruction
· Participation in Community events and activities
· Acquisition of daily living skills
· A functional vocational assessment
· Training in finance management
· Developing support systems in the community
· Making connections with private medical and/or mental health providers
· Learning self-advocacy skills
· Learning to schedule and organize his or her own life
· Learning to navigate among an array of adult service providers at the local, state and federal levels.
The student and the family are primary participants in this process. It is their responsibility to make certain that the student is prepared to take responsibility for his or her own life to the best of his or her ability after high school ends.