Affiliated Center in Transition Program Area
Projects in Transition Program Area
For More Information

The Transition Services Program Area works to enable schools and community service agencies to better prepare youth with disabilities for life as productive, responsible adults in the community.

This goal is pursued through the evaluation of post-school outcomes for students with disabilities, implementing models of collaborative transition planning and service delivery, providing technical assistance to state and local educational and vocational rehabilitation programs, promoting meaningful policy development and systems change in supporting youth with disabilities and families in the transition from school to adult life, generating and evaluating strategies for successful community employment for persons with disabilities, and preservice and continuing education of professionals and parents.

Note: To find out more about a project, please explore its Web site if it has one (the title will be highlighted) or copy and paste the project title into the keyword field of the Project Search page. If your questions are not answered, you may call or e-mail the project contact person(s). If you leave this site to visit a project Web site and wish to return, please use your Back button or find the link to the Institute on the project's home page.

Affiliated Centers in Transition Program Area

National Center on Secondary Education and Transition (NCSET) (an ICI Affiliated Center) provides technical assistance and information dissemination on improved access and success for students with disabilities in secondary and postsecondary education, as well as employment, independent living, and community participation. Contact: David R. Johnson, 612-624-2097, ncset@umn.edu.

North Central Regional Resource Center
The Center seeks to improve education results for children and youth with disabilities through state-level systems change. It provides technical assistance and dissemination support to state and local education agencies in Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Ohio, Pennsylvania, and Wisconsin as they seek to sustain systems change efforts that improve educational results and accountability for children and youth with disabilities and their families. Funded by the United States Department of Education's Office of Special Education Programs (OSEP). Contact: Maureen Hawes, 612-624-1144, hawes001@umn.edu.

Projects in Transition Program Area

All Means All School-to-Work Project recognizes the efforts of those who are doing whatever it takes to include all learners in school-to-work opportunities, awarding and publicizing their activities. Funded by the Office of Special Education and Rehabilitative Services (OSERS), US Department of Education. Contacts: Mary Mack, Coordinator, 612-624-7579, mackx012@umn.edu.

Beacons of Excellence: Achieving Exemplary Results for Students with Disabilities in Secondary Education studies how policies, procedures, curriculum, staffing, school climate, support services, community involvement, and other factors contribute to student success at secondary schools that obtain exemplary results for all students, including students with disabilities. Funded by the Office of Special Education Programs (OSEP), US Department of Education. Contact: Teri Wallace, 612-626-7220, walla001@umn.edu.

Bridges Project collaborates with RISE, Inc., Minneapolis Public Schools, and Anoka Public Schools to assist transition-age students with emotional/behavioral disabilities in making the transition from school to work and adult living. Funded by the Rehabilitative Services Administration. Contact: David R. Johnson, Director, 612-624-1062, johns006@umn.edu.

Careers Project collaborates with St. Paul Rehabilitation Center and St. Paul Public Schools to assist students with emotional/behavioral disabilities between the ages of 18 and 25 in making the transition from school to work and adult living. Funded by the Rehabilitative Services Administration. Contact: David R. Johnson, Director, 612-624-1062, johns006@umn.edu.

Check & Connect: Promoting Students' Engagement with School is a model to promote students' engagement with school, reduce dropout, and increase school completion. The Check & Connect model originated from a partnership of researchers, practitioners, parents, and students led by the Institute on Community Integration, University of Minnesota. The following are several projects of the Institute that used the Check & Connect model. For more information contact Sandra L. Christenson, 612-624-0037, chris002@umn.edu.

Dakota County: Using Check & Connect as a Truancy Intervention, a pilot initiated in 1996, targets chronically truant youth, with and without disabilities, between the ages of 11 and 17 years, across eight metro-area suburban/small city school districts. Funded by Dakota County (Minnesota) Community Services.

Persistence Plus: Using Check & Connect to Improve Service Delivery and Positive Post-School Outcomes for Secondary Students with Serious Emotional Disturbance field tests the Check & Connect school engagement procedure to improve service delivery and post-school outcomes for students with serious emotional disturbance. Funded by the US Department of Education, Office of Special Education Programs (OSEP).

School Completion? A Follow-Up Study of Students with Disabilities Who Participated in the Check & Connect Middle School Dropout Prevention Program is investigating the school completion rate and post-school outcomes of 94 young adults with learning and behavioral disabilities who participated in the Check & Connect school engagement/dropout prevention intervention. At the end of ninth grade, those students who participated in Check & Connect in middle school and through the first year of high school (1992-1995) were more likely to be enrolled in school and on track to graduate than similar students in a contrast group. Students who were on track to graduate in five years would have completed high school in June 1999. Funded by internal/non-sponsored account.

Connecting to SUCCESS: Electronic Mentoring Through Technology to Promote Student Achievement develops, implements, and evaluates a model for using electronic mentoring to promote successful transition of youth with disabilities into adult life. Electronic mentoring, also called e-mentoring, uses a combination of e-mail and face-to-face meetings to facilitate mentoring relationships between young people and adults. Funded by U.S. Department of Labor, Presidential Task Force on Employment of Adults with Disabilities. Contach: Mary Mack, 612-624-7579, mackx012@umn.edu.

Demonstrating Success: Students with Disabilities in Secondary Education demonstrates an outcome-oriented model for the education of students with disabilities that includes a customized case management system with an electronic version of an IEP that will facilitate student involvement in general education. The model offers an efficient way to

1. Support students as they lead their IEP process;
2. Show students the relevance of school to their goals and post-school outcomes;
3. Demonstrate that students can achieve their goals and obtain high school standards through access to the general education curriculum;
4. Facilitate collaboration among general and special educators in the planning and implementation of student led IEPs;
5. Encourage the use of instructional practices associated with desired outcomes across five domains: literacy/academic achievement, employment, post-secondary education, independent living, and citizenship and community involvement; and
6. Measure progress toward student goals.

Funded by the Office of Special Education Programs (OSEP), US Department of Education. Contact: Teri Wallace, 612-626-7220, walla001@umn.edu.

Expanding the Circle (ETC): Improving the Delivery and Outcomes of Postsecondary Education for American Indians with Disabilities in Minnesota is a three-year project that has a two-part focus:

1. To support the preparation and transition of high school American Indian students with disabilities and those at risk into postsecondary schools; and
2. To supply technical assistance to high school and college faculty and staff to meet the needs of students with disabilities and at risk in transition.

The ETC project focuses on the following American Indian Reservations: Fond du Lac, Mille Lac, White Earth, Red Lake, Leech Lake, and Bois Forte. Funded by the Office of Special Education and Rehabilitative Services (OSERS), US Department of Education. Contacts: David R. Johnson, Director, 612-624-1062, johns006@umn.edu; Jean Ness, Project Director, 612-627-4179, nessx008@umn.edu.

Future Bound prepares American Indian youth for life after high school. The focus fo the three year project is with the Dakota communities in Minnesota. As part of the project a curriculum entitled "Expanding the Circle: Respecting the Past, Preparing for the Future" is being developed. Funded by the United States Department of Education (USDOE). Contacts: Jean Ness, 612-625-5322, nessx008@umn.edu; Jennifer Huisken, 612-625-6437, huis0013@umn.edu.

Future Bound: An Outreach Project to Promote Postsecondary Transition Opportunities for American Indian Youth in Minnesota supports the preparation and transition of high school American Indian students at risk into postsecondary schools, and provides intensive technical assistance to high school faculty and staff, Indian community members, and families to meet the needs of Indian students at risk in transition. Future Bound focuses on the American Indian Sioux communities in southern Minnesota. Funded by U.S. Department of Education, Office of Special Education and Rehabilitative Services. Contacts: David R. Johnson, 612-624-1062, johns006@umn.edu; Jean Ness, 612-627-4179, nessx008@umn.edu.

Making Personal Visions A Reality: An Educational and Technical Assistance Program to Support Person-Centered Planning in South Carolina works with the South Carolina Department of Disability and Special Needs to create a cadre of well-trained and experienced independent facilitators of person-centered planning who can work with persons with disabilities throughout the state, as well as trainers who can prepare and supervise others in South Carolina who have an interest in becoming person-centered planning facilitators. Funded by the South Carolina Department of Disabilities and Special Needs. Contacts: Marijo McBride, 612-624-6830, mcbri001@umn.edu; Matt Ziegler, 612-626-7322, ziegl010@umn.edu; Brian Abery, 612-625-5592, abery001@umn.edu.

Minnesota System of Interagency Coordination (MnSIC) Acts as part of a larger initiative tied to Minnesota Statute 125A.023 to develop and implement a system of coordinated, multi-disciplinary, interagency intervention services for children and youth with disabilities ages 3-21 and their families. The Institute on Community Integration has a contract with the Minnesota Department of Children, Families and Learning to support the development, production, and dissemination of products and resources on behalf of the MnSIC Initiative. Funded by The Minnesota Department of Children, Families & Learning (MNCFL). Contacts: Patricia Merrill, 612-624-0326 merri006@umn.edu.

Minnesota Paraprofessional Training Project coordinates statewide training and technical assistance for the Minnesota Paraprofessional Consortium of state agency representatives, educators, paraprofessionals, parents, and others. The purpose of this project is to build a system to prepare the paraprofessional workforce to better contribute as team members in education. Funded by the Minnesota Department of Children, Families and Learning. Contact: Teri Wallace, 612-626-7220, walla001@umn.edu.

National Transition Network - National Transition Alliance coordinates technical assistance activities targeted to states with school-to-work development and implementation grants. NTN staff work with the NTA Technical Assistance Advisory Panel and individual states in identifying appropriate technical assistance strategies. Funded by the US Department of Education. Contacts: David R. Johnson, Director, 612-624-1062, johns006@umn.edu; Mary Mack, Associate Director, 612-624-7579, mackx012@umn.edu; Carrie Sword, Technical Assistance Coordinator, 612-625-7519, sword002@umn.edu.

Promoting Quality Services for Individuals with Disabilities Through the Development and Delivery of Supervision and Management Training for Educators, Supervisors, and Mid-Level Managers develops and implements an interdisciplinary certificate program in supervision and management, and identifies assessment methods for supervisors and managers. Funded by the Administration on Developmental Disabilities (ADD). Contacts: Amy Hewitt, 612-625-1098, hewit005@umn.edu; Teri Wallace, 612-626-7220, walla001@umn.edu.

RRTC on Postsecondary Education Supports (this Web site will open in a new window) collaborates with the University of Hawaii (lead applicant) in operating an RRTC on Postsecondary Education Supports for Youth and Adults with Disabilities, undertaking studies designed to enhance the participation of youth and young adults in postsecondary education training programs and eventual employment. Funded by the National Institute on Disability and Rehabilitation Research (NIDRR), US Department of Education. Contacts: David R. Johnson, Director, 612-624-1062, johns006@umn.edu; Michael N. Sharpe, Project Coordinator, 612-626-8155, sharp004@umn.edu.

RRTC on Rehabilitation Service Systems (this Web site will open in a new window) collaborates with the Institute on Community Inclusion at Boston Children's Hospital (lead applicant) in operating an RRTC focused on improving rehabilitation service delivery systems for individuals with disabilities. Operates and conducts studies which analyze the interrelationship among vocational rehabilitation, workforce development, economic development, and human service systems in supporting individuals with disabilities in achieving positive employment outcomes. Funded by the National Institute on Disability and Rehabilitation Research (NIDRR), US Department of Education. Contacts: David R. Johnson, Director, 612-624-1062, johns006@umn.edu; Michael N. Sharpe, Project Coordinator, 612-626-8155, sharp004@umn.edu.

Special Education Leadership Training Grant on Education Reform collaborates with the University of Minnesota's Department of Educational Policy and Administration and Department of Educational Psychology to prepare doctoral students for leadership positions in research, teacher education, program development, policy-making, and administration in the field of special education. Also addresses OSEP's competitive priorities for training personnel to provide transition assistance from school to adult roles and preparing personnel to meet the National Education Goals. Funded by the Office of Special Education and Rehabilitative Services (OSERS), US Department of Education. Contacts: David R. Johnson, Director, 612-624-1062, johns006@umn.edu; Martha Thurlow, Co-Director, 612-624-4826, thurl001@umn.edu.

State and Local Education Efforts to Implement the Transition Requirements of IDEA collaborates with the University of Vermont, Center for Transition and Employment; University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Bureau of Education Research; University of Minnesota, National Transition Network; and the National Association of State Directors of Special Education (NASDSE) to document and describe state and local implementation policies, procedures, and practices associated with the federal transition services requirements. In addition, the project identifies implementation barriers, determines effective or successful strategies that facilitate policy implementation, analyzes current IEP practices associated with transition, and explores the relationship between the provision of transition services the postschool outcomes students with disabilities achieve after completing high school. Funded by the Office of Special Education and Rehabilitative Services (OSERS), US Department of Education. Contact: David R. Johnson, Director, 612-624-1062, johns006@umn.edu.

Strategies for Increasing the Utilization of SSI Work Incentives to Enhance Employment Results of Transitioning Youth with Disabilities develops and implements innovative strategies for increasing the utilization of the SSI work incentives by transition-aged youth with disabilities in an effort to improve their postschool employment and related outcomes. Of particular importance are the strategies this project develops for incorporating information on SSI work incentives into students' transition/IEP plans. Funded by the Office of Special Education and Rehabilitative Services (OSERS), US Department of Education. Contacts: Contacts: David R. Johnson, Director, 612-624-1062, johns006@umn.edu; Ellie J. Emanuel, Project Coordinator, 612-627-4135, emanu003@umn.edu; Kris Schoeller, Training Coordinator, 612-627-4036, schoe043@umn.edu.

Strengthening the Capacity of American Indian Students in Financial Services Programs at Fond du Lac Tribal and Community College (this Web site will open in a new window) develops a culturally sensitive training program to prepare American Indian students, including at-risk students, to function in the financial services field. Utilizes distance learning and interactive computer strategies. Funded by the US Department of Education. Contacts: Jean Ness, Project Director, 612-627-4179, nessx008@umn.edu; Bryan Jon Maciewski, Instructor, 218-879-0821, bjon@mail.fdl.cc.mn.us.

For More Information

To find out more about a project, please explore its Web site if it has one (the title will be highlighted) or copy and paste the project title into the keyword field of the Project Search page. If your questions are not answered, you may call or e-mail the project contact person(s). If you leave this site to visit a project Web site and wish to return, please use your Back button or find the link to the Institute on the project's home page.