Transition

Transition Training Series:  
The Central Valley School District Special Services Department is providing a transition training series for families to learn about servies available to individuals with disabilities in Spokane County.  The training series will begin in January and run through March. 

Transition planning is foundational for the Individualized Education Program (IEP) planning process and a blueprint for direction setting.

A transition is defined as the passage from one state or place to the next. A very significant passage that all high school students have the opportunity to experience is graduating and moving on to living, learning, working, and playing in their communities as young adults. Every student that enters our Central Valley School District classrooms has dreams of what their future may be like. It is the goal of each student’s Individualized Education Program Team to develop a transition plan that includes a course of study and a coordinated set of activities that supports each student in achieving an appropriate post-secondary goal.

Definition of Transition Services

Transition services {as defined by Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) 2004} are a coordinated set of activities for students that are designed within a results-oriented process, which promotes movement from school to post-school activities including…

· Post-secondary education

· Vocational Training

· Competitive/Supported Employment

· Continuing and Adult Education

· Adult Services

· Independent Living

· Community Participation

The IEP team begins this process of identifying a measurable post-secondary goal no later than age 16. The post-secondary goal always begins with identifying the individual student’s strengths, interests, and preferences, which are obtained from interest inventories in written, pictorial, and computer generated formats.

Transition planning no later than age 16 allows time to…

1. Develop a course of study and a coordinated set of transition services aligned
with postsecondary goals.

2. Prepare students for participation in the IEP process (self-determination)

3. Conduct assessments that inform decisions about postsecondary goals and
transition services.

4. Help youth develop skills in a variety of life domains.

Links of Interest

The ARC of Spokane
http://www.arc-spokane.org/

Center For Change in Transition Services
http://www.seattleu.edu/ccts/