Kings Park School District Transition Services

Guide to Transition Services

Kings Park School District

Janice McQuaid

Special Education Teacher

Transition Coordinator

631-269-3799

As the Transition Coordinator for the Kings Park Central School District my mission is to guide students with Individual Education Plans and 504 plans to a career they are passionate about. Beginning in middle school, students will complete surveys that will identify their strengths and interests. Together with their education team, we will use these strengths and interests to develop appropriate coursework and a career plan. If that career plan requires services from outside agencies, I will connect families with these agencies and help facilitate obtaining services. Another goal for the students is to build their self-advocacy skills. By understanding their strengths and struggles, they will be better able to articulate their needs and what tools they require for success. We will work together on self-determination and have the students develop these skills so that they will actively participate in their CSE meetings. This in turn will translate into success post high school.

What are Transition Services?

Transition services for students in special education are specifically designed to assist students with disabilities in transitioning from the school system into the adult world; whether it be to continue education or find employment. This process includes instruction, community learning experiences, and support services, with the intent to develop skills, knowledge and abilities for post-secondary success.

Transition components are built into the student’s Individualized Education Program (IEP) for special education. It is a process which requires planning for your student's future. All youth with disabilities, aged 15-21, must have transition services on their IEP. Students with more severe disabilities may need to be considered earlier. The outcomes identified in the annual transition planning process become the framework for the goals and activities in your child's Individualized Education Plan (IEP). Transition services must be a coordinated set of activities oriented toward producing results.

Questions for Parents/Guardians to

Consider Relating to Transitional Services

What are my short term (high school) and long term (post high school) goals for my child?
What kind of work situation is realistically attainable for my child?
What kinds of living arrangements are possible for my child in adult life?
What kinds of skills will be essential for success in a competitive or supported work experience?
What kinds of skills will be needed for independent living?
What kinds of transportation skills will be needed for my child to get to work?
What agency resources may be necessary?

What is my role as the parent?

As a parent, your job (along with the other professionals who are working with your child), is to:

Find out about these services
Determine which ones suit your child’s needs and aspirations
Follow the procedures to secure eligibility for them.

Your follow through is critical to their success.

Other Things to Consider as Your Child Turns 18

Does my child need a driver’s license or non-driver’s identification card?
Does my child need working papers?
Do I need to plan for guardianship before my child turns 18 and becomes the legal age of consent?
Do I need to set up a special needs trust with an attorney?
Do I need to apply for Medicaid and SSI?
Does my child need to register for the draft? (males 18 and over)
Does my child need to register to vote?
Will my child need residential or supportive housing?

Source: https://www.gardencity.k12.ny.us/site/handlers/filedownload.ashx?moduleinstanceid=16425&dataid=13598&FileName=2020%20guide%20to%20transitional%20services.pdf

Click here for a regional contact information sheet. It includes agencies, addresses, phone numbers and website information.

ADDITIONAL SUFFOLK COUNTY TRANSITION RESOURCES

Please click on the following link to access the Suffolk County Transition Resources Website.

Suffolk County Transition Resources

https://sites.google.com/northport.k12.ny.us/sctransitionresources/home

Documents to Keep for Youth Transitioning to Adult Life

Takeaways from this handout:

• You can ease the transition to adulthood for your youth by having him or her organize an ongoing file of important documents they will need after high school.

• You may want to develop a filing system using the categories and sections below; or you may want to set up your own method.

• The documents may be paper copies, digital copies, or some of each.

• It is important to make sure that all of the documents mentioned in this handout are organized and stored in an easily accessible location.

Personal Documents

• Birth certificate (copy)

• Passport (copy)

• Current community service providers

• Emergency contact information

• Health and other insurance information (copy)

• Social Security card (copy)

• Identification card or driver’s license (copy)

Health History

• Allergies

• Documentation of any relevant medical diagnosis (current within the last three to five years)

• Immunization records

• Medications (type, date started or stopped, and any side effects)

• Keep contact information and names of doctors, dentist, specialists, and therapists

• Pharmacy contact information

School Records

• Copies of Individualized Education Programs (IEP) for last several years

• Diploma (copy)

• High school transcript (copy)

• Current evaluation reports (over the past three years)

• Letters of recommendation

• Report card and progress reports

• Samples of academic, art or design work

• Examples of effective accommodations and assistive technology

• Summary of Performance (required upon graduation with a regular diploma or when a youth exceeds the age of eligibility for special education services at 21)

Job Portfolio

• Job history, including dates and contact information

• Letters of reference • Resume

• Vocational assessments

• Volunteer experiences

• Examples of academic or job accommodations that your son or daughter has used successfully in the past.

• Examples of effective assistive technology that your son or daughter has used in the past (including prices, suppliers, and potential funders if possible) for your personal use.

The documents you keep and organize will help your youth make a smoother transition from high school to adulthood.

What are the skills every 18-year-old needs?

An 18-year old must be able to talk to strangers-faculty, deans, advisers, landlords, store clerks, human resource managers, coworkers, bank tellers, health care providers, bus drivers, mechanics-in the real world.

The crutch: We teach kids not to talk to strangers instead of teaching the more nuanced skill of how to discern the few bad strangers from the mostly good ones. Thus, kids end up not knowing how to approach strangers-respectfully and with eye contact- for the help, and direction they will need out in the real world.

An 18-year-old must be able to find his way around a campus, the town in which her summer internship is located, or the city where he is working or studying abroad.

The crutch: we drive or accompany our children everywhere, even when a bus , their bicycle, or their own feet could get them there; thus, kids don't know the route for getting from here to there, how to cope with transportation snafus, when and how to fill the car with gas, or how to make and execute transportation plans.

An 18-year old must be able to manage his assignments, workload, and deadlines.

The crutch: We remind kids when their homework is due and when to do it-sometimes helping them do it, sometimes doing it for them; thus, kids don't know how to prioritize tasks, manage workload, or meet deadlines without regular reminders.

An 18-year-old must be able to contribute to the running of a house hold.

The crutch: We don't ask them to help much around the house because the check-listed childhood leaves little time in the day for anything aside from academic and extracurricular work; thus, kids don't know how to look after their own needs, respect the needs of others, or do their fair share for the good of the whole.

An 18-year-old must be able to handle interpersonal problems.

The crutch: We step in to solve misunderstandings and soothe hurt feelings for them; thus, kids don't know how to cope with and resolve conflicts without our intervention.

An 18-year-old must be able to cope with ups and downs of courses and workloads, college-level work, competition, tough teachers, bosses, and others.

The crutch: We step in when things get hard, finish the task, extend the deadline, and talk to the adults; thus, kids don't know that in the normal course of life things won't always go their way, and that they'll be okay regardless.

An 18-year-old must be able to earn and manage money.

The crutch: They don't hold part-time jobs; they receive money from us for what ever they want or need; thus, kids don't develop a sense of responsibility for completing job tasks, accountability to a boss who doesn't inherently love them, or an appreciation for the cost of things and how to manage money.

An 18-year-old must be able to take risks.

The crutch: We've laid out their entire path for them and have avoided all pitfalls or prevented all stumbles for them; thus, kids don't develop the wise understanding that success comes only after trying and failing and trying again (a.k.a. GRIT) or the thick skin (a.k.a. RESILIENCE) that comes from coping when things have gone wrong.

Remember: our kids must be able to do all of these things without resorting to calling a parent of the phone. If they're calling us to ask how, they do not have the life skill.

{Originally appeared in How to Raise an Adult: Break Free of the Overparenting Trap and Prepare Your Kid for Success by Julie Lythcott-Haims (Henry Holt & Co., 2015}

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