Expect, Empower, Engage Resource Database

These recommendations are based on a comprehensive review of laws, policies, and best practices related to transition as well as extensive interviews with experts. Topics include school and adult agency collaboration, work experiences, community activities, qualified personnel, and education for families.

This "Families Matter" video from the National Center on Deaf-Blindness introduces Jake and his family. They share experiences throughout Jake's life related to communication, literacy, movement, transition, empowerment, and teaming. An important theme of the story is how experiences throughout life are preparation for transition to adulthood.

This tool helps students who are deaf-blind, parents, and professionals determine essential transition activities related to assessment, programming, and team collaboration. Activities are categorized by 4 age groups: prior to age 14, 14 through 17, 18 through 21, and 22 through 26. The completed tool should be used to generate a plan of action and develop goals and objectives for IEPs and transition plans.

This resource provides a vignette and highlights strategies for the critical transition students increasingly are making from a self-contained, special classrooms to inclusive educational environments.

This webpage provides information on requirements, guidance and tools to ensure seamless transitions for children and their families as they leave Part C and other early childhood programs, so they have timely access to appropriate services. This page provides information on State and local structures, policies, interagency agreements, personnel development processes, and other critical mechanisms that must be in place to support the transition process.

This webpage provides information to support successful transitions between preschool services to Kindergarten. The page provides state information, as well as resources from other National Centers to ensure young children have a successful transition from preschool service to the K-12 system.

This webpage provides tools based on the Division for Early Childhood (DEC) Recommended Practices to help practitioners and families implement evidence-based transition practices. These tools and resources guide practitioners and families in supporting young children with disabilities in a variety of early childhood settings and include tools to improve practice, illustrations of effective transition practices, and practice guides for families and practitioners. They are available in both English and Spanish.

Description: A book study is a popular method of capacity building in schools, districts, and systems. This Book Study in a Box includes a Facilitator Guide, a Facilitator Implementation Guide, and a Participant Guide to support agencies in conducting a book study for the book Coherence: The Right Drivers in Action for Schools, Districts, and Systems, by Michael Fullan and Joanne Quinn (2016, Corwin Press). These resources can promote professional learning at the system level and help leaders build capacity about comprehensive improvement models to better school systems and improved student outcomes.

As part of its charge to provide training and technical assistance that will enable State VR agency personnel to manage available resources, improve effective service delivery, and increase the number and quality of employment outcomes for individuals with disabilities, the Vocational Rehabilitation Technical Assistance Center for Quality Management (VRTAC-QM) developed this resource outlining the specific VR program requirements on transition services.

The Rehabilitation Act and its regulations require VR agencies to enter into formal interagency agreements with SEAs describing how the entities will collaboratively plan and coordinate transition services for students with disabilities needing those services. This formal interagency agreement is an important foundational document that helps to ensure students with disabilities experience a smooth transition from school to post-school activities. To support these efforts, RSA, in collaboration with OSEP, created this review instrument for formal interagency agreements between SEAs and VR agencies.

The VRTAC-QM and NTACT-C developed this guide for the development of policies and procedures for VR agencies in the provision of pre-employment transition services.

RSA issued this frequently-asked questions document related to how VR agencies may use the reserve requirement for the provision of pre-employment transition services to students with disabilities.

RSA published this final notification of interpretation to clarify current policy regarding the permissibility of using funds reserved for pre-employment transition services for auxiliary aids and services, and to announce a change in policy regarding the use of Federal VR funds reserved for pre-employment transition services.