Even though some has passed since the 2014 Convention & Expo in Philadelphia, I wanted to share some of what I learned with you. My three favorite sessions were:
Planning for Employment After High School – It Takes a Vision for Inclusion – a Village – and a Toolbox! Nancy Molfenter works with Let’s Get to Work in Wisconsin. She spoke about the importance of inclusion in terms of preparation and expectation for the workplace later in life. She also emphasized the importance and the role of vocational rehabilitation (VR) agencies. I approached Nancy after the session with a couple of specific questions related to my experiences and the development of my program and we ended up chatting for almost an hour after the session! I came away with the conversation with so many ideas of strategies and approaches to try and good quality questions to ask of my administrators and community figures. Thanks Nancy! Check out their website: http://www.letsgettoworkwi.
College of New Jersey’s Career & Community Studies Program. This one really got my gears turning! The presenter made a really strong argument for the appropriateness of college programming and environments for young adults with intellectual development disabilities (IDD). Their program website is http://ccs.pages.tcnj.edu/. There’s also a website that lists college programs for students with IDD around the country – http://www.thinkcollege.net/.
Triangulated Goals: Developing Relevant and Genuine Transition IEPs. My campus has been working lately to link IEP goals to post-secondary goals. This session gave a solid way to write goals in such a way that it is abundantly clear how state standards link to industry job standards which supports the post-secondary goals. This website lists specific standards for various types of jobs that link directly to academic skills – http://www.onetonline.org/
Overall, what a fabulous experience! I came away with so many ideas and connections that I cannot wait to try on my own! Thank you to all of the great presenters who took the time to share their experience and wisdom!