THINKCOLLEGE: Postsecondary Education Options for Students with Intellectual Disabilities

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THINKCOLLEGE Postsecondary Education Options for
Students with Intellectual Disabilities
20 November 2008
Molly Boyle MassBay Community
College Phone [phone] Email
mboyle_at_massbay.edu

• Debra Hart
• Institute for Community Inclusion
• Phone [phone]
• Email debra.hart_at_umb.edu

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Topics

• National perspective
• MassachusettsInclusive Concurrent / Dual
  Enrollment
• Quality Indicators
• National Consortium Center Projects

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What exactly does accessing college mean?
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College as a Transition to Work

• Identify career interests
• Research knowledge and skills needed to pursue
  work
• Enroll (audit, for credit, non-credit) in courses
  that will contribute to career goal
• Create a career path leading to competitive
  employment
• Pair college with related time-limited work
  experience paid employment
• NOT ROCKET SCIENCE!!!

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• 150 postsecondary education programs
• Across 31 states
• Transient

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Models / Types of Programs

• Mixed/Hybrid 51.3
• Separate 32.9
• Inclusive Individual Support Model 15.8

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Type of Institute of Higher Education

• 2-year 51.3
• 4-year 41.8
• Tech/Trade School 6.9

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Number of Years in Existence

• 3 months - 35 years

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Who Pays?
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• Molly Boyle
• Implementation Specialist,
• Inclusive Concurrent Enrollment
• Office of Student Development
• Massachusetts Bay Community College

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First Semester of Partnership

• 6 students
• 4 educational coaches
• Travel train to campusit worked!
• Courses include Microcomputer Applications,
  Career Life Planning, Intro. to Communication,
  Intro to Water Color, Child Development, Critical
  Thinking, Group Process
• Students participate in tutoring, recreation
  center, student club activities, counseling
  services, career planning, peer mentoring

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Challenges moving from high school to college

• High school staff direct all activities. In
  college, students must learn to manage their time
  and schedules
• Assistance is automatic in high school. In
  college, students must seek assistance on their
  own
• In high schools, students similar to the ones
  were talking about today rarely have homeworkin
  college, there is an expectation of 1 3
• Parent role changes
• Transportation changes

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Individual Support Model
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Daren
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Student Schedule
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Where to start?

• Student tour of college campus
• Student expresses some interest in college
• Intake with disability office
• Reviewing college catalog course selection
• Creating schedule
• College orientations by college staff with
  support of PS transition staff

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Application Course Selection

• Application vs registration
• Course should be of interest to student(career,
  quality of life)
• Placement tests not always necessary
• Making decisions about taking classes for credit,
  audit, noncredit

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Educational Coaching

• Things to think about
• Good match between coach student
• Open communication with HS staff, college
  personnel, transportation family
• Understanding philosophy of personal choice,
  independence high expectations in all settings
• Risk taking
• Respect that this is challenging, but important
  work

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Building Partnerships within Higher Education

• Faculty
• Support Staff
• Administration
• Students

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What it is all about The students
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Students

• Their words say it best
• Performance is quite exceptional
• Maturity (exterior, interior)
• Safe environment for risk taking

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Successful Mindsets

• It takes time to do the work
• Start small build one paves the way for the
  next
• Think outside the box take risk always ask
  what does any 18-20 year old think, feel, do
• Collaborate with whomever you can find
• The day you think you got it, is the day you
  better rethink what youre doing

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Challenges

• Finding college courses that have meaning for
  students will enhance employability
• Finding quality internship/work experiences that
  relate to a students career goal
• Helping students find good jobs that interest
  them
• Juggling many different student schedules needs
• Forever changing staff transportation schedules
• Maximizing staffing
• Providing supports to staff who are on their own
• Communication with family, teachers,
  administrators students as things are always
  changing
• Safety risk
• Changing administration philosophies

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Quality IndicatorsDraft
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QI Background

• Based upon 10 years of research, TTA, and
  fieldwork
• Aligned with NASET Standards
• Not geared toward any specific model of practice
• Not geared toward any type of institution
  (technical or trade school, community college, or
  four year college or university)

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Quality Indicators Key Areas

• Student Outcomes
• Student Activities
• Policies and Practices
• Administration

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Newly Funded National Initiatives
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Newly Funded National Initiatives

• National Consortium of Individuals with
  Developmental Disabilities in Postsecondary
  Education (NCIDD-PSE)
• Administration on Developmental Disabilities,
  National Training Initiative (NTI)

• Center on Postsecondary Education for Students
  with Intellectual Disabilities
• National Institute for Disability
  Rehabilitation Research, Disability
  Rehabilitation Research Program (DRRP)

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How Projects Work Together
Executive Project Advisory Committee

• Consortium (ADD)
• Case Studies Site Visits/Focus Groups
• Quality Indicators
• Develop National Training Initiative
• Disseminate thru ADD Technical Assistance
  Centers beyond

• Center (DRRP)
• National Survey
• Secondary Data Analysis
• Compile existing materials
• Develop new materials
• Disseminate thru NIDDR dissemination centers

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National Consortium for Individuals with
Developmental Disabilities in Postsecondary
Education

• FY 2008/9 FY 2014
• National Training Initiative
• Administration on
• Developmental Disabilities

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National ConsortiumCollaborators

• Institute for Community Inclusion,
  University of Massachusetts, Boston
• Institute for Community Integration, University
  of Minnesota
• Center for Disability Studies,
  University of Hawaii
• Center for Disability Services,
  University of Delaware
• Association for University Centers for Excellence
  in Developmental Disability

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National Consortium Partners

• Nisonger Center, Ohio State University
• Kennedy Center, Vanderbilt University
• Center for Disability Resources, University of
  South Carolina
• Tarjan Center, University of California Los
  Angeles

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Executive Committee

• Madeline Will Stephanie Smith Lee, National
  Down Syndrome Society
• Meg Grigal, TransCen, Inc.
• Stephan Hamlin Smith, Association of Higher
  Education and Disability
• Jane West, American Association of Colleges of
  Teacher Education
• Sean Roy, PACER Center
• Debbie Gilmer, Healthy Ready to Work

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USC Center for Disability Resources

• Our Mission

• CDRs Role

• Dr. Richard Ferrante serves on CTC/NDSS Steering
  Committee
• Research on best practices in post secondary
  education
• Pursue opportunities for partnership with SCVR,
  SCDDSN, DDC, school system

• Technical Assistance
• Training
• Collaboration
• http//uscm.med.sc.edu/cdrhome
• Meghan.trowbridge_at_uscmed.sc.edu