Secondary Transition Training for Parents: Special Education Support

What Families Should Know

• Secondary Transition planning is a team effort. Your child, family, school staff, and other partners can all play important roles in preparing for life after high school.
• Your child is at the center of the team. Their strengths, preferences, interests, needs, and goals should guide who is involved and what support is needed.
• The IEP team can help identify the people, programs, community resources, and agencies that may support your child's goals.
• Different partners may become involved at different times. Your child may not need every service or agency.
• Community and agency partners can provide opportunities and supports related to education and training, employment, independent living, and participation in the community.
• Connecting with partners before your child leaves school can help create a smoother path into adult life.
• Families do not have to figure everything out alone. Ask your IEP team who may be able to help and when connections or referrals should begin.

What This Means for Your Child

• As your child's goals for adulthood become clearer, the team should think about who can help them build the skills, experiences, connections, and supports needed to reach those goals.
• Some of that support will happen through school. Other opportunities may come from family, community organizations, employers, colleges or training programs, or agencies that provide services to youth and adults with disabilities.
• The goal is to begin making the right connections at the right time, so your child has people and supports in place as they move from school into adult life.

Questions You Can Ask

• Who is currently helping my child work toward their goals for life after high school?
• Are there other people, programs, or community partners that could help?
• Are there agencies or services my child may be eligible for now or in the future?
• When should we begin making those connections or referrals?
• Who can help our family understand the eligibility or application process?
• How can these partners work together with the school and our family?
• How is my child being included in making these connections and learning to advocate for the support they need?

What Families Should Know

• 18-21 services are special education services provided through a school district for eligible students with IEPs who continue to need services as they prepare for life after high school.
• The student's individual transition needs, goals, and services are identified through the IEP process and informed by assessment data.
• 18-21 services should be individualized and based on your child's strengths, preferences, interests, and needs.
• Services focus on helping your child make progress toward their goals for life after high school and may include instruction, related services, community experiences, employment preparation, adult living skills, and daily living skills when appropriate.
• Learning can happen in school and community settings. Community-based experiences can help your child build connections to adult resources, education or training, employment, and other opportunities.
• 18-21 services are not the same as adult services. An important part of transition planning is helping your child make connections to adult agencies, services, and community resources they may need after leaving school.

What This Means for Your Child

• If your child continues to have transition needs, the IEP team should consider the services, instruction, experiences, and supports they need to make progress toward their goals for adult life.
• These services should not simply be about spending additional time in school. They should have a clear purpose connected to your child's IEP and their goals for education or training, employment, and independent living when appropriate.
• Planning should also include conversations about what happens when special education services end. Building connections with adult agencies, community resources, education or training programs, and employment opportunities before your child exits can help create a smoother transition into adult life.

Questions You Can Ask

• What transition needs does my child still have?
• What does the assessment information tell us about the skills, experiences, or supports my child needs?
• Are 18-21 services appropriate and could it help address these needs?
• What would individualized 18-21 services look like for my child?
• Could some of my child's instruction and services happen in workplaces, college or training programs, or other community settings?
• How will these services connect to my child's goals for life after high school?
• When should we begin connecting with adult agencies or community resources?
• How will receiving a regular high school diploma affect my child's special education services?
• What is our district's policy regarding participation in graduation ceremonies while continuing to receive special education services?

What Families Should Know

• Education and learning do not end with high school. There are many ways your child can continue learning and building skills for their future.
• Education and training after high school may include two- or four-year colleges, community colleges, Career and Technical Education (CTE), certificate programs, apprenticeships, job training, or other specialized programs.
• Students may also have opportunities to begin exploring college, career, and training options while they are still in high school, including concurrent enrollment and CTE programs.
• The right pathway should be based on your child's strengths, preferences, interests, needs, and goals for adult life - not on their disability.
• Some students may need accommodations, supports, or accessible programs to participate successfully in education or training after high school.
• Supports change after high school. Colleges and other adult education or training programs do not provide special education through an IEP. Students may need to request accommodations and learn how to communicate what support they need.
• Exploring options early gives your child time to experience different possibilities, learn what is expected, and build the skills needed for their next step.

What This Means for Your Child

• Your child's education or training goal after high school should help guide the opportunities they explore during high school.
• For example, a student interested in a particular career might explore a CTE pathway, take a concurrent enrollment course, visit a college or training program, participate in career exploration, or learn about the education and credentials needed for that career.
• These experiences can help your child discover what they enjoy, what they are good at, what support they need, and which pathway is a good fit. Plans can change as your child learns more about themselves and the possibilities available to them.
• An important part of preparing for education or training after high school is also helping your child gradually learn to speak up for themselves, understand their disability and support needs, ask questions, and request accommodations when needed.

Questions You Can Ask

• What education or training does my child want or need for the future they are planning?
• What opportunities can my child explore while still in high school?
• Are there CTE, concurrent enrollment, work-based learning, or other programs that connect with my child's interests and goals?
• What skills will my child need to be successful in the education or training setting they are considering?
• What accommodations or supports does my child currently use, and how might accessing those supports change after high school?
• How are we helping my child learn to communicate their needs and advocate for themselves?
• Can we visit or learn more about different programs before my child has to make a decision?
• How can my child's course of study and IEP services help prepare them for their education or training goal?

What Families Should Know

• Employment is an important part of planning for adult life. Secondary Transition planning should help your child explore what they enjoy, what they are good at, and the types of work they may want to do.
• Career exploration can begin well before your child is ready for a job. Everyday responsibilities, volunteering, career exploration, and work experiences can all help build skills for future employment.
• Real-world work experiences are valuable. They give your child opportunities to learn about different careers, practice workplace skills, and discover what types of environments and supports work best for them.
• Your child may need support to develop skills such as communication, problem-solving, transportation, time management, completing tasks, working with others, and asking for help.
• Employment planning should be individualized and connected to your child's strengths, preferences, interests, needs, and goals for adult life.
• Some students may benefit from employment services or supports from community and adult agency partners. The IEP team can help families identify when making these connections may be helpful.
• Having a disability does not mean your child cannot work. The goal is to identify the right opportunities and supports that help your child move toward meaningful employment.

What This Means for Your Child

• Your child does not need to know exactly what job they want as an adult to begin preparing for employment. Transition planning gives them opportunities to explore, try things, build skills, and learn from their experiences.
• Work experiences during high school can help your child learn more about themselves. What did they enjoy? What was difficult? What skills did they use? What support helped them be successful? What would they like to try next?
• These experiences should help the IEP team make decisions about the instruction, transition services, annual goals, courses, work-based learning experiences, and supports your child needs to continue moving toward their employment goal.
• Families can also help by encouraging opportunities at home and in the community that build responsibility, independence, self-advocacy, and work-related skills.

Questions You Can Ask

• What are my child's interests, strengths, and preferences related to work?
• What careers or types of work has my child had opportunities to explore?
• What work experiences are available through the school or community?
• How can my child get more real-world work experience before leaving high school?
• What workplace skills does my child already have, and what skills still need to be developed?
• What supports or accommodations help my child be successful?
• How are my child's IEP goals and transition services helping prepare them for employment?
• Are there community or agency partners that could help my child explore careers, gain work experience, or prepare for employment?
• How can we support employment skills and independence at home and in the community?

What Families Should Know

• Every student's path to adulthood will look different. Success should be based on your child's strengths, preferences, interests, needs, and goals for their future.
• Transition planning is about helping your child build a life that is meaningful to them.
• Students may take different paths to education or training, employment, independent living, and participation in their community.
• Progress may happen one step at a time. Experiences during high school can help your child discover what works, build new skills, and adjust their goals along the way.
• Support needs do not determine what is possible. Students with a wide range of disabilities and support needs can have meaningful roles in their workplaces, homes, relationships, and communities.
• Families can help by encouraging their child to explore possibilities, make choices, take appropriate risks, and build independence.
• A strong transition plan should continue to grow and change with your child as they gain new experiences and learn more about what they want for their future.

What This Means for Your Child

• Your child's future does not need to look like anyone else's.
• Secondary Transition planning gives your child opportunities to discover what a meaningful adult life looks like for them. That may include continuing their education or training, finding meaningful employment, developing greater independence, building relationships, participating in their community, or a combination of many different things.
• Your child may try something and discover it is a great fit,  or learn that they want something different. Both experiences provide valuable information for planning.
• As a family, you can support this process by helping your child see possibilities while keeping their own voice and choices at the center of the conversation.

Questions You Can Ask

• What does my child want their adult life to look like?
• What is important to my child, and what is important for them to be successful?
• What strengths and interests can we build on?
• What opportunities does my child have to try new things and discover what they enjoy?
• Are we giving my child meaningful opportunities to make choices and decisions?
• Where could my child have more opportunities to build independence?
• What experiences could help us learn more about the supports my child may need as an adult?
• Are our expectations for my child's future based on their individual strengths and possibilities rather than assumptions about their disability?

What Families Should Know

• Secondary Transition planning is part of your child's IEP. It should not feel like a separate form or a few boxes that are completed once a year.
• Transition planning starts with information about your child's strengths, preferences, interests, and needs gathered through age-appropriate transition assessment.
• Your child's postsecondary goals describe what they plan to do after high school in education or training, employment, and independent living when appropriate.
• The IEP should identify the transition services, activities, instruction, and experiences your child needs to move toward those goals.
• Your child's Course of Study should support where they want to go after high school.
• Annual IEP goals should address skills your child needs to develop now to help them prepare for their future.
• Most importantly, the different parts of the IEP should connect. Assessment information should help identify your child's needs and goals, and those goals should help guide the services, courses, experiences, and annual goals included in the IEP – the Golden Thread.
• Your child should be an active participant in this process. Their voice should be visible throughout their transition plan.

What This Means for Your Child

• When you look at your child's IEP, you should be able to see a clear connection between who your child is today, where they want to go, and what they are doing now to prepare for that future. Look for the Golden Thread.
• For example, if your child has an employment goal in a particular career area, their assessment information, courses, work experiences, transition services, and annual goals should help them explore that career and build the skills they will need.
• As your child grows, gains experience, and develops new interests, their transition plan should also grow and change with them.
• Families bring important information to this process. You know your child in ways that assessments and school data cannot fully capture, and your observations and questions can help the team create a stronger, more meaningful plan.

Questions You Can Ask

• Where can I see my child's strengths, preferences, interests, and needs in the IEP?
• What transition assessment information was used to develop this plan?
• What does my child say they want to do after high school?
• How do the transition services and activities connect to those goals?
• Do my child's courses and experiences help prepare them for the future they are planning?
• What skills is my child working on now through their annual IEP goals?
• Can you show me how the different parts of my child's transition plan connect?
• How was my child involved in developing their goals and making decisions about their plan?
• What progress has my child made since the last IEP, and what have we learned that should change or strengthen the plan?

What Families Should Know

• Planning for adult life starts early and happens over time. Your child does not need to have their entire future figured out before planning begins.
• Your child's goals for life after high school - called postsecondary goals - help guide their transition plan. These goals address education or training, employment, and independent living when appropriate.
• Postsecondary goals should be based on your child's strengths, preferences, interests, and needs and updated as they learn more about themselves and their future.
• High school should provide opportunities for your child to explore possibilities and gain real experiences connected to their future goals.
• There can be different pathways through high school and toward graduation. Your child's courses, experiences, and graduation plan should support their individual goals for adult life.
• Staying connected and engaged in school matters. If your child is struggling with attendance, classes, relationships, or feeling connected to school, families should bring those concerns to the IEP team early.
• Preparing for adulthood also means looking beyond the school. Community partners, agencies, employers, education and training programs, and other resources may become important members of your child's transition team.
• Connections with community and adult partners should be purposeful and based on your child's individual goals and needs - not simply because your child has a disability.

What This Means for Your Child

• Your child's goals for adulthood should help the IEP team make decisions about what needs to happen while they are still in school.
• If your child wants a particular career, for example, the team can consider what education or training that career requires, what skills your child needs to develop, what courses or experiences could help, and whether there are community partners who can provide additional opportunities or support.
• The same is true for independent living. If your child will need skills or support related to transportation, managing money, making decisions, communicating needs, accessing the community, or living as independently as possible, those needs can be identified and addressed before your child leaves school.
• The goal is to create a pathway that connects where your child is now with where they want to go next.

Questions You Can Ask

• What does my child want their life to look like after high school?
• What information was used to develop their postsecondary goals?
• Do these goals reflect my child's current strengths, preferences, interests, and needs?
• What experiences can help my child explore and refine their goals?
• How do my child's courses and graduation pathway connect to their plans for adulthood?
• Is my child engaged and connected to school? If not, what can we do differently?
• What skills does my child need to develop now to be more prepared for adult life?
• Are there opportunities in the community that could help my child practice these skills in real-life settings?
• Are there community or agency partners we should begin connecting with now?
• What can we be doing now - at school, at home, and in the community - to help my child prepare for the future they want?

What Families Should Know

• Adult services are different from school-based special education services. After your child leaves school, services and supports may come from several different agencies, programs, and community partners.
• Adult services often have their own eligibility requirements, applications, timelines, and processes. Being eligible for special education services does not automatically make your child eligible for every adult service.
• Start learning about adult services before your child leaves school. Some services may have application processes or waiting periods that make early planning important.
• The services your child may need should be based on their individual strengths, preferences, interests, needs, and goals for adult life.
• Your child should be included in conversations and decisions about their future as much as possible and with the support they need to participate meaningfully.
• Families may help coordinate information and services, but they do not have to navigate these systems alone. Schools, agencies, community partners, and other members of your child's support network can help make connections and share information.
• Planning should include conversations about how your child will make decisions and what support they may need to do so. There are different ways to support decision-making, and the right approach should be individualized.
• Building a network of support around your child can help create connections that continue beyond the school years.

What This Means for Your Child

• As your child gets closer to adult life, the people and systems providing support will begin to change. The IEP team can help identify which connections may be important and when those connections should begin.
• Your child may eventually work with different agencies or organizations for employment, education or training, independent living, transportation, health-related supports, benefits, or participation in their community.
• An important part of Secondary Transition planning is helping your child understand these supports and, when possible, build the skills to participate in managing their own services, communicate what they need, make choices, and ask for help.
• For students who will continue to need significant support as adults, planning should also consider who will be part of their support network and how those people can work together to help the young adult have choice, voice, and meaningful participation in their own life.

Questions You Can Ask

• What services or supports might my child need after leaving school?
• Which adult agencies or community partners might be able to provide those supports?
• When should we begin applying or making connections?
• Are there eligibility requirements, applications, or waiting periods we should know about?
• Who at school can help us begin making these connections?
• How can my child participate in meetings, applications, and decisions about their services?
• What decisions can my child make independently, and where might they need support?
• Who are the important people in my child's life who could be part of their support network?
• How can we help my child build the skills to communicate their needs and advocate for themselves?
• What connections need to be in place before my child leaves school?

What Families Should Know

• There is no single path to adulthood. Every young person's journey will look different based on their strengths, preferences, interests, needs, experiences, and goals.
• Your child will continue to grow, learn, and discover new possibilities after they leave high school. Secondary Transition planning helps prepare them for that journey - it does not determine exactly what their future will look like.
• Your child's voice matters. Helping them make choices, express preferences, communicate their needs, and advocate for themselves builds skills they can carry into adult life.
• Experiences matter. Opportunities to try new things, take appropriate risks, solve problems, work, learn, participate in the community, and make decisions can help your child become more prepared for adulthood.
• Families bring valuable knowledge and perspective to transition planning, but you do not have to have all the answers. Planning can happen one step and one connection at a time.
• Building relationships with schools, community partners, agencies, employers, education and training programs, and other supportive people can create a stronger network around your child.
• Plans will change, it is expected and that is okay. Secondary Transition planning should grow and change as your child gains experiences, develops new skills, and learns more about what they want for their life.
• Keep expectations focused on possibilities. Support needs may influence how your child reaches their goals, but they should not define what a meaningful adult life can look like.

What This Means for Your Child

• Secondary Transition planning is ultimately about helping your child build their own vision for adult life and giving them opportunities to move toward it.
• There may be successes, challenges, unexpected changes, and new possibilities along the way. Each experience can help your child and their team learn more about what works, what support is needed, and what should come next.
• As your child gets older, look for opportunities to gradually shift from planning for them to planning with them. For some young people, this may mean taking the lead. For others, it may mean finding meaningful ways to communicate choices and preferences with support.
• The goal is not for every young adult to reach the same destination. The goal is for your child to have opportunities, relationships, experiences, and supports that help them build a meaningful adult life that reflects who they are and what matters to them.

Questions You Can Ask

• What does a meaningful adult life look like to my child?
• What hopes does my child have for their future?
• Are we listening to what is important to my child as well as considering what is important for them?
• What opportunities does my child have to make choices and decisions?
• Where can we give my child more opportunities to try, learn, and build confidence?
• How are we helping my child develop self-advocacy and communicate what they need?
• Who are the people and partners that can become part of my child's support network?
• Are there experiences or connections we should begin building before my child leaves school?
• As my child grows and changes, are we continuing to revisit what they want for their future?
• Are we planning toward the life my child wants - or simply toward the end of high school?

Possibilities After High School

Life Beyond High School

Meet Beck Williers and his family as they share his journey into adult life. Their story highlights the importance of self-advocacy, strong community connections, presuming competence, and building supports that create opportunities for a meaningful and fulfilling life.

Abi’s Journey Beyond High School 

Meet Abi and learn about her journey into adult life, including her experiences with employment, independence, and community involvement. Today, Abi works every Friday at The Arc in Broomfield and hopes to return to Cosmo’s Pizza—or begin a new opportunity at Applebee’s!

• Division of Vocational Rehabilitation (DVR): DVR helps people with disabilities prepare for, find, keep, and advance in employment. For students, DVR may also provide or coordinate services that help them explore careers and prepare for work while they are still in school.
• School to Work Alliance Program (SWAP): SWAP is available in participating Colorado communities and helps eligible youth and young adults with disabilities prepare for and connect with employment. Families can ask their school whether SWAP is available in their area.
• Colorado Workforce Centers: Workforce Centers can help young people explore careers, look for jobs, develop resumes, prepare for interviews, and connect with employment and training opportunities.

• Case Management Agencies (CMAs): Some individuals with intellectual or developmental disabilities or other qualifying needs may receive services and supports through Colorado’s Medicaid Home and Community-Based Services system. Case Management Agencies help eligible individuals understand, access, and coordinate services. Eligibility and available services vary, so connecting early can be important.
• Centers for Independent Living (CILs): Centers for Independent Living help people with disabilities increase independence and participate in their communities. Services may include independent living skills, advocacy, peer support, information and referral, and other community-based supports.

• Colleges, Universities & Training Programs: If your child plans to continue education or training after high school, connecting with the disability or accessibility services office at the program they are considering can be an important step. Supports after high school work differently than they do through an IEP, so students should begin learning how to understand and communicate their accommodation needs.
• Inclusive Higher Education: Some students with intellectual disabilities may want to explore inclusive higher education opportunities. These programs provide opportunities to participate in college experiences while working toward individual education, employment, independent living, and community goals.

• Social Security - SSI and SSDI: Some young adults with disabilities may qualify for financial support through Supplemental Security Income (SSI) or Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI). Eligibility is based on specific requirements and is separate from special education eligibility.
• Health First Colorado & Home and Community-Based Services: Depending on eligibility and individual needs, Health First Colorado, Colorado’s Medicaid program, may provide health care and other long-term services and supports. Some services are accessed through Medicaid waivers and Case Management Agencies.

You do not need to figure this out on your own. Start with your child and their goals. Then ask the IEP team which partners could help your child gain the skills, experiences, services, or connections needed to reach those goals.

A connection should have a purpose.

• My child wants to work - Who can help them explore careers and gain work experience?
• My child wants to attend college - Who can help them understand admissions, accommodations, and disability services?
• My child may need ongoing support as an adult - Who can help us understand eligibility and begin the application process?
• My child wants to be more independent - Who can help them develop skills for transportation, community access, self-advocacy, or daily living?

• What services does this agency or organization provide?
• How could those services support my child’s goals?
• Who is eligible, and when should we apply?
• Is there a waiting list?
• What documents or information will we need?
• Can services begin while my child is still in school?
• Who can help us make the initial connection or referral?
• Can someone from the agency participate in transition planning with our IEP team?
• What will change when my child leaves school?
•  What can we do now to help prevent a gap in services or supports?

Now that you know what a transition plan needs to include, learn how it gets implemented and who can help with the goals, skills, and activities throughout high school and into adult life.

View Module 2

Post-secondary transition goals are added to the IEP by the end of 9th grade. All the other parts of the IEP continue as needed. In this session, you will learn about other aspects of preparing for adulthood as you are introduced to some of the adult services.

View Module 3

Education after high school can include 2 or 4-year colleges as well as vocational training programs while in high school and into adulthood. We’ll cover the range of options for the range of student needs and abilities.

View Module 4

With the right support, most students with IEPs can be employed. We share some of the services to help students reach their employment goals. We also share some ideas for parents to help their teens be work ready.

View Module 5

In this session, we share four stories from real young adults with a variety of disabilities, needs, preferences, and experiences.

View Module 6

We walk through a Colorado IEP and note how it ties together and where the elements of a student's transition plan are documented.

View Module 7

This module covers specific tips to prepare your teen for adulthood including engaging with community partners. We’ll also discuss different pathways to graduation and keeping teens in school. 

View Module 8

For some parents who have teens with significant support needs, the journey to adulthood means they are going to take on the role of a case manager to ensure the variety of services and supports needed for their loved one are in place and maintained. We’ll share tips on organizing, planning, and navigating the emotional aspects of this new, lifetime role. 

View Module 9

Five parents talk about what helped their children during school and how their kids, now young adults, continue to grow and learn, to advocate, and to reach their dreams. We share these stories to help parents, students, and staff create a picture of the future that is meaningful, engaging, and possible.

View Module 10