2. Key Players
“IDEA 2004 supports the
notion that transition
assessment and
planning must involve
a number of key
stakeholders.”
3. Family Members
Family members may include but are not
limited to biological parents, foster parents,
custodial parents, and/or grandparents.
Their role is to help plan and explore for the students
independence after graduation from high school.
Help with finding post secondary training,
employment or schooling.
Help to set obtainable goals in the areas of living,
learning and working based on the students
strengths, interests and preferences.
They are there to support and encourage the student.
4. High School Guidance Counselor
The guidance counselor can serve as a key
player in the transition process, they have
access to all sorts of assessments and post
secondary programs.
They have assess to hundred of occupational
surveys and profiles to help students make
informed decisions regarding their career
paths.
Counselors help register for classes geared
towards students post secondary goals and
expectations.
Maintain and keep student cum folders with all
test information and documentation, special
education information, IEP annual reviews,
re-evals and initials.
Schedule college visits, entrance exams,
COMPASS test, ACT tests. Go over scores
with student and parents.
5. Work Coordinator/ Transition Specialist
Supports family members and teachers to
aid in planning for student futures.
Helps with assessing students to determine
their needs and strengths.
Observes and records students in both the
school and work setting looking at work
ethic, behavior and productivity.
Provides entry level job skills instruction.
Helps find supported employment options
Observes and records students ability to
work under supervision and to accept
constructive criticism.
6.
Interviews:
Mary Hinderhofer (MS/HS Guidance
Counselor)
Dennis Dirks (Work Coordinator)
Regina Rebitz (Parent of student with
IEP)
7. Mary Hinderhofer
Mary is a ms/hs guidance counselor. She sees her role in the transition process as
essential. She likes to learn about the student careers interest first through different
assessment and likes using the I Have a Plan website and assessments to get to know
what they want and what they want to be. She helps to develop their 8th grade plan
and schedules their courses when they enter high school. Several assessments are
used to determine what a student should take based on their ability and interests and
schedules them accordingly. She works closely with the special education staff to
help ensure that accommodation and modifications are being met in the general
education setting and that the student is scheduled in the correct classes. Students go
to her to schedule college visits and to meet with different college reps at the school.
8. Dennis Dirks
Dennis is the STW/Work Coordinator at the high school level. He works with both
regular and special education students to place them in work setting outside the
school. He meets with the students to determine what their career interests are and
tries to align their job experiences with those interests.. He states that in a small
community that is very hard to do because not all career options are available. Once
a student is placed in a job site, he works closely with the staff at the job site and
with the special education to make sure that all students are successful and learning
what they need to. He also meets with the job site coordinator and student to go over
evaluations and to make suggestions for improvement. Although Dennis does a good
job I truly miss having a work coordinator/ transition specialist in our district. We
are missing someone that knows assessments and can gear instruction towards their
deficit work skills. I really liked the coordinator that we had with AEA she was a
great resource, knew several different types of assessments to give and would attend
the IEP meeting and help with constructing the IEP. Dennis has not been trained to
do this yet, but when he is he will become a more valuable member of the team.
9. Family members...
Family members are the most important members of
the IEP and the transition process next to the student.
The family member can provide critical information
and insight to what is going on in the family and the
student. Regina is the mother of 2 children one with
and IEP and one without. She loves being a part the
IEP process and wishes that all students had IEP.
She likes the parent interview portion and feels it
gives her time to explain her child and express her
concerns and desires for the student. She says that
the IEP can be a little cumbersome, but she think it is
a valuable tool when planning for a child's future.
