Ask A Specialist
Priscilla
Harvell
Secondary and Speech/Language
Specialist
| Question: I am a parent of a high school student with learning and physical disabilities. We are beginning to thinks about his life after school and would like to know who some of the agencies are that could be potential consultants to his IEP/ITP team. Also, are these agencies required to participate in my child's IEP/ITP (Individual Transition Plan) if they commit themselves. |
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Answer: Thank you for asking such an important question. In addition
to the traditional agencies, e.g., Social Security, Department of Rehabilitation,
Mental Health, Regional Centers, and Centers for Independent Living, there
are a variety of other groups that IEP teams fail to consider. At http://www.nichcy.org/pubs/transum/ts10.pdf,
a list of alternative agency groups is provided in a article titled "Transition
Planning: A Team Effort." Scroll to page 7. At this site you can view
the "consultant" and the relationship to Transition Services. Examples
are displayed as seen here:
In response to your last question, the law is very specific about agency participation. Agencies providing services to a student with disabilities must be invited to a child's IEP/ITP meeting where the focus is only on Transition (they do not need to be at every IEP meeting of the student); however, if they cannot attend this meeting, the designated IEP case manager can either talk to the agency representative beforehand about the IEP and bring their ideas or comments to the IEP meeting. If no agency representative attends the meeting or the agency does not provide the agreed upon services, then the IEP team must reconvene and determine the next steps. Let me be very clear though, the district and/or parent cannot make any agency provide specific services. There are numerous web sites that provide reader friendly explanations of IDEA and Transition requirements related to agency involvement. Visit one of my favorites at http://www.cde.ca.gov/spbranch/sed/trnsgde.pdf Transition to Adult Living: A Guide for Secondary Education. Good luck on your endeavors.
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