Student-Centered Transitions Network

Transition Updates

May 2020
Picture of student on computer and COVID-19 Transition Resources banner
WHAT'S NEW
Texas Education Agency (TEA) Updates
As TEA continues to update their guidance and resources related to COVID-19 and students with disabilities served by special education, remember that you can now find resources for special education organized by General Guidance , Instructional Supports , Parent Resources , and Instructional Continuity Framework . You can access this special education guidance by clicking on the button below.

General Guidance Updates

Updated documents from the general guidance section include:
Free Resources for COVID-19 Transition Support
Division on Career Development and Transition (DCDT)
DCDT has hosted several webinars on transition topics to support educators during school closures this month. They have also created a LiveBinder which has links to watch all of the recorded webinars (at no cost) and links to resources discussed in the webinars that you can explore using the tabs of the LiveBinder. Check out some of the webinar topics below.

Zarrow Center for Learning Enrichment (University of Oklahoma)
The Zarrow Center recently hosted a webinar on the subject of teaching college readiness skills to students with Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities (ID/DD). This free webinar features a panel hosted by Dr. Kendra Williams-Diehm (Zarrow Center) and includes representatives from postsecondary programs for students with ID/DD at the University of Oklahoma, the University of Iowa, and Texas A&M . Click on the link below to watch this webinar.
Transition and Employment Designee (TED) Updates
TED Online Training Modules Have Moved
If you are a TED for a school district or charter, you should have completed the 3 online transition courses which have been available through the Region 11 ESC website during the 2018-2019 and 2019-2020 school years. If you have not had a chance to complete the 3 online courses, or if you are new to the TED role, you can now access these courses using the new links below.

To register for the TED Online Modules in their new location, please click on the title for each training topic:

Please note: If you have already completed the courses and have your certificate from Region 11 ESC, you are not required to retake the courses.
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
How should ARD committees approach transition services, such as Summer Earn and Learn (SEAL), that are not able to be provided due to issues related the COVID-19 pandemic response?
ARD committees will need to review each student’s situation individually and consider what alternative or additional transitional services could be provided so that students’ goals for transition can be appropriately met. 
How should ARD committees proceed in making determinations about graduation for an individual student who received modified curriculum and was therefore graduating through the completion of activities related to graduation required by the IEP and who, due to issues related to the COVID-19 pandemic response, has not completed all of those required
activities?
The ARD committee has the authority to determine whether a student who received modified curriculum has successfully completed an IEP in order to graduate and be awarded a regular high school diploma. The student must also meet one of the conditions set out in 19 TAC sec. 89.1070(b)(2)(A)-(D) or (g)(4)(A)-(D). These conditions include:
  • Consistent with the IEP, the student has obtained full-time employment, based on the student's abilities and local employment opportunities, in addition to mastering sufficient self-help skills to enable the student to maintain the employment without direct and ongoing educational support of the local school district.
  •  Consistent with the IEP, the student has demonstrated mastery of specific employability skills and self-help skills that do not require direct ongoing educational support of the local school district.
  • The student has access to services that are not within the legal responsibility of public education or employment or educational options for which the student has been prepared by the academic program.
  • The student no longer meets age eligibility requirements.

The ARD committee should review all relevant data to determine whether sufficient learning has been achieved with the services that were provided prior to school closure to constitute successful completion of the IEP. The ARD committee must also ensure that at least one of the conditions listed above has been met. If one or both of these requirements has not yet been met, the ARD committee would need to identify a way for the student to successfully complete the IEP and/or fulfill a required condition in order to meet the graduation requirement. In such a situation, the ARD committee must also make any necessary amendments to the transition or graduation plan in the IEP. 
Student-Centered Transitions Network | Texas Transition

Content in this e-newsletter is provided in partnership with the Student-Centered Transitions Network and the Texas Education Agency.