July/August 2022: News and Updates
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Dear Reader,
Welcome to the fourth issue of the Think College Inclusive Higher Education Network's monthly newsletter, Network News. This newsletter features updates from the Think College Network as well as news from the field, including upcoming events and opportunities related to inclusive postsecondary education (IPSE) across the US.
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The Think College Network team, who were all smiles at the SEPSEA Capacity Building Institute in June. | |
Join Think College & State of the Art Conference for this pre-conference capacity building institute (CBI) focused on the development and expansion of state and regional alliances. Oct 18th 9 AM - 4 PM. Register at https://taishoffcenter.syr.edu/sota/ |
Pre-Conference Capacity Building Institute on IPSE State & Regional Alliances at the State of the Art Conference
The Think College Network, in partnership with the State of the Art (SOTA) Conference, will be hosting a pre-conference capacity building institute (CBI) on Tuesday October 18th, 2022 about the development and expansion of state and regional alliances. The morning session will focus on state alliance support and development. The afternoon session will focus on regional alliance leadership structures and offer planning time for participants interested in building future regional alliances.
Susanna Miller-Raines, Alliance Manager for the Think College Network, will be leading the CBI along with Project Coordinator, Danie Roberts-Dahm, and representatives from the Southeast Postsecondary Education Alliance (SEPSEA) and the Midwest Post-secondary Education Alliance (MIPSA). The Think College Network will be releasing information on future funding opportunities related to regional alliance formation at this event. Breakfast and lunch will be provided.
Those interested in creating, building, or strengthening their state alliances as well as those interested in being involved in future regional alliances are invited to join us!
Registration, pre-conference and additional information is available on the SOTA Conference website.
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Think College Network's First Annual Meeting on the Books
The Think College Inclusive Higher Education Network brought together their team members and project partners on July 20th, in Cleveland, OH. The Think College Network annual meeting was held following the TPSID Project Director meeting (July 18-19) and in conjunction with AHEAD's Equity and Excellence: Access in Higher Education conference. We are grateful to the National Coordinating Center and AHEAD for their collaboration and support which helped make our meeting a success!
The agenda included updates from each of the project’s teams and partners with a focus on facilitating synergy and collaboration across the project. It was wonderful to be “in person” with most of our team and partners in one room to discuss ideas and collaborate on innovative solutions for meeting shared goals.
Read more about Think College Network's First Annual Meeting here.
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Meg Grigal sharing the vision at the Think College Network meeting. | |
Danie Roberts-Dahm speaking to the Think College Network Network partners in Cleveland, Oh. | |
Southeast Postsecondary Education Alliance (SEPSEA) Conference
Think College's Danie Roberts-Dahm, Susanna Miller-Raines, and Clare Papay were keynote speakers for the Southeast Postsecondary Education Alliance (SEPSEA) annual conference hosted by the Eagles Program at Auburn University.
They presented on the new Think College Inclusive Higher Education Network, reviewed recent data and research from the field, and state and regional alliance development. Want to get involved with state or regional alliances like SEPSEA? Join the State Alliance Affinity Group here on the State Alliance page.
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Clare Papay presenting the keynote address at SEPSEA. | |  |
Susanna Miller-Raines presenting at SEPSEA. | | |
National Down Syndrome Congress (NDSC) | |
Debra Hart and Rebecca Lazo of Think College at NDSC. | |
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Think College was a proud sponsor of the College Fair at this year’s National Down Syndrome Congress (NDSC) in New Orleans. Many families with children of all ages were in attendance and we loved seeing so many IPSE programs sharing information. Ruby’s Rainbow announced scholarships to attendees during the College Fair and throughout the conference.
You can find pictures from the NDSC on our Instagram page @ThinkCollegeICI
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Think College staff rocking out in Cleveland for the 2022 TPSID Project Directors Meeting and Think College Network Annual Meeting. | |
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2022 TPSID Project Director Meeting
In July, the Think College National Coordinating Center hosted the annual project director meeting for Transition and Postsecondary Education Programs for Students with Intellectual Disability (TPSID) in Cleveland, Ohio. Over 70 TPSID directors and Think College project staff were in attendance.
Sessions during the two-day meeting covered topics such as program accreditation, state and federal policy, supporting faculty, and much more. To read more about the TPSID Project Director’s Meeting, check out the recap article on the Think College website here and our Instagram page for photos from the weekend.
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State & Regional Alliances | |
Tom Smith, new Executive Director for SEPSEA. | |
Announcing Tom Smith, new Executive Director for SEPSEA
Tom Smith has accepted the position of the inaugural executive director of the Southeast Postsecondary Education Alliance (SEPSEA). He most recently served as the Vice Chair of Public Policy on the SEPSEA board of directors.
Tom is a university professor of special education at the University of Arkansas. He served as Dean of the College of Education and Health Professions at the University of Arkansas for seven years before returning to the special education faculty. While dean, he initiated the university’s EMPOWER postsecondary education program and remains the faculty advisor for the program.
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State Highlights
The 2022 state legislative sessions have been busy this year for inclusive postsecondary education.
There is exciting legislation news in Massachusetts! Governor Baker recently signed the higher education bill. This bill will provide inclusive educational opportunities for individuals with Intellectual Disabilities and Autism at state colleges and universities. You can read more about this important legislation here at the Massachusetts Advocates s for Children website.
More important state highlights include:
If you want to learn more about state policy you can visit our page “What’s Happening in Your State?”. Click on each state to find out policy work that has happened. There is also a map that shows each state where legislation has been introduced and/or passed.
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State Alliances
We would love to highlight the work of state alliances in our newsletter every month. If you are doing something cool, innovative or just plain old effective and are willing to share, please send an email to Susanna.MillerRaines@umb.edu.
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Summer Program Highlights | |
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The summer can also be a busy time for many IPSE programs. Below are some summer program highlights that were shared with us from IPSE programs from across the US.
The EXCEL Summer Academy at Georgia Tech is offers a week-long day camp for rising high school juniors, seniors, and recent graduates. Students experience the "Week in the Life" of an Excel student and participate in activities that cover the four pillars of the Excel Program: Social Growth, Independent Living, Career Development, and Academic Enrichment. Students also have the opportunity to engage in numerous activities that Georgia Tech and Atlanta offer.
At the University of South Florida, students in the Eileen Hoffman Hafer UMatter program have been extremely busy participating in summer internships, working on academic and customer service skills, and increasing their employment opportunities. Some students have been working as Fan Hosts for the Tampa Bay Rays and other students have been honing their teacher assistant skills by interning at a local elementary school.
The Lehigh Carbon Community College (LCCC) in Schnecksville, PA hosts the Success, Engagement, Education, Determination (SEED) Summer Bridge Program. The program provides a head start for students to learn the skills they need to succeed in college such as problem-solving, time management, communication, and self-advocacy.
UNT Elevar at the University of North Texas offers summer programming through their Transition Pathway program. In July, UNT Elevar hosted a week-long summer program for 6th-12th+ grade students and a summer institute for educators with over 70 attendees registered.
TU CASA at Texas A&M University offers summer programs for students. The TU CASA program provides 18 months of fully inclusive postsecondary education opportunities that allows students to receive a university experience as well as the skills and knowledge they need to transition to independent adult lives.
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What are we reading?
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This blog post by the director of IES on IPEDS outcome measures. Mark Schneider talks about why outcome measures are an important data source on postsecondary education and why it’s as important as ever for us to keep pushing for students with intellectual disability to be represented in the data.
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The Brady Bulletin is produced by the professionals at the Academy for Community Inclusion (ACI) at Florida Atlantic University (FAU), a Florida Postsecondary Comprehensive Transition Program (FPCTP).
The bulletin disseminates reports of research related to postsecondary comprehensive transition programs to professionals who deliver these postsecondary programs and individuals and their families who participate in these programs.
Find the July issue and past issues on the FAU College of Education Research webpage.
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July 2022 issue of ACI's Brady Bulletin. | |
Danie Roberts-Dahm, Susanna Miller-Raines, and Clare Papay at the Florida Center for Students with Unique Abilities PEPPI in Orlando, FL. | |
A highlight from the Think College table at the 2022 Williams Syndrome Association National Convention. | |
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