Special Needs Transition Planning Step by Step
At all RKS Associates Schools, we strive to keep our families informed about the necessary and recommended transition goals at various age points. This is to ensure the best possible transition into adulthood for your child. The summary below is our quick list for you to use as a checklist. As part of our ongoing articles, we have also included links to specific articles covering each particular age range. The more detailed school articles are there to help you further understand the key goals at those particular ages.
Transition Planning at Age 16-17
- Start thinking about job readiness in the community.
- Each state has a Division of Vocational Rehabilitation Services (DVRS) that provides employment services to people with disabilities. Schedule an appointment with a Vocational Rehabilitation counselor about the services they offer.
- Begin to develop a resume.
- Think about what specific job skills training your child will want or need.
- Assess the child’s ability to travel safely in the community and give training where needed.
- Begin the Guardianship and Special Needs Trust process.
- Start gathering information for Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI) or Medicaid benefits. https://harborschool.com/2019/07/03/special-needs-transition-series-age-16-17/
Transition Planning at Age 18
- Register for DDD services
- Begin the Guardianship and Special Needs Trust process as well as deciding to open an ABLE account in New Jersey
- Apply for SSD and Medicaid
- Apply for Personal Preference Program Budget
- Apply for Access Link
- Start thinking about job readiness in the community.
- Each state has a Division of Vocational Rehabilitation Services (DVRS) that provides employment services to people with disabilities. Schedule an appointment with a Vocational Rehabilitation counselor about the services they offer.
- Begin to develop a resume.
- Think about what specific job skills training your child will want or need.
- Assess the child’s ability to travel safely in the community and give training where needed.
- Start gathering information for Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI) or Medicaid benefits. https://harborschool.com/2019/07/03/special-needs-transition-timeline-age-18/
Transition Planning at Age 19-22
Once you have taken the NJCAT start interviewing Support Coordinator Agencies and complete the Support Coordinator Selection form with your choices
DDD budgets can be accessed at the age of 21 whether a student has graduated or is still in school.
Start researching and touring possible Post -21 placements. Will your child want regular employment, or a day program, or a combination of part-time employment and daytime activities?
Schedule an evaluation with your state Vocational Rehabilitation agency to develop an Individual Plan for Employment (IPE).
- Think about transportation to and from your child’s daily activities. Apply for NJ Transit’s Access Link as a possible transportation resource.
- In the year prior to graduation, the DDD will notify you to take the NJCAT. This is the mandatory assessment used to determine an individual's eligibility to receive Division-funded services. Take care of this in the fall of your child’s last year of school to ensure the budget will be in place prior to graduation.
- During the last year of school, request an evaluation by the child study team. Your child will need this to provide legal documentation of his/her disability and the need for accommodations under the Rehabilitation Act and the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 (ADA). This might be a letter or report from the child study team stating the diagnosis and effects of the impairment as well as recommendations for reasonable accommodations.
https://harborschool.com/2019/10/24/special-needs-transition-timeline-for-ages-19-22/
Harbor School a private special education school in Monmouth County, New Jersey
Our mission at Harbor School is to help all of our special needs students with learning, social, language, behavioral, and other disabilities. Our highly skilled staff are committed daily to helping each student reach their full potential.
We would be more than happy to discuss your child's specific needs and challenges, so please call us at 732.544.9394, or request a tour at Harbor School in Eatontown, NJ. We are located just minutes off of the Garden State Parkway at exit 105 and conveniently located off of Route 35 and Route 36 in Monmouth County, NJ.
Lee Vodofsky,
Principal-Harbor School, Eatontown, NJ