For students with special needs, the transition from school to adulthood is one of the most critical and most complex phases of their education. It requires planning, hands-on experience, and a team that understands how to prepare students for life beyond the classroom. At Harbor School in Eatontown, NJ, our transition program is designed to build the skills, confidence, and independence students need for meaningful adult lives.
When Transition Planning Begins
In New Jersey, transition planning becomes part of a student’s IEP at age 16, but at Harbor School, preparation starts earlier. Beginning at age 14, students work with our transition coordinator to explore interests, strengths, and post-secondary goals. This early start gives students more time to develop skills and gain real-world experience before they age out of the school system at 21.
Job Training and Work-Based Learning
A cornerstone of Harbor School’s transition program is hands-on job training. Students begin with in-house work experiences within the school setting, learning workplace expectations like punctuality, following directions, task completion, and professional communication. As students progress, they move to off-site work experiences in the community, guided by the transition coordinator. These real-world placements give students the chance to practice job skills in authentic environments, an essential step toward employment after graduation. This work builds directly on the foundation established in our educational programs.
Life Skills for Independence
Employment is only one part of adulthood. Harbor School’s life skills program addresses the broader skills students need to live as independently as possible. This includes cooking, personal hygiene, money management, transportation, household tasks, and community safety. These skills are taught through direct instruction and practiced in real-world contexts, giving students both the knowledge and the confidence to apply them outside of school.
Social and Communication Skills for the Workplace
Success in employment and community life depends heavily on social and communication skills. Harbor School’s behavioral and social skills programming and speech therapy services work alongside the transition program to ensure students can communicate needs, work cooperatively, manage conflict, and navigate social expectations in workplace and community settings.
A Collaborative Approach
Transition planning at Harbor School is a team effort. Teachers, therapists, behavioral staff, the transition coordinator, families, and, most importantly, students themselves all contribute to setting goals and building the plan. This collaborative approach ensures that each student’s transition reflects their individual strengths, interests, and aspirations.
To learn more about how Harbor School prepares students for adulthood, contact us today.
Frequently Asked Questions
A transition program prepares special needs students for life after school, focusing on employment, independent living, and community participation. It typically includes job training, life skills instruction, community-based experiences, and post-secondary goal planning. In New Jersey, transition planning is required in the IEP by age 16.
At Harbor School, transition services begin at age 14, when students start working with the transition coordinator to explore interests and build foundational work skills. This early start provides additional time for skill development and real-world experience before students age out at 21.
Students begin with in-house work experiences within the school, learning workplace expectations and job skills. As they progress, they participate in off-site community-based work placements. The transition coordinator provides on-the-job training and support throughout the process.
Harbor School’s life skills program teaches cooking, personal hygiene, money management, transportation, household tasks, and community safety. These skills are practiced in real-world settings and reinforced across the school day alongside academic and therapeutic programming.
Harbor School is a private special education school in Monmouth County, New Jersey.
Our mission at Harbor School in Eatontown, New Jersey, 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. We are located just minutes off the Garden State Parkway at exit 105 and conveniently located off Route 35 and Route 36 in Monmouth County, NJ.
Amy Brandon,
Principal-Harbor School, Eatontown, NJ