Family Centered Transition Project

Project Description

The Family-Centered Transition Project is a two-year collaboration between the Institute on Disability and the Center for Community Inclusion and Disability Studies at the University of Maine, to demonstrate an innovative approach to the transition of individuals with autism spectrum disorders from high school to adult life. Students age 16-18 enrolled in public high school and who have been diagnosed with an Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) and have an Individualized Education Plan (IEP) are eligible to participate.

Participants receive the following:

1. Training sessions where families learn practical strategies for person-centered planning, networking, and utilizing a variety of adult service options and resources to design and work towards a positive future beyond high school.
2. A series of individual planning meetings to plan post-high-school goals, held at the convenience of each student and family, with assistance from a project planning facilitator. The planning results in a family-centered plan with specific goals and an implementation plan. Other family members, friends, and community resource people may participate in one or more meetings as called for by the student and family. The facilitators, including a peer facilitator who experiences ASD, meets with each student to prepare them for maximum participation in these planning meetings.
3. Ongoing assistance from a planning facilitator in implementing student plans over a 6 – 8 month period. This includes career exploration activities with students to investigate career options, such as (a) informational interviews, (b) job shadowing experiences, (c) online or in-person investigation of post secondary options, and/or (d) unpaid or paid work experiences. Project staff assist students and families to make sure that elements of student plans are incorporated into their IEPs.

The project is working in collaboration with high schools in NH and ME to enroll a minimum of 40 youth with ASD. To test the impact of the model, participants are randomly assigned to a Year 1 group and a Year 2 group, with the Year 1 group receiving project services soon after enrollment and the Year 2 group beginning project services approximately one year after enrollment. Survey data will be collected at enrollment and after 12 months (prior to the initiation of services for the Year 2 group) to measure the impact of the project on student and parent future expectations and on student self-determination, career maturity and adaptive behavior. Each family receives a stipend after completing the training sessions, and a second stipend after the final surveys. Record review will examine the quality of the transition objectives on the high school’s IEP using a document analysis checklist. Semi-structured interviews with students and families will explore their transition experiences using qualitative methods. After data analysis, results will be disseminated through publications and conference presentations. 

The Family Centered Transition project is funded by a two-year, $800,000 grant from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Health Resources and Services Administration.