Building a Bridge
to Future Student Success
OSE/EIS Leads Michigan's Secondary
Transition Initiative into the Future
by
Beth Steenwyk, Deputy Director of Special
Education and Early Intervention Services, Michigan Department
of Education
The 2003-04 school year is well underway; teachers and students
are actively engaged in learning throughout Michigan. On Tuesday,
October 7, 2003, a group of 150 individuals who are committed
to serving students with disabilities as they transition from
school to adult life met to engage in their own learning. This
group included representatives from intermediate school districts
(ISDs), local school districts, the state schools, and partner
departments: Corrections, Rehabilitation Services, Community Health,
Family Independence, and Career and Technical Preparation. The
day was the first time this school year that transition coordinators
from across the state met. In many ways, it was a watershed day,
a day during which the coordinators honored the work of the past
and began to build a bridge to the future.
On September 30th, the Transition Services Project (TSP) ended
its five-year grant cycle with the Michigan Department of Education,
Office of Special Education and Early Intervention Services (MDE,
OSE/EIS). The TSP was directed by Jan Yoak-Newman. This pioneering
concept provided Michigan a valuable service to ensure that parents,
students with disabilities, teachers, and administrators had the
necessary knowledge to provide quality transition services across
the 57 intermediate school districts and constituent local districts.
As the grant came to a close, the OSE/EIS had to decide how to
move forward with secondary transition services for students with
disabilities in Michigan. After a great deal of thought and planning,
the OSE/EIS determined it was necessary to develop a year-long
process of data collection and review. This process will begin
to create a picture of secondary transition services and needs
across Michigan.
A data collection plan was developed with assistance from staff
at the Great
Lakes Area Regional Resource Center (GLARRC). The GLARRC is
a federally funded support system for states in the great lakes
region as they serve students with disabilities. The plan for
the 2003-04 school year includes three phases of work. The three
phases include: Ground-work/Input Phase, Data Collection, and
Learning from Data Portraits. All data gathered will be compiled,
analyzed, and used in the next round of planning. This work will
ultimately yield an aggregate picture of how well we are doing
across the state relative to transition requirements.
The
Transition Outcomes Project (TOP), designed by Dr. Ed O’Leary
of the Mountain Plains Regional Resource Center, and implemented
in over 25 states, has been effective in gathering this type of
data. Dr. O’Leary has been working with Michigan over the
past several years through the TSP and through some ISDs. This
year, Michigan will expand and adjust its use of the TOP model
to collect a statistically reliable sample from all ISDs that
volunteer for this effort during the 2003-04 school year. Then,
the MDE, OSE/EIS will work with these districts to systematically
enhance their services and student outcomes over the next few
years.
The TOP project uses a data-driven model that:
- Identifies and evaluates current practices in meeting transition
requirements.
- Includes baseline data from student individualized education
programs (IEPs) as the context for setting goals, developing
strategies, and implementing a local school district plan for
improvement.
- Promotes an IEP process that is driven by student-desired
post-school goals.
- Emphasizes improving transition services, showing results,
and increasing the likelihood of successful
outcomes for students.
- Empowers local schools to make changes in systems, processes,
forms, programs, and approaches.
Conceptual Framework, O’Leary 1999
The MDE, OSE/EIS’s initial plan is to collect and review
transition related IEP data. Following the October 7th meeting,
42 of Michigan’s 57 ISDs expressed interest in participating
in the yearlong project, and many have already made plans to collaborate
on data collection. On December 4-5, 2003, a comprehensive training
is scheduled to prepare local and ISD transition coordinators
to use the software-enhanced TOP process. Three additional coordinator
meetings are scheduled for this school year to prepare for and
conduct regional report-out meetings and to prepare for the 2004-2005
school year.
The OSE/EIS intends to provide leadership and support to all
transition coordinators across the state as this project moves
forward. The OSE/EIS leadership will include guidance, technical
assistance, and financial support for meetings and the data collection
work back in the districts. The OSE/EIS will support the evaluation
of data and stakeholder input to ensure that the collection process
is inclusive and considerate of the multiplicity of perspectives
held by transition service practitioners. The OSE/EIS, in collaboration
with the Michigan
Transition Services Association (MTSA), another essential
stakeholder group in this project, will offer networking opportunities
to learn from and exchange ideas among personnel with secondary
transition responsibilities across the state.
It is with considerable anticipation and excitement that Michigan’s
TOP moves forward with collective energy, knowledge, and passion.
The efforts to improve transition services and outcomes for our
students and communities in Michigan are a powerful force within
our state.
For more information, contact: Beth Steenwyk, Deputy Director
of Special Education and Early Intervention Services, Michigan
Department of Education, OSE/EIS, P.O. Box 30008, Lansing, MI
48909, (517) 241-4521, fax (517) 373-7504, steenwykb@michigan.gov
For more information about Secondary Transition issues, visit
the Michigan Transition Resources Web site at www.cenmi.org/tspmi.
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