Narrative: j. 1.

The designated State unit's plans, policies, and procedures for coordination with education officials to facilitate the transition of students with disabilities from school to the receipt of VR services, including pre-employment transition services (Pre-ETS), as well as procedures for the timely development and approval of individualized plans for employment for the students.

Since 1995, the Division of Vocational Rehabilitation (DVR) has partnered with the Colorado Department of Education (CDE), and with local school districts and Boards of Cooperative Education (BOCES), in supporting a comprehensive transition planning and service delivery process for youth with disabilities. DVR has organized a Youth Services and Transition Unit within Administration under Field Services. The Unit is responsible for assuring the provision of high quality vocational rehabilitation services to Colorado’s students and youth with disabilities.

Colorado continues to explore with education partners how to best make available Pre-ETS and skills training when appropriate for positive post-secondary outcomes. Since 2017, the interagency agreement between DVR and CDE has included the provision of services under the new direction identified within WIOA; the redefinition of the transition responsibilities of DVR and of education; assurance of access to services for youth; and ongoing support of effective and efficient working relationships between partners. Since then, additional changes in state and federal laws have brought the need to update once again with consideration to data sharing, career and technical education with an emphasis on competitive, integrated employment for all persons with disabilities

Currently, DVR has 35 School to Work Alliance Program (SWAP) contracts. These contracts involve approximately 97 of Colorado’s 178 school districts. SWAP serves upward of 4,000 youth annually and is a collaborative initiative between DVR and local school districts, supported by CDE. The purpose of SWAP, along with the profile of who they serve, has been shifted to align with Colorado’s implementation of WIOA. SWAP assists youth, ages 15-24 in making the transition from school to employment, achieve successful employment outcomes, increase community linkages through new patterns of service for youth within all categories of disabilities.  SWAP provides case management and direct services to students with disabilities who are potentially eligible and applicants or eligible youth who have mild to moderate needs in employment and need support in developing vocational awareness, career exploration, and experiencing career and employment opportunities to become competitively employed and to achieve successful outcomes.

Since 75% of Colorado’s identified students with disabilities in secondary public education fall within the SWAP profile, DVR continues efforts to onboard districts as a means for enhancing and supporting career pathway development.  Despite a large percentage of the provision of pre-employment transition services being made available through SWAP, Pre-ETS are available statewide through a variety of service providers and DVR staff. DVR continues to plan ways to improve access to Pre-ETS for those with most significant disabilities.

Currently, DVR has 7 Project SEARCH partnerships which have involved up to seven school districts serving students with disabilities in their last year of transition programming at the secondary education level.  The Project SEARCH Transition-to-Work Program is a unique, business-led, one-year employment preparation program that takes place entirely at the workplace. Total workplace immersion facilitates a seamless combination of classroom instruction, career exploration, and hands-on training through worksite rotations. The program culminates in individualized, competitive, integrated job development for an average of 70% of the participants.  Along with the Project SEARCH liaison, intentional efforts continue to look for new employer/education/DVR partnerships for news sites where enrollment and the economy can support this programming or a modified version. Regardless of the presence of a Project SEARCH site within a community, DVR works with local partners to ensure access to work based learning activities leading to competitive integrated employment.

At the local level, DVR counselors participate in resource fairs, back-to-school nights, and parent teacher conference nights. They present information about DVR at residential treatment centers, residential childcare facilities and at teacher in-service events. DVR will continue these types of outreach, education and consultation activities with our school partners for the purpose of providing consultation and technical assistance to support transition planning from school to post-school services. This contributes to an effective and consistent referral process for youth between agencies at the local level.

Collaborative efforts continue to be piloted and experimented around the state in an effort to identify locally what approach ensures services are available to all students who choose to participate.  DVR has engaged in one-on-one and group conversations with districts to identify gaps relevant to pre-employment transition services resulting in summer boot camps, industry led workshops, district ran enterprises, work based learning experiences, disability specific work readiness skills training (i.e. mental health and autism), self-advocacy and peer counseling groups among other programming.  We have partnered with both external vendors, Independent Living Centers, districts, independent educators, workforce centers, community Centered center boards and businesses to deliver these services in addition to DVR staff participating at various levels.

DVR has also collaborated with GlobalMindED’s annual conference to provide support for young, emerging leaders and those who work with them to meet the network of role models and mentors who can help them start a business, contribute to a mid-size business, lead a non-profit or re-invent a Fortune 500 Company.  Similarly, we support students with disabilities participating in Colorado’s Youth Leadership Forum (CO-YLF). CO-YLF is an innovative, 5-day on campus conference for Colorado high school juniors, seniors, and young adults aged 16-26 with disabilities, as they prepare for and experience transition to adulthood put on by my Colorado’s Statewide Independent Living Council. Students will stay overnight in college dorms at local colleges and universities and experience living independently. Designed to foster personal growth and leadership skills through self-discovery, the CO-YLF provides dynamic, experiential learning opportunities to assist each individual as they identify and embrace their strengths while planning for their future.

Program Improvement Effort (PIE) workgroup was developed to assist in identifying day to day challenges field staff need assistance with to be effective in the service delivery of Pre-ETS.  This workgroup has developed a process to assist DVR Counselors with managing files for the upkeep of the Youth Programs (YP) case file and contributed to identifying new procedures for capturing accurate service information on contract invoices for Pre-ETS. Currently they are developing guidance to assist staff in the types of tools that can be utilized under each of the 5 mandatory Pre-ETS and how to have more in depth conversations with education partners to meet students’ needs so we are being intentional and contributing to moving the needle.

Looking forward, DVR’s youth services unit identified previous gaps in the availability of Pre-Employment Transition Services specifically in areas where service providers are more limited. This year a new on-demand learning management system called Launchpad will provide accessible training on all of the Pre-ETS topics to enhance the availability of services for students with disabilities. Additionally we are implementing a Transition Readiness Toolkit in partnership with Utah State University to provide objective data on the skill development and progression within Pre-ETS that students obtain.

The State Youth Council (SYC), which falls under the Education and Training Steering Committee of Colorado Workforce Development Council is redirecting our efforts to be more intentional.  As part of this subcommittee, DVR’s Youth Services works with the SYC to convene education, training, workforce and economic development stakeholders to align efforts at the state and local levels and to increase collaboration and efficiency in partnering to develop an industry-responsive talent pipeline for Colorado. Strategies include bridging related projects at the state and local level to advance the development and equitable implementation of multiple pathways to economic success for Colorado’s youth and young adults.

CDE's Annual Transition Leadership Institute continues to promote collaboration between systems to promote coordinated student outcomes. Utilizing the Sequencing of Services (SOS) framework developed by state level partners, a model has been created to aid local interagency transition teams to think more purposefully when mapping out services within six specific core skill sets and accessing the most appropriate service provider who can build upon efforts and not duplicate services.  As these efforts continue to expand, we are now joining efforts with DVR’s required awarded Disability Innovation Fund (DIF) Pathways to Partnership grant, which will build upon the SOS framework through the creation of a website that will allow all partners including students and their families, to map their transition. Outcome goals include strengthening coordination of services; availability of an accessible career technology education program; availability of  data for effective planning; Perkins V partnering; and updating local memorandums of understanding.