Concurrent sessions are open enrollment; no advanced sign-up is required.
Instructional sessions during the ICTW Symposium are eligible for professional development credit. Educators can earn up to 9.25 ISBE-approved Professional Development Hours (PDHs) and vocational professionals may earn up to 9.5 Commission on Rehabilitation Counselor Certification (CRCC) continuing education units (CEUs).
Coffee, tea and water available in the Chancellor Ballroom.
Stacy K. Dymond, Ph.D., University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign
David R. Strauser, Ph.D., University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign
Location: Chancellor Ballroom
Pathways to Employment for Youth and Young Adults with Autism
Location: Chancellor Ballroom | Download slides | Watch the recording
Achieving competitive integrated employment continues to be a challenge facing youth with autism. Nevertheless, existing research demonstrates successful supports that enable individuals with autism to realize integrated employment. In this session, Dr. Carol Schall will present research on the impact of internships, supported employment, and customized employment on employment outcomes for youth with autism. She will also include a discussion of the behavioral methods used to support youth and young adults with autism in the transition from school to work.
Cinnamon rolls, pecan rolls, coffee, tea and water available in the Chancellor Ballroom.
Coffee, tea and water available in the Chancellor Ballroom.
Lunch buffet provided.
Perspectives on School to Work Transition across the State of Illinois
Barbara Moore, M.A., SSP, Illinois State Board of Education
Rahnee Patrick, M.A., Division of Rehabilitation Services
Location: Chancellor Ballroom | Watch the recording
A panel consisting of the directors from two state agencies involved in transition school to work and employment of people with disabilities will provide insights regarding the current issues impact the transition school to work process and competitive integrated employment of people with disabilities in the State of Illinois.
Location: Chancellor Ballroom and Foyer
Tortilla chips, salsa, assorted soft drinks and water available in the Chancellor Ballroom.
Looking for a place to network, recharge or check your email? The Quad and Technology rooms (in addition to the patio area) will be open during the Conversation and Poster Session. We suggest utilizing these areas when not engaging with a conversation or poster session.
Paula Bradford
Madison County Regional Office of Education #41
Payton Drury
City of Collinsville
Tony Fuhrmann
Madison County Employment & Training
Darlene Ladd
Madison County Employment & Training
The presentation will discuss the development of apprenticeship programs in the Madison County Illinois area. This session will highlight how our team designs and implements apprenticeship programs for students enrolled in special education and our ability to work with federal, state, county, municipal governments and the school district to develop a successful high school apprenticeship program. We will highlight the process, improvements, and successes made during the development of these programs. Participants will learn the process of how to effectively communicate the needs of each party, roles and responsibilities of team members, program criteria, execution of the plan, the importance of analysis, revision, collaboration of all parties and the willingness to adjust the model for greater success in the future.
Kimberly J. Osmani, Ph.D
Cornell University
This discussion will introduce a mixed methods study focused on professional development of youth serving professionals (YSP) conducted by the Center for Advancing Policy on the Employment of Youth. A broad group of professionals who directly or indirectly support youth and young adults with disabilities (Y&YAD) participated in Group Concept Mapping and focus group interviews to identify what YSPs should know or know how to do to effectively support Y&YADs in their employment journey. Over 180 participants were selected from education, higher education, workforce, vocational rehabilitation, juvenile justice and other youth serving fields. Participants will learn about the findings, discuss how they relate to their work, and offer policy or practice implications for hiring, preparing and retaining highly qualified YSPs.
Jessica Sipovic, M.Ed.
Illinois Center for Transition and Work
This conversation will focus around developing work-based learning (WBL) opportunity in your immediate community. We will discuss strategies, barriers, and actionable steps you can take to engage with employers and establish or expand the WBL opportunities available to students with disabilities.
Michele Schutz, Ph.D.
University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign
When preparing students with disabilities for employment, rural school districts often possess unique assets, such as tight-knit partnerships within their communities. Nonetheless, they also face distinctive challenges, including limited staffing, a lack of local job opportunities or disability services, and minimal transportation and resources. This session will facilitate fruitful discussion among participants around (a) identifying their own pressing challenges in equipping students with disabilities for work in their rural communities and (b) learning from professionals in other similar rural communities who may have developed creative solutions to these very challenges. Additionally, the facilitator will share examples and resources from recent research on equipping students with disabilities with the knowledge, experiences, and linkages needed for meaningful employment in rural communities.
Abeer Sikder, JD
The Council of State Governments
Adene Karhan, LMSW
Yang-Tan Institute on Disability and Employment, Cornell University
During the pandemic, issues of mental health and race were highlighted by youth and policymakers alike. Even in a post-pandemic era, these challenges linger. Access to mental health affects everyone, and has a unique impact on those transitioning to educational opportunities and the workforce. Today's generation of youth face unprecedented challenges that affect their personal, social, and economic livelihood; the impact of these struggles has had devastating effects on their mental health. These challenges are exacerbated for those with additional intersecting social identities, including youth with disabilities and youth who belong to marginalized racial groups.
Matthew Landau, M.Ed.
Niles West High School
Starting when a student is eligible for transition at the age of 14 ½, we will discuss the full journey of transition. We will touch on areas such as funding support options; creating transition teams to best support students and their roles of the members on the team; data collection for the vocational/job training and best practice for how to partner with DRS to provide individual's life; and the various living options in the adult with disabilities community and the level of support they can receive; and more. We will identify resources available to support students in the transition process, identify the roles and responsibilities of school and DRS personal in the transition process and discuss the three levels of transition: 14½-18, 18-22, and 22-99.
Melanie Phelan, M.Ed.
Illinois Center for Transition and Work
Workplace readiness skills are important to the success of people with disabilities finding and maintaining employment and valued by employers looking to hire people with disabilities. Our conversation will focus on what soft skills are important to teach, how to get employers and parents involved in the process, and examples of what is already being utilized for instruction and practice.
Mary Greenfield
The Council of State Governments
The Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA) requires state Vocational Rehabilitation agencies, in collaboration with local educational agencies, to provide Pre-Employment Transition Services (Pre-ETS) to all students with disabilities in need of services between the ages of 14 and 21 (unless that age has been extended by an individual state). Yet little research has been done on the characteristics of students who participate in Pre-ETS, the formats and locations of services being offered, disparities in Pre-ETS delivery to various populations of students, the challenges education and workforce service providers face in reaching and retaining students in Pre-ETS, and promising strategies for addressing those challenges.
Abeer Sikder, JD
The Council of State Governments
Adene Karhan, LMSW
Yang-Tan Institute on Disability and Employment, Cornell University
Youth and young adults with disabilities (Y&YADs) face significant barriers to accessing employment and are employed at lower rates than their peers without disabilities. Y&YADs with additional intersecting social identities (e.g., those who are experiencing homelessness or who belong to racial or ethnic minority groups) may experience even greater barriers to accessing employment supports and attaining and maintaining employment. Yet Y&YADs can also experience protective factors as a result of their intersecting identities that promote positive outcomes.
Nicole Birri, Ed.D.
Illinois Center for Transition and Work
Work experiences are a positive predictor of post-school success for students with disabilities. However, students who exhibit challenging behavior often have limited access to community-based work experiences. To address challenging behavior in work settings, educators can conduct ecological assessments and functional behavior assessments to develop effective behavior support plan for promoting more appropriate behavior in the workplace for students with disabilities.
Hannah Brenner, M.Ed.
University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign
Work-based learning experiences (WBLEs) are an integral component of high-quality vocational programming for students with extensive support needs; however, the development and implementation of these experiences can present many challenges for special education teachers. This poster will share findings from a qualitative research study that explored teachers’ perspectives on challenges to providing WBLEs and how they respond to these challenges. Special education teachers participated in semi-structured interviews and shared several ways that they navigate challenges when providing WBLEs. Findings from this study may support other practitioners who provide WBLEs and are facing similar challenges.
Sarah L. Ballard, Ph.D.
Illinois State University
Youth with extensive support needs and co-occurring complex health care needs have unique health-related assessment, curriculum, and instruction needs to acquire the skills necessary to access independent living, work, and community participation and inclusion. This presentation will focus on adult transition planning considerations for this population. Topics covered in the poster presentation will highlight research-based strategies to identify how to promote self-management skills in health care through assessment, curriculum, and instruction. Additionally, this poster presentation will highlight how these specific practices can promote self-determination in health care and in turn individually relevant adult transition outcomes. Poster attendees will have opportunities for Q&A and discussion.
Abeer Sikder, JD
The Council of State Governments
Matt Saleh, JD, Ph.D.
Yang-Tan Institute on Employment and Disability, Cornell University
The U.S. Department of Education estimates that between 30-60% of youth involved in the juvenile justice system have a disability. This means that of the 36,000 youth in juvenile facilities in 2019, around 10,000 to 22,000 of them were likely to have a disability. With so many incarcerated youth and young adults with disabilities, the justice system should be prepared to provide the accommodations and supports necessary for youth and young adults with disabilities in its care to access educational and workforce training opportunities.
Dawn Sheppelman
Eugene Field School
Kacy Killian
Eugene Field School
Transition planning is a large part of educational programming for students with disabilities. As students get older, ages 14 and up, vocational instruction becomes an even larger part of their educational programming. For students with significant disabilities, however, planning for vocational instruction can be difficult. There’s an expectation held by society that individuals are gainfully employed and functionally independent upon transitioning from school to adulthood. The challenges associated with successfully preparing students to meet this expectation may be more problematic for individuals with significant disabilities. This highlights the importance of successful transitional planning and vocational programming for students with significant disabilities at the secondary level.
Coffee, tea and water available in the Chancellor Ballroom.
Stacy K. Dymond, Ph.D., University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign
David R. Strauser, Ph.D., University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign
Location: Chancellor Ballroom
The State of the Illinois Department of Human Services: Where We've Been and Where We Are Going
Location: Chancellor Ballroom
Created in 1997 to provide our Illinois residents with streamlined access to integrated services, the Illinois Department of Human Services (IDHS) is one of Illinois' largest agencies, with more than 13,000 employees. IDHS is proud of its diversity, efficiency, and the services that the agency and its community partners provide to Illinois citizens. Secretary Grace Hou will provide an overview of IDHS and share the current state of the department and where we are going to go together. Following her address, Secretary Hou will take and answer questions from the audience.
Donuts, coffee, tea and water available in the Chancellor Ballroom.
Coffee, tea and water available in the Chancellor Ballroom.