Youth Transition Demonstration National Evaluation
Sponsored by the Social Security Administration, the Youth Transition Demonstration (YTD) National Evaluation is a project to evaluate the efficacy of interventions designed to result in better post-school outcomes for youth with disabilities who are recipients of Supplemental Security Income (SSI) or Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI). The primary purpose of the YTD project is to help youth who are either receiving disability benefits or at risk of receiving them make a successful transition from youth to adulthood. The YTD project will encourage youth to work and/or continue their education by waiving certain disability program rules that are thought to discourage employment and self-sufficiency, offering employment training and support services, and providing more structured opportunities for work experience.

The evaluation will be designed to show whether the new package of services and waivers provided in YTD have positive impacts on employment, earnings, income, educational attainment, and receipt of SSI or SSDI benefits for youth with disabilities compared to the current services and program rules for this group. The evaluation will also include a benefit-cost analysis to determine the overall effects of YTD on the Social Security trust fund and other benefit programs, the income of beneficiaries, and on taxpayers.

Leading the YTD evaluation is Mathematica Policy Research (MPR), a major national policy research and evaluation firm with extensive experience in disability, employment, and education research and policy. To conduct this evaluation, MPR has assembled a team that includes MDRC, a national research organization with extensive experience developing and evaluating interventions for a variety of populations facing significant barriers to employment; disability program experts at the Cornell University Institute for Policy Research; and TransCen. TransCen will provide concerted programmatic technical assistance to the YTD sites due to its expertise in school-to-work transitions, supported employment, and the design and evaluation of services for youth with disabilities. To learn more about the YTD evaluation, please visit http://www.mathematica-mpr.com/disability/ytd.asp.

Project duration: 2006-2011.

The Postsecondary Education Research Center Project (PERC)
PERC will establish model demonstration sites in Maryland and Connecticut to evaluate the efficacy and outcomes of serving students ages 18-21 with intellectual disabilities in two and four year colleges. Each PERC site will serve as a model replication hub for its state and provide the basis for intensive study of the effectiveness of serving students ages 18-21 with intellectual disabilities in postsecondary institutions. Data will be collected on major model components (college courses attendance, employment, and self-determination) to document student goal achievement and follow up data will be collected to gauge the impact on student outcomes. The PERC model sites will also provide technical assistance and training to personnel within each state on the development and improvement of services for students with intellectual disabilities in postsecondary environments

Website: http://www.transitiontocollege.net

Project duration: 2005-2009.

Bridges… from School to Work
TransCen assisted the Marriott Foundation for People with Disabilities (MFPD) to design and implement this nationally recognized project that features paid internships for youth with disabilities in their last year of high school. Since its inception in 1989, the Bridges program has assisted over 9,500 youth, representing the entire spectrum of disability, to achieve paid employment with companies in nearly every industry sector. Bridges operates in seven locations (Montgomery County, MD; Atlanta, GA; Chicago, IL; Los Angeles, CA; San Francisco, CA; Philadelphia, PA; and Washington, DC) in direct collaboration with each local school district and with relevant community partners such as vocational rehabilitation, workforce investment programs, and other disability and workforce entities.

From 1989 through 1998 TransCen operated the Bridges program under contract from the MFPD. From 1999 through the present TransCen has provided staff training and program consultation to Bridges, now operated under the direct auspices of MFPD. In addition to the responsibilities of direct program management, we have also evaluated and researched Bridges outcomes and reported on them in refereed professional Journals (Tilson, Luecking & Donovan, 1994; Tilson & Donovan, 1995; Luecking & Fabian, 2000).

Website: http://www.ed.uiuc.edu/sped/tri/bridgesSTW.htm

Project duration: 1989 - present.

Charles County, MD Transition Program
TransCen is assisting the Charles County Public Schools (CCPS) to develop a comprehensive transition curriculum and planning process for all of its secondary school students receiving special education services. A Transition Resource Guide and a curriculum planning process are among the chief outcomes of this consultation to date. In addition, TransCen is leading an initiative to more closely link the activities of the CCPS personnel with those of adult employment services personnel so that youth with disabilities exit school with employment and continuing support to maintain employment.

Project duration: 2003-present.

Delaware Transition Initiative
Delaware State Department of Education, in partnership with TransCen, Inc., has instituted sweeping improvements in secondary education and transition services for youth with disabilities in all 19 local school districts. Over the past 12 years, TransCen staff have provided training and technical assistance to hundreds of teachers, administrators, and adult service providers as part of this initiative.

Project duration: 1995-present.

Montgomery County (MD) Transitioning Youth Employment
The Montgomery County (MD) Transitioning Youth Employment is TransCen’s longest standing collaborative project, the purpose of which is to make improvements in the ability of youth with disabilities to make seamless transitions from school to work. It includes various programs and partnerships between TransCen, Montgomery County Public Schools, area employment service providers, disability organizations, employers, and a host of other government and private sector agencies.

Project duration: 1986 - present.

Accelerated Benefits Demonstration
AB+ is a large scale national research project, funded by the Social Security Adminstration and led by MDRC, Inc, to test whether access to health benefits for new Disability Insurance (DI) beneficiaries who have no insurance will lead to better health and employment outcomes and reduced reliance on DI cash benefits. Another objective of the project is to learn if employment and health outcomes can be enhanced by adding a set of support services designed to improve health functioning, life activities, and work capacity. TransCen is a planning and technical assistance partner in this project.

Project Duration: 2007 - 2010.

The Maryland Veterans Employment Partnership
This is a model for integrating employment service efforts on behalf of veterans in MontgomeryWorks Career Center in Montgomery County, Maryland. In collaboration with the Veterans Employment and Training Service, the Maryland Department of Labor, Licensing and Regulation, the Veteran’s Workforce Investment Program, and Way Station, Inc., TransCen is assisting veterans with significant employment barriers to become employed in the civilian workforce.

Project Duration: Ongoing.

Maryland Disability Program Navigator Initiative
This initiative is a project to expand the workforce development system’s capacity to serve customers with disabilities in One-Stop Career Centers. This program provides disability “navigators” who work with one-stop staff, partners and businesses to provide accessible employment and training services. TransCen is contracted to provide training support and technical assistance to disability navigators in each of the state regions.

Project Duration: Ongoing.

VETS Service Learning Project
This project is designed to engage youth with disabilities in community service opportunities, including collecting oral histories from veterans with disabilities for the national Veterans History Project. In partnership with similar efforts in Indiana and Vermont, TransCen is pairing its work on behalf of youth with disabilities with its connection to veterans’ employment programs so that these youth have an innovative option to meet the service learning requirement for graduation in Maryland.

Project Duration: 2007 - 2009.

Career Development for Individuals with Sensory Disabilities
TransCen operates a program that provides job preparation and job placement assistance to individuals with sensory disabilities (visual or hearing impairments). Competitive employment opportunities are sought, leading individuals to become independent members of the community. Components of the program include: job preparation training, career counseling, and assessment of job skills, job search techniques, self-advocacy, and workplace communication. The project incorporates individual choice and interests of the jobseeker with current and immediate needs of the local business community, while using prevailing communications technology that enable accommodations of disability.

Project Duration: Ongoing.

Maryland Customized Employment Partnership
TransCen is a subcontracted partner with the Montgomery County Workforce Investment Board on this five-year demonstration and systems change project, funded by the U.S. Department of Labor, Office of Disability Employment Policy. The Maryland Customized Employment Partnership has three primary purposes: 1) to expand the capacity of One-Stop Centers to serve people with disabilities, particularly those who have significant support needs, 2) to leverage and align resources from currently disparate workforce and human service systems so that individuals receive employment services and support in a more coordinated and effective fashion, and 3) to provide a demonstration model for statewide replication during the project and sustainability of the model when federal funding ceases.

Website: http://www.marylandcep.org

Project Duration: 2003-2008.

Tennessee Customized Employment Partnership
The Tennessee Customized Employment Partnership (TCEP) is part of a national initiative to provide workforce development services for people with significant disabilities through One-Stop Career Centers. TCEP provides customized employment services to individuals who are either unemployed or underemployed, who are exiting education and seeking employment with support, or who are employed in segregated settings. Based on a model developed in Knoxville, replication is occurring in selected One Stop Centers statewide. Partners in TCEP include The Arc of Tennessee; the Center on Disability and Employment at the University of Tennessee; Workforce Connections of the Knoxville Community Action Committee; Benefits Planning Outreach and Assistance project; and TransCen. The intent of TCEP is to research, strategically plan, design, and implement a model for ongoing systemic inclusion of people with significant disabilities in the One-Stop Career Centers in the state.

Website: http://www.tceponline.org

Project duration: 2001-2007.

WorkLink
Based in San Francisco, WorkLink has been operated by TransCen since 1996. It is a transition and employment service that annually assists over 60 job seekers with significant disabilities to achieve employment customized to their individual skills, interests and support needs. There are three distinct program components operated by WorkLink: transition service integration (youth between ages 18 and 21), supported employment (individuals who have exited public schools), and job placement (working age adults referred by vocational rehabilitation and WIA One Stop Centers). The WorkLink office is staffed by twelve professionals who provide direct job seeking assistance to individuals with disabilities based on individualized job search plans as well as ongoing workplace supports as necessary and desired.

Website: http://www.transcen.org/worklink

Project duration: 1996- ongoing

Transition Solutions
This is a strategic alliance of the nation's top researchers and educators with proven records of assistance and support to state and local programs focused on best practice strategies in transition. Transition Solutions services are fee-based and are tailored and customized to meet individual state education agency and local school district needs.

Website: http://www.nasetalliance.org

Project duration: 2006-ongoing.

Imagine Working
In partnership with Imagination Stage Inc., a youth theatre education organization based in Bethesda, Maryland, this program creates opportunities for people with disabilities to participate in recreational theatre and interactive workshops. Combining video and live performances, participants are creating tools that guide people with disabilities to search for and obtain meaningful employment.

Project duration: 2005-2007.

National Collaborative on Workforce and Disability/Youth (NCWD/Youth
The National Collaborative on Workforce and Disability for Youth (NCWD/Youth) assists state and local workforce development systems to better serve youth with disabilities. The NCWD/Youth is funded by the U.S. Department of Labor's Office of Disability Employment Policy and is lead by the Institute for Educational Leadership in Washington, DC. It is comprised of several major partners, including TransCen, with expertise in disability, education, employment, and workforce development issues. The Collaborative develops materials, provides training and technical assistance, and sponsors events that promote access for youth with disabilities to high quality services in integrated settings, in order to maximize their opportunities for employment and independent living.

Website: http://www.ncwd-youth.info

Project duration: 2001-2006.

National Center on Workforce and Disability/Adults (NCWD/Adults)
The National Center on Workforce and Disability/Adults (NCWD/Adults), lead by the Institute for Community Inclusion at the University of Massachusetts – Boston and funded by the U.S. Department of Labor Office of Disability Policy, provides training, technical assistance, policy analysis, and information to improve access for people with disabilities in the workforce development system. TransCen is one of several partners in NCWD/Adults, concentrating on relationships between workforce systems and employers.

Website: http://www.onestops.info

Project duration: 2001 – 2006.

DBTAC: Mid-Atlantic ADA Center
This Center is one of ten regional Disability and Business Technical Assistance Centers funded by the National Institute of Disability and Rehabilitation Research of the U.S. Department of Education. The Center provides information, training, and technical assistance on the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), as well as on accessible education-based information technology. Specialists manage a toll-free hotline responding to specific questions on the ADA by private businesses, individuals, architects, schools and local or county governments who call for advice and information on what is required, who is covered, and how to work through disability-related issues in employment, architectural access, public services, and other areas. The Center maintains an extensive library of ADA and disability-related publications, including regulations, technical assistance manuals, architectural guidelines, easy-to-read fact sheets and summaries, advice on how to make different types of businesses accessible to the public, and consultation on employment issues, such as reasonable accommodation.

Website: http://www.adainfo.org

Project Duration: 1996 - present