Improving PostSchool Outcomes for Adolescents with EmotionalBehavioral Issues

1
Improving Post-School Outcomes for Adolescents
with Emotional/Behavioral Issues

• Deanne Unruh, University of Oregon
• Marilyn D'Ottavio, Transition Services
  Coordinator for Albuquerque Public Schools,
• Ginny Johnson, Bureau Chief for Long-term
  Services Division Intake Eligibility, NM Dept. of
  Health

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Session Overview

• Characteristics outcomes of youth with E/BD
• Gaps Barriers to Service
• Evidence-informed practices program strategies
• Examples of model programs

3
NLTS2 School Characteristics of Youth with ED

• 53 of youth with ED received special education
  services prior to the age of 9
• 40 of youth with ED have reported attendance in
  5 or more schools
• 73 of youth with ED have been suspended and/or
  expelled
• Youth with ED have the highest dropout rate of
  any other disability category (4.2 in one year)

4
NLTS2 Characteristics of Youth with ED

• 33.5 youth with ED receive some type of mental
  health services
• 46.5 of youth with ED reside with a single
  parent
• 34.7 of youth with ED reside in poverty
• 75 of youth with ED have been stopped by police
  other than for a traffic violation
• 58 of the ED sample were arrested at least once,
  and
• (NLTS2, Wagner, et al., 2005)

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NLTS2 Post-School Outcomes 1 4 Years Out of
School
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NLTS2 Other Post-School Experiences of Youth with
ED
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Service Needs of Youth with ED in Schools

• Multiple agencies beyond Special Education
• Mental Health
• Juvenile Justice
• Vocational Rehabilitation
• What else?

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Service Gaps

• In Age Continuity of Services
• Between Child Adult Mental
• Health Services
• Within Across Systems
• In Effective, Developmentally Appropriate, and
  Appealing Services
• Davis, Greene, Hoffman (In Press)

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Public Service System
Davis Greene, in press
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Essential Features of Service Delivery Model

• Individualized to Unique Needs of Youth
• Competitive Employment
• Social Skill Training
• Immediate Access to Wrap-Around Services Driven
  by Unique Needs of Individual
• Flexible Educational Opportunities
• Bullis Cheney, (1999)

Developing Transition Plan
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Lessons LearnedMulti-Agency Collaboration

• Development dissemination
• of Screening Referral Process
• Education of ALL local
• partners
• Regular planning meetings with multiple agencies
• Use of formative evaluation data to review
  project services
• Unruh Bullis, (2005)

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Lessons LearnedYouth with ED

• Development of self-determination skills
• Employment/education defined by interests/needs
  of youth
• Employability skill training is more than the
  youth being employed
• Important role of the Transition Specialist
• Development of wrap-around services
• Unruh Bullis, (2005)

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What can we do?

• Program Administrators
• Value, support, and conduct data-based
  decision-making evaluation activities for program
  improvement
• Ensure hiring practices that bring staff
  committed to transition-age youth Job
  descriptions should specify expectations
• Ensure program staff have what it takes to do the
  job (e.g., cell phones, adequate compensation,
  access to ongoing training with TA, etc.
• Be an advocate for program staff and students re
  program services
• Unruh Clark, (in press)

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What Can We Do?

• Transition Program staff
• Participate in data-based evaluation activities
  for program improvement
• Embrace and implement evidence-based practices
  for youth with ED
• Get to know your local partners and work closely
  with them
• Value the voice of your students to develop and
  implement transition plan
• Unruh Clark, (in press)