University to use $12.5 million grant to launch national transition center for students with disabilities

Preparing high school students with disabilities to transition to college or careers requires interagency cooperation and proven strategies, which will be the focus of a new national technical assistance center to be housed at UNC Charlotte’s College of Education.

David Test, professor of special education and child development, is the principal investigator for the project that will receive $12.5 million in grant funding across five years from the U.S. Department of Education’s Office of Special Education Programs. The center will be a partnership among UNC Charlotte and the University of Oregon, Western Michigan University, University of Kansas and Maryland-based TransCen Inc., which provides direct services to students with disabilities.

According to Test, the center will work with states, school districts and vocational rehabilitation agencies to implement research-based strategies and interventions to ensure that students with disabilities graduate from high school and transition into postsecondary education or employment.

“We will be working with all 50 states and 10 U.S. territories to develop teacher training and professional development for workers in relevant agencies on proven strategies to achieve better outcomes for high school students who are transitioning into adulthood,” explained Test.

Previously, the U.S. Department of Education funded three separate centers to work with high school students with disabilities. The UNC Charlotte-based center will provide more extensive and targeted assistance to states.

Faculty members and researchers from partner universities will provide all-around transition assessment with regard to academics, as well as students’ independent living, social and employment skills, said Test.

“Intensively, we’ll work with 15 states who apply for greater assistance. Our goal is to identify specific needs, such as greater interagency collaboration, because some students with disabilities may need multiple adult services to live in the community. So this grant will fund efforts to impact education and training in schools and vocational training to enable students with disabilities to become college or career ready,” Test explained. “In addition, the center will work with state leaders and policymakers to encourage changes to improve student outcomes.”

The National Technical Assistance Center on Improving Transition to Postsecondary Education and Employment for Students with Disabilities will begin formally in January 2015.

Ellen McIntyre, dean of the College of Education, stated, “David Test’s work on helping students with disabilities transition from high school to the work place or higher education is recognized nationally as effective for positively affecting lives and communities. We are proud and thrilled to have his center and this important work in the College of Education.”

The UNC Charlotte College of Education is a recognized leader statewide and nationally in the field of special education and child development. Departmental faculty researchers work with Charlotte-area school systems and agencies on a number of initiatives, such as teacher training to prepare educators to work with students with severe disabilities and strategies to improve reading and math skills among elementary students with disabilities. In 2001, the college established a doctoral program in special education. To date, more than 50 individuals have completed their Ph.D. from the University and are influencing the field as faculty members or researchers at colleges and universities across the country.