Transition Fair

Hello Friends!

Just a note that the Will-Grundy Transition Fair will be held on: 

Saturday MARCH 11th, 2017

at Joliet Junior College. 

If you go to the helpful transition links on the right side of your screen, you will find a "Save the Date" card. Please feel free to hand these out at your IEP meetings, or send them home with students who would benefit from this conference. 

Please let me know if you have any questions or concerns!

Take Care!

Kate

Scholarship Opportunity

 Hello Fine Transition Peeps!

 

    I just wanted to update you all to a scholarship opportunity for our SENIOR students who either currently have an IEP or have had one during the past four years, they are eligible. I have uploaded the information sheet under the Transition Handouts. Please feel free to print the sheet and distribute to your senior students. If you have any questions, please let know! Happy three day weekend!!

Take Care,

Kate

Welcome Back!

Hello Friends of Transition Planning!
 I just wanted to welcome you back for the 2016-2017 school year! I wanted to let you know of a change in transition support this year. For the past four years, there have been two transition coordinators for Grundy County. One to help with students in our LD programming, and one to work with our lower incidence programming. This year, I will be supporting all areas of special education programming in Grundy County. I look forward to seeing some of you that I haven't seen in a few years and working with you to meet the needs of the students in your districts! Please do not hesitate to contact me at 815-942-5780 or by email at kross@grundyspecialed.org  if you have any questions!

Take Care!
Kate

NEW INDICATOR 13 FORM!!!

Hello everyone! I am sure most of you have heard by now, but incase you haven't there is a BRAND NEW Indicator 13 form from the state. (You can always find the latest form by clicking on Indicator 13 on the right hand side of the blog.) 

So what does this mean to you?!

Well, Easy IEP hasn't caught up to the new state forms, so we will need you to print and fill out an indicator 13 form for EACH IEP you complete during the 15-16 school year. Hopefully, in the near future, EASY IEP will catch up with the state and we can go back to just completing the form online. However, at this time, I repeat:

YOU HAVE TO HAND SCORE AN INDICATOR 13 FORM AND ATTACH IT TO THE IEP.

I know it's less than ideal. I am sorry. I will update you once this changes.

On another note, the actual form has changed a bit as well. The form is the same until you get to question 8. Question 8 has three parts. The first part asks if it is too early to determine if the student will need an agency OR none is needed OR the declined consent. If the answer to this is YES (Which it may be for our 7th and 8th graders and even some of our underclassmen) then you should answer the next two parts no. IF the answer to the first part of 8 is NO, then the next two parts should be YES. 

If you have any questions, please let us know right away! We are happy to help!

Take Care

Kate and Erica

Happy Annual Review Season from your friendly transition coordinators! We are back to share some exciting news.... 

NOTHING IN TRANSITION HAS CHANGED THIS YEAR!!! :-)

However, please check over here --------------->

for updated indicator 13 paper work as well as the updated Joliet Junior College StARs letter.

For your reading enjoyment, we have also posted a Transition Summary link which gives you a "cheat sheet" of transition information. As always, if you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact either one of us!

Take Care, 

Kate and Michelle

The Book

As we approach IEP annual review season, (aka the most wonderful time of the year), I encourage you to take a look at the new resource added to the side bar titled "The Book". This is a resource put together by a lawyer in Naperville that walks parents through the "BIG" services that a student and parent need to be aware of, including the PUNS list, Social Security benefits, and Guardianship. In addition to explaining why it is important to be on the list, it also goes into detail about the different stages of waiting for funding.  

As an additional reminder, please remember to add independent living goals TO ALL IEPs.  Remember, daily living skills are only one facet to this area. You can also include goals about managing transportation, finances, managing own medications, self advocacy..... ext. Concurrently, when you make the change to the transition plan, make sure that your INDICATOR 13 FORM at the end of the IEP process is changed to reflect that those goals have been added!!

If you have any questions, please don't hesitate to contact Kate Ross or Michelle Laird at the Cooperative. :-) Take Care!

Independent Living WHAT?!!?

SO, as your email proclaimed earlier in September, the ISBE has decided now that EVERY student will now have an Employment, Education/Training goal AND an INDEPENDENT LIVING GOAL. I know that this has been a shift in our thinking. WHY has the state decided to do this? Well, the idea is to spur conversation among the IEP team about what skills the student will need to be independent in their adult life. What skills does the student still need to know?

Independent Living Skills can address the following skills:

Financial/Income

Health/Safety
Transportation/Mobility
Social Relationships
Recreation/Leisure
Self Advocacy
Future Planning

Right now, the best I can tell, we are required to write a goal in step one of our transition plans. HOWEVER, we are not required to add goals to the IEP in the annual goal section. While we can only choose one drop down goal to pull through onto step three of transition, you can CHECK MULTIPLE boxes on the annual goals and then make a note in the note section of the IEP which goal fits with their independent living goal.

I will be adding additional surveys to the side bar to help aid in the narrowing in of independent living goals that will beneficial to the student. As always, if you have any questions, please do not hesitate to ask. I would be more than happy to help in any way! :-)