DisabilityInfo.gov: Employment: School to Work

A captioned video of stories about people with disabilities and businesses working together to create successful mentorships, internships and long term employment opportunities.

To Top

Fact sheet for service providers on working with young people on disclosure issues.

To Top

Information on the AAAS ENTRY POINT! internship program, which was developed to encourage science, technology, engineering and mathematics students with disabilities to apply their skills in a real-world professional setting.

To Top

Links to information and resources on career planning for students.

To Top

A guide on best practices and programs for mentoring young people with disabilities, as well as information on how mentoring programs can benefit youth with disabilities.

To Top

Technical assistance tools to offer guidance in the design and implementation of programs in the field of workforce disability and youth. Resource from the National Collaborative on Workforce and Disability/Youth for workforce professionals, state agencies working with youth, policy makers and others working with transition issues related to youth with disabilities.

To Top

Explore career options and learn about high growth jobs with better wages and a brighter future.

To Top

Fact sheet about the importance of career-focused mentoring. Includes examples of mentoring activities that assist youth in achieving skills to transition successfully into adulthood.

To Top

Electronic mentoring program designed to promote successful transition of youth with disabilities (including physical, intellectual and developmental disabilities) to adult life.

To Top

Information on the U.S. Department of State's Student Disability Program.

To Top

Information from the U.S. Department of Labor's Office of Disability Employment Policy (ODEP) on Disability Mentoring Day, a nationwide effort held every year in October to promote career development for students with disabilities through hands-on career exploration.

To Top

Fact sheet for youth service providers about the benefits of entrepreneurship and entrepreneurial education. Contains a number of resources on making entrepreneurship and entrepreneurial education programs inclusive of youth with disabilities.

To Top

Fact sheet provides information on disclosure, accommodations and examples of reasonable accommodations for youth with mental health needs entering the workforce.

To Top

Information on entrepreneurship for youth with disabilities from Start-Up USA.

To Top

Week-long summer career exploration program for college-bound high school sophomores and juniors with hearing loss held at the Rochester Institute for Technology.

To Top

Resource guide offers basic information about Social Security disability and health benefit programs.

To Top

Offers a career planning guide for multiple audiences within the workforce development system. Provides information on selecting career-related assessments, determining when to refer youth for additional assessment and additional issues such as accommodations, legal issues, and ethical considerations.

To Top

Publication designed to help youth with disabilities through the process of transitioning from school to higher education or the workforce.

To Top

Designed to to assist young people with disabilities and chronic illness in the Washington metropolitan area and beyond to move from school to adulthood to the world of work.

To Top

Information on a federally funded initiative for youth with special health care needs which helps them transition from pediatric to adult health care and to work and independence.

To Top

Provides opportunity for students with disabilities to explore exciting careers in science, mathematics and technology.

To Top

Primary objectives are to promote program improvement and expansion for existing HS/HT programs; to help programs establish the state infrastructure to support HS/HT; and to both encourage and assist in the creation of new HS/HT programs. The complete guide is now available to download on ODEP's Web site in PDF and Word formats.

To Top

Training manual for the High School/High Tech program, which provides careers in technology for youth with disabilities. This link opens a PDF document.

To Top

Report detailing Youth Transition Process Demonstration Innovations that improve employment outcomes for youth with disabilities.

To Top

Information and resources supporting successful transition for people with disabilities (including physical, intellectual and developmental disabilities).

To Top

Helps children and adults reach their full potential by providing accurate and up-to-date information and advice about learning disabilities and Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD). Includes resources on preparing for college and transitioning from school to work.

To Top

Established with a mission to enhance employment opportunity for young people with disabilities. To help close this gap, the Foundation developed Bridges...from school to work, a program that matches the interests and abilities of young people with the workforce needs of employers, creating and supporting strong employment relationships that work to the benefit of all.

To Top

Fact sheet from the U.S. Department of Labor provides information on the importance of mentoring for youth with disabilities.

To Top

Curriculum designed to motivate and guide students with disabilities and their families as they begin early transition planning for life after high school.

To Top

NASET is a national voluntary coalition of more than 40 organizations and advocacy groups representing special education, general education, career and technical education, youth development, multicultural perspectives and parents.

To Top

Seeks to increase the capacity of national, state and local agencies and organizations to improve secondary education and transition results for youth with disabilities and their families.

To Top

Knowledge, Skills & Abilities (KSA) initiative, identifies key competencies that youth service practitioners, policymakers, organizations and individuals can use to improve program quality and youth outcomes. Youth service practitioners with the necessary KSAs can provide all youth with a wider variety of opportunities, resources, and services to make a positive transition to adulthood and the world of work.

To Top

Provides resources that serve youth with disabilities transitioning into the workforce, including materials for workforce development professionals, the disability community, employers and policy makers.

To Top

Online database of promising programs and practices in the workforce development system that effectively addresses the needs of youth with disabilities.

To Top

Documents offer guidance in the design and implementation of programs in the fields of workforce, disability and youth.

To Top

Youth-led resource, information and training center for youth and emerging leaders with developmental disabilities.

To Top

Information series focuses on preparing youth with disabilities to move from high school to the adult world.

To Top

Electronic news service that brings you resources and information that are relevant to your interests and concerns related to employment.

To Top

Reports from the U.S. Department of Education regarding the NLTS, the first effort in this country to document the experiences and outcomes of youth with disabilities. This link opens a PDF document.

To Top

Database of federally-funded research projects, including projects on youth employment.

To Top

Designed to assist states to build capacity to support and improve transition planning, services, and outcomes for youth with disabilities.

To Top

The Transition Toolkit combines the findings of current research on effective schooling, career preparatory experiences, youth development and youth leadership to help students with disabilities transition to work or higher education.

To Top

Provides statistics and information about youth in the foster care system in the transition years, identifies areas requiring further attention by policymakers and service providers and provides resources and tools on the topic.

To Top

Information from the Department of Labor on employment of youth with disabilities, including resources related to transition.

To Top

President Obama has launched the White House Internship Program and announced that applications are currently being accepted for the summer of 2009. Those selected to participate in the program will gain valuable job experience and an inside look at the life of White House staff while building leadership skills. Submission deadline was March 22, 2009.

To Top

Information on RSA, which oversees formula and discretionary grant programs that help individuals with physical or mental disabilities obtain employment and live more independently through the provision of such supports as counseling, medical and psychological services, job training and other individualized services.

To Top

Explains how entrepreneurship education can be implemented in programs and offers suggestions on how to introduce self-employment as an option for all youth, including youth with disabilities.

To Top

Fact sheet from the National Council on Disability designed to help young people with disabilities make decisions about their future. This link opens a Word document.

To Top

Information on the applications of the Workforce Investment Act to youth with disabilities, families and service providers. This link opens a PDF document.

To Top

State resource page helps you locate organizations and agencies within your state that address disability-related issues, including governors and U.S. senators, state agencies serving children and youth with disabilities, state chapters of disability organizations and parent groups and parent training and information projects.

To Top

Information geared toward teens including community service options, how to pay for college, information about military service and how to register to vote.

To Top

Students with disabilities share strategies to successfully stay in school, graduate and get jobs. They discuss their struggles with self-reporting their disability, and negotiating accommodations in school and at work.

To Top

Publication designed for youth and adults working with them to learn about disability disclosure. This Workbook will help young people make informed decisions about whether or not to disclose their disability and understand how that decision may impact their education, employment and social lives.

To Top

Provides online information, support and professional development on topics focusing on the transition from school to adult life for youth with disabilities.

To Top

Information from the Family Village Web site on transition issues faced by youth with disabilities (including physical, intellectual and developmental disabilities) as they transition from school to work.

To Top

Descriptions of federally funded projects and centers that focus on youth transition. The entire directory can be downloaded in PDF format.

To Top

Directory from the Federal Interagency Partners in Transition Workgroup lists federally funded projects and centers focusing on youth transition. The directory provides a brief description of each center's purpose, the services they provide and links to center Web sites and publications. Link opens a PDF document.

To Top

Study on successful strategies to help youth with mental health needs transition to post secondary education, employment and independent lives. This link opens a Word document.

To Top

Guide helps workforce development practitioners, administrators and policymakers increase their understanding of youth with mental health needs and the supports necessary to help them transition into the workforce successfully.

To Top

InfoBrief from the National Collaborative on Workforce and Disability (NCWD)-Youth discusses career planning and vocational assessment for transition-age youth.

To Top

Through a partnership with the U.S. Department of Labor's Office of Disability Employment Policy, The Washington Center helps students develop leadership skills and gain valuable work experience in public service. Competitive scholarship awards are offered to eligible students with disabilities interested in working in the executive, judicial or legislative branches of the federal government.

To Top

This project will review and synthesize the past 20 years of research and advancements in the area of transition for youth with disabilities.

To Top

The White House Internship Program provides a unique opportunity to learn more about the daily operations of the White House. In addition to normal office duties, interns attend weekly lectures, volunteer at special events, participate in tours and contribute to a community service project in the Washington, DC area.

To Top

List of Community Work Incentive Coordinators who offer information and technical assistance in your state on the work incentives that help Social Security Disability (SSDI) and Supplementary Security Income (SSI) beneficiaries return to work.

To Top

Fact sheet from the U.S. Department of Labor's Office of Disability Employment Policy (ODEP) provides information on workforce intermediaries, organizations that proactively address workforce needs using an approach which considers the needs of both employees and employers, and how they can help youth with disabilities become employed.

To Top

Presentation from the Department of Agriculture's TARGET Center about WRP, a nationwide program that includes nearly 1,769 students at the undergraduate and graduate levels who help employers fill both short and long term staffing needs.

To Top

Information from the Social Security Administration (SSA) on employment and employment-related opportunities for the one million youth under the age of 18 receiving Supplemental Security Income (SSI) payments.

To Top

Web-assisted audioconference regarding youth with disabilities (including physical, intellectual and developmental disabilities) and issues related to transition from school to work.

To Top

Fact sheet for young people on disclosure in employment situations.

To Top

A free, interactive Web site that young adults and their teachers, parents and mentors can use to plan for life after high school.

To Top