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One of the main goals for students attending college is to provide opportunities for career exploration and ultimately, to secure paid work. One way to do that is through apprenticeships. In this brief, you will learn about the key components of apprenticeships, the reasons why apprenticeships are a promising practice in inclusive postsecondary education (IPSE), and the steps to develop registered apprenticeship programs. Information about the Early Childhood Education pilot apprenticeship program at Next Steps at Vanderbilt is shared as an example of the use of apprenticeships in IPSE.

The Higher Education Opportunities Act of 2008 created grants for Transition and Postsecondary Education Programs for Students with Intellectual Disability (TPSID) model demonstration projects. These projects have been implemented since 2010 at campuses across the United States. This slide deck shares findings from a recent evaluation of 38 TPSID programs in 2020-2021. It 10 year trend data related to inclusive course access, career development, campus membership, credential attainment and employment outcomes at these programs.

As part of a comprehensive program evaluation, postsecondary education programs for students with ID may want to use surveys that are targeted at specific key audiences. This resource shares two surveys that were developed by Western Carolina University's UP Program - one targeted for college faculty who have taught students from the program and the other for employers that have provided a job or internship to students.  

Employment is one of the most significant markers of independence and success for a person. One’s ability to secure and maintain employment in a paid position can have a significant impact on their overall quality of life, community participation, financial self-sufficiency, and pathway to a long-lasting career. Unfortunately, the paid employment rate for youth and adults with a disability remains markedly lower than their peers without a disability.

All inclusive postsecondary education (IPSE) programs are "housed" in a particular department, school, institute, or other administrative center on a college or university campus. This decision is unique to each institution and IPSE program. This publication shares the locations of current programs based on a survey and data from Transition and Postsecondary Education Programs for Students with Intellectual Disability (TPSID) projects. 

This publication shares findings from a secondary analysis of the NLTS 2012 dataset, looking specifically at parent expectations for students with intellectual disability and autism and compared them to those of students in other disability groups. Specifically, parent expectations around living and financial independence were examined. Findings of this study are in line with those from previous studies, showing that parents of students with intellectual disability and autism have lower expectations for their children post-school than parents of other students in other disability groups.

This issue of Impact, by the Institute on Community Integration at the University of Minnesota, highlights critical areas of need for inclusive higher education. Accreditation holds promise for ensuring the quality experience that students and their families seek. Opening inclusive programs to a wider cross section of students is also important, as is making sure programs are truly inclusive, offering coursework that leads to competitive employment.

Passed in 2022, this bill amends the State School Aid Act to provide supplemental appropriations for fiscal year (FY) 2022-23. Specifically, the bill adds $12.2 million in General Fund (GF/GP) money, for a gross supplemental appropriation of $12.2 million. In addition to K-12 funding additions, this bill creates a new scholarship program for high school graduates or those who achieve the high school equivalency certificate and qualify under FAFSA. Scholarship applicants must be Michigan residents for at least one year, be a full-time student, and maintain satisfactory academic progress.

The Think College team presented a poster at the AUCD Annual Conference from November 13-16, 2022 in Washington D.C. This resource listing includes a variety of resources that accompanied the poster.

The poster is about state funding for postsecondary education for students with intellectual disability. It covers different types of legislative funding (student funding, program funding) and how UCEDDs have been involved with state legislation.

This resource shares the relevant sections of the Higher Education Act regulations and information from the US Department of Education, Office of Postsecondary Education website related to the definition of intellectual disability, related statutory language and more information about the definition of ID used in the Higher Education Act.  This information should guide programs as they determine how to document intellectual disability for students to be eligible to participate in a TPSID model demonstration program or to be eligible for federal student aid when attending