Dual Enrollment

This book chapter presents an overview of dual enrollment, an inclusive postsecondary education option for students with intellectual disabilities. The chapter begins with a definition of intellectual disability and a discussion of post school outcomes for students with disabilities. The chapter summarizes the results of a national survey of post-secondary educational options for youth with intellectual disabilities, and briefly describes the characteristics of three program models: substantially separate, mixed, and inclusive individual support.

Traditionally, youth with intellectual and developmental disabiliites (IDD) have not been given the option of participating in and thus benefiting from a postsecondary education. There are school districts and community colleges across the country, however, that are creating opportunities for these youth to have the option of meaningful participation in a postsecondary education while still in secondary school (i.e., Dual Enrollment).

By providing educational services in postsecondary settings, public schools may engage transition age students with significant disabilities in meaningful, age appropriate learning during their final years of public school special education. This article describes the goals of providing educational services in postsecondary settings and describes the challenges and benefits of providing services across a range of postsecondary settings.

This brief provides an overview of some successful models of transition services being implemented in postsecondary settings, describes one such model implemented by the Baltimore City Public School System in three local colleges, and presents some of the implications and strategies for success of this model. Resource can be found at: http://www.ncset.org/publications/viewdesc.asp?id=3395