1 Working Across States and Stakeholders to Build Interagency Bridges for Youth PA Community on Transition Conference Thursday, July 21, :00 a.m. – 12:15, Room 203 The IDEA Partnership’s National Transition Community of Practice

2 What is a Community of Practice? We are in this together Marty Kester, Consultant The IDEA Partnership

3 The Communication Structure The IDEA Partnership Community of Practice State to State State to Local Local to Local Local to State Federal to State State to Federal

4 States participate in…  Monthly calls  Face-face meetings  Representative participation in State meetings  Practice Groups Youth Engagement Youth Engagement Juvenile Justice and Child Welfare Juvenile Justice and Child Welfare Transportation Transportation

5 What's Going on in New Hampshire A Youth Advocate’s Perspective

6 What is Happening Now in NH?  Coordinating Team now includes VR, Special Ed., Mental Health, Youth, Families, LEA and regional representation  Engaged in development of NH Disability Mentoring Day in October 2005  Coordinating Team to focus on Transition CoP model development  Special Education working to deliver SIG II Secondary Transition goals through CoP  Discussing innovative ways in which to connect our youth members’ high school/college education to their participation in the CoP.

7 NH Transition CoP – What a Difference a Year Makes!  Cross-partnership work among agencies, organizations, youth and families has energized commitment to work together and to bring others aboard.  Coordinating Team members invited to share work (and learn from others!) at national conferences and meetings  State-to-State conference calls and participation in conferences has increased understanding of CoP model and how working in this way differs from “typical” ways of “doing business”  Each partner is valuable and a key to our success as a community.  Regular meetings and communication are essential to developing our Community of Practice.

8 NH’s Transition CoP Enters Year #2 On Our Radar Screen:  Focus on the development of Youth Leadership and Advocacy  Get the word out and build understanding within agencies, organizations, LEAs, community resources  Establish practice groups to address work to be done  Establish NH community network: in-state conference calls, list serves  Secure meaningful partnerships with Juvenile Justice and Child Protection Agencies

9 How is the Community of Practice Working within Alabama? We are in this together

10 One Example: The Prison Transition Initiative Local Informs State LOCAL TO LOCAL  Who Isn’t There?  State Decisions Influenced (those who can make change)  Significant Impact LOCAL TO STATE STATE TO LOCAL LOCAL TO LOCAL

11 How is the Community of Practice Working within Arizona? We are in this together

12 Arizona Arizona History of “community”; Arizona History of “community”;  Agreements (IGAs and MOUs) between RSA and ADE to facilitate working with PEAs.  Developed Local Transition Teams.  Participated in a replication grant for Youth Transition Programs (YTP) with the state of Oregon, University of Oregon.  Combined RSA and ADE Conference for Transition.  Conference is now supported by Secure Education Committee and ASPAC (Higher Education). This year the Governors Council on Developmental Disabilities is an official sponsor as are DDD, PINS, and Department of Health Service Office of Children with Special Health Needs.  AZ joined, as one of six states, in the Community of Practice efforts to become a community across multiple states.  Expanded the IGA to include the Division of Developmental Disabilities.

13 Arizona  The partners that attend meetings every other month include : AZ Board of Regents, AZ Charter School Association, AZ Commission for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing, AZ Department of Corrections, AZ Department of Commerce, AZ Department of Juvenile Corrections, AZ Office for Americans with Disabilities, AZ State Board for Charter Schools, AZ State Schools for the Deaf and Blind, AZ State University, Aspergers Parent Network, Bureau of Indian Affairs, Center for Academic Success, City of Scottsdale, Department of Health Services, Department of Economic Security, Department of Education Employers, Governor’s Council on Developmental Disabilities, Melmed Center, Mesa Community College, Parent Information Network, Pilot Parents of Southern AZ, College, Pima Community College, Raising Special Kids, Social Security Administration, Youth and Young Adults  And we continue to ask, “Who needs to be here.”

14 Arizona How it works in Arizona…  Meetings for the state level Arizona Transition Leadership Team are conducted every other month at various partners locations.  Each meeting begins with a welcome to our new members.  We take time for announcements on new and exciting activities and accomplishment from the attendees.  Tasks at hand are accomplished to continue, develop and expand our process for our “Community of Practice”  Strategic planning, facilitated by Mountain Plains Regional Resource Center, takes place.  Committee work on the identified areas continues and documented for dissemination to the entire community.

15 Arizona We continue work in four areas:  Initiating Systems Change,  Developing Marketing Strategies,  Developing a System for Continuous Change (Data Keeping) and  Promoting Evidence-based Practices. 

16Arizona  During the Summit in Washington D.C., we identified state priorities which will be provided to our “community” on Friday, July 22, 2005 for further development and application to committee work. 1. Identify, promote and the provision of ongoing support for evidence-based practices, 2. Initiate systems change through increased youth involvement in local teams, 3. Disseminate information- building public awareness, 4. Create a system for continuous change and 5. Address the issue of sustainability of our community over time as we begin to lose some of our original partner representatives.  We were able to “pick the brains” of “experts” which deepened our understanding and aided the development of these proposed priorities.

17 Arizona  Examples of success for our community of practice work  Expanded Youth numbers, direct involvement and have provided a conference strand in our conference this September specifically for the Youth. The Youth said these are the topics they wanted to hear about.  Recent RFP to serve Youth in the Foster Care system.  Recent request from and individual to be a part of our community from our BIA community in Arizona.  Juvenile Justice/Merging Two Worlds Curriculum is online now. Working on reintegration plans.  Southwest Institute for Youth and Families, put on a summit related to Health Care needs.

18 Arizona  Youth direct participation has been a key feature to the Arizona efforts from the beginning.  Chris McLaughlin will share his role as part of our Arizona Transition Leadership Team (ATLT)

19 Arizona Giving Voice to the Future 2005 Transition Conference in Arizona September 20-22,

20 How is the Community of Practice Working within California? We are in this together

21 California  California Transition Summit June 23,  Assistance and participation from the IDEA Partnership, NASDSE, and the Interagency Transition Community of Practice.

22 California  325 participants  Youth panel  State example: PA  Topical groups: Employment, Community Living, Postsecondary options, Cross-state learning  Planning next steps

23 Participants Feedback in California What interest you in the community of practice approach?  Top responses: Turning idea into action (100) Turning idea into action (100) Helping systems to become permanently more collaborative with practitioners and consumers (87) Helping systems to become permanently more collaborative with practitioners and consumers (87) Helping systems to become permanently more collaborative with each other (83) Helping systems to become permanently more collaborative with each other (83) Building a communication system that will grow and sustain (83) Building a communication system that will grow and sustain (83)

24 Participants Feedback in California In what kind of activities would you like to participate?  Top responses: Using a transition community website (82)Using a transition community website (82) Attending a cross-agency/consumer training on transition issues (79)Attending a cross-agency/consumer training on transition issues (79) Attending regional cross-agency/consumer conference (74)Attending regional cross-agency/consumer conference (74) Joining a transition community list serve (70)Joining a transition community list serve (70)

25 How is the Community of Practice Working within Pennsylvania? We are in this together

26 Moving from the Old Way of Doing Business: Separate Pages in Separate Books to being on the Same Page  Professional Development  Policy & Regulation Development  Strategic Planning  Service Delivery Systems  Program Initiatives & Allocation of Resources  Data Collection

27 The Shift: From Isolated, Single Agency Activities to Cross-Systems Efforts

28 All PA youth and young adults with disabilities will: successfully transition to the role of productive, participating adult citizens be empowered to recognize their talents, strengths and voice have equal access to resources that will promote full participation in the communities of their choice. A Shared Vision: Foundation for our Future

29 How does the Community of Practice Work within Virginia? We are in this together

30 Virginia Expand Virginia Intercommunity Transition Council to have all participating member agencies develop MOU through CoP. Expand Virginia Intercommunity Transition Council to have all participating member agencies develop MOU through CoP. Strengthen working relationships with DJJ, DRS & DOE through CoP. Strengthen working relationships with DJJ, DRS & DOE through CoP. Continue Professional Development by providing joint agency trainings Continue Professional Development by providing joint agency trainings

31 Virginia: Future Goals  Joint Professional Development Aligning the IEP with the IPE Aligning the IEP with the IPE  21 st Annual VA Transition Forum March 20-22, 2005 March 20-22, 2005 Increase youth Involvement at all levels: local, state and federal. Increase youth Involvement at all levels: local, state and federal.

32 Virginia: Future Goals  Work through the National Governors Academy to increase graduation rates and entrance to and retention in higher education.  Improve use of technology  Increase awareness of need for documentation within higher education

33 Bringing Together Federal, State, and Local Partners, through our Collaborative Work We are in this together

34 Together we can…  Improve Youth Outcomes  Work smarter  Make efficient use of limited resources and staff resources  Decrease duplication of efforts, through collaboration  Expand knowledge across agencies Share the vision of youth with disabilities as productive, self- sufficient citizens living in their community.

35 “Coming together is a beginning, staying together is progress, and working together is success.” Henry Ford Henry Ford

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37 The IDEA Partnership More information on the Interagency Transition Community and other Cross-State/Cross Role Communities is now available at: …or call us toll free at : IDEAINFo