2024-2025 Technical Training Series

October 2024 TTS: Hosted by Region 1
  • Date: Wednesday, October 30, 2024 3:30 – 5:00p.m.
  • Topic: Evidence-Based Transition Activities
  • Speaker:  Kelly Rogers
  • About the Speaker:  Kelly is a school psychologist and Board Certified Behavior Analyst (BCBA) currently working as a Special Education Coordinator for Char-Em ISD. She is the MAASE Transition CoP co-chair and Region 1 rep for MTSA (Michigan Transition Services Association). She spent a good portion of her career working for the START Project (Statewide Autism Resources and Training) supporting both the K-12 and transition intensive training and has a passion for supporting staff supporting students in transition to achieve their post-secondary goals.
  • Description of Session: This session will outline evidence-based transition activities to support post-secondary employment, training, independent living and community participation goals. Participants will leave with tools and processes to support the development of transition activities in these areas as well as additional resources to explore.
  • Link to session recording
  • Link to session PowerPoint

November 2024 TTS: Hosted by Region 2
  • Date: Wednesday, November 20, 2024, 3:30-5:00pm
  • Topic: Vocational Skills- In and Out of the Classroom
  • Speaker:  Maureen Henry
  • About the Speaker:  Maureen is a Community Based Education teacher who has worked with transition-aged students for more than 10 years. Her approach to vocational skills training in and out of the classroom has led to great successes for the students she has supported.
  • Description of Session: This session will provide information on practical and effective vocational tasks that can be done in the classroom to support students, including those with more complex needs. The session will also include valuable information about work-based learning and community based experiences.
  • Link to session recording
  • Link to session PowerPoint

January 2025 TTS: Hosted by Region 3

  • Date: Wednesday, January 15, 2025
  • Topic: START’s Secondary Transition Resources You Can Use Today
  • Speaker:  Lisonn Delcamp and Stephanie Pulido
  • About the Speakers: 
    • Lisonn Delcamp: Lisonn works as an Autism Education Intervention Specialist for the START Project. She is involved in the development and delivery of statewide K-12 and Secondary Transition educational training and resources. Lisonn provides technical assistance and training to Regional Collaborative Networks and Trainers/Coaches of START Content. Additionally, she is an adjunct instructor for GVSU, teaching courses in the autism endorsement program. Prior to joining the START Project in 2018, she was a director of special education and a teacher of students with autism for 20 years.
    • Stephanie Pulido: Stephanie is a teacher by training and currently serves as the Program Evaluation and Resource Development Specialist for the Statewide Autism Resources and Training (START) Project. She brings a variety of experiences across contexts (school, home, and community) related to preparing children, youth, and young adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD) for personally meaningful and fulfilling lives in the community. In addition to working directly with students and their families, Stephanie has prepared content and resources for Transition Tennessee and has presented and published in the area of Inclusive Postsecondary Education for students with IDD.
  • Description of Session: this training will provide participants with an overview of secondary transition resources available through the Statewide Autism Resources and Training (START) project. The Key Components of START’s Secondary Transition resources and training include Empowering Students; Education, Transition Services, and the IEP; Interagency Coordination and Collaboration; Planning for Competitive Integrated Employment; and Independent Living. Organized highlights and associated tools and resources from the Self-Paced Learning website will be shared, as well as relevant research supporting transition best and research-based practices from peer-reviewed articles from the fields of education, disabilities, psychology, and behavior.
  • Link to session recording
  • Link to session PowerPoint 
  • Link to Transition Resources

March  2025 TTS: Hosted by Region 4 

  • Date: Wednesday, March 19, 2025
  • Topic: Transition Assessments
  • Speakers: DPSCD Transition Team
    • LeKisha Franklin, Supervisor
    • Danita Holiman, Transition Specialist
    • Yolanda Talley, Transition Specialist
    • Tia Richardson, Transition Specialist
    • Steve Egland, Transition Specialist
  • Description of Session: Transition Assessments-Using Multiple Assessments to Develop a Comprehensive Transition Plan
  • Link to session recording
  • Link to session PowerPoint 
  • Link to Resources

April 2025 TTS: Hosted by Region 5 

  • Date: Wednesday, April 24, 2025, 3:30-5:00pm
  • Topic: Customized Employment
  • Speaker: Tricia Jones-Parkin
  • About the Speaker:  Tricia is a Public Service Faculty member at the Institute for Disability Policy and Practice, focusing on Customized Employment and Employment First practices. With extensive experience providing training, technical assistance, and capacity building, Tricia works with educators, vocational rehabilitation professionals, and disability service providers to expand meaningful employment opportunities for individuals with significant disabilities. Tricia has played a key role in implementing Customized Employment and Discovery within transition services in multiple states, including Utah, Iowa, and Rhode Island, helping school-based teams integrate these strategies into IEPs, transition assessments, and postsecondary planning.  Through coaching, professional development, and systems change efforts, Tricia supports collaboration among schools, vocational rehabilitation, and adult service agencies to ensure that all students—regardless of perceived barriers—can explore employment and contribute to their communities.  Passionate about breaking down employment barriers, Tricia facilitates Communities of Practice and innovative pilot projects to shift the narrative around work readiness. Her work focuses on person-centered approaches that move beyond assumptions and open doors to competitive, integrated employment for all.
  • Description of Session:  Students with significant disabilities, including those with complex support needs, are often excluded from meaningful transition discussions due to assumed limitations. Customized Employment (CE) principles offer a strengths-based approach for all students to explore employment and independence.  This session will showcase how the Iowa Department of Education, Iowa Vocational Rehabilitation Services, and Iowa Department for the Blind integrate CE and Discovery into transition services using the SDI framework. We will also examine Utah’s strategies for enhancing employment-focused transition practices.  Through examples, we’ll demonstrate how these practices help students develop a positive profile, engage in individualized exploration, and shape their transition planning based on unique strengths and interests.

Session Objectives:

  1. Understand the value of Customized Employment in transition services and how it can support students with significant disabilities, including those with complex support needs and dual sensory loss.
  2. Explore how CE principles align with SDI and transition planning to enhance IEP development, age-appropriate transition assessments, and postsecondary goal setting.
  3. Examine the Iowa and Utah implementation models and their impact on transition outcomes.
  4. Learn how multidisciplinary school-based teams can collaborate (including educators, VR counselors, AEA staff, case managers, and families) to support students in individualized employment exploration.