•  The South Hadley Public Schools are committed to providing comprehensive transition services to students who have IEP's.  

    FEDERAL TRANSITION REQUIREMENTS:

    Comprehensive transition services are defined under federal law (IDEA 2004 section 602 s. 34) as:

    a coordinated set of activities for a child with a disability that--

     (A) is designed to be within a results-oriented process, that is focused on improving the academic and functional achievement of the child with a disability to facilitate the child's movement from school to post-school activities, including post-secondary education, vocational education, integrated employment (including supported employment), continuing and adult education, adult services, independent living, or community participation;

    (B) is based on the individual child's needs, taking into account the child's strengths, preferences and interests; and

    (C) includes instruction, related services, community experiences, the development of employment and other post-school adult living objectives, and when appropriate, acquisition of daily living skills and functional vocational evaluation.

    TRANSITION REQUIREMENTS IN MASSACHUSETTS:

    In the summer of 2008, the Massachusetts legislature passed a new law requiring schools to initiate special education transition planning and transition services at age 14 (federal law requires that planning begin at age 16 or younger if appropriate).

    In accordance with this requirement, the IEP teams of students who will turn 14 during the upcoming IEP period should be discussing transition planning & services, and should complete transition assessments and the Individual Transition Planning form as part of the annual team meeting.

    One way that students and parents can prepare for transition planning is to review the Individual Transition Planning (ITP) Form prior to the meeting and come prepared to talk about the student's vision for the future, concerns & needs related to life after high school, and priorities for transition planning & services for the upcoming IEP period.  For a copy of the ITP form, see the "Transition Planning Form" link on the top right side of this page.

    LOCAL TRANSITION RESOURCES:

    Contact the Student Services office or click on the link below to download the South Hadley Public Schools Transition Resource Packet