Transcript IMPROVING POST-SCHOOL OUTCOMES FOR MINORITIES WITH

IMPROVING OUTCOMES FOR MINORITY
WOMEN WITH DISABILITIES: COMPLEX
PROBLEMS REQUIRE COMPLEX SOLUTIONS
FABRICIO E BALCAZAR, PhD
Center on Capacity Building for Minorities with
Disabilities Research
UNIVERSITY OF ILLINOIS AT CHICAGO
STARTING POINT:
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Prevailing approaches to school improvement
do not effectively deal with factors leading to
and maintaining students’ problems, specially
in low-income communities of color.
REALITY OF URBAN ENVIRONMENTS
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Unstable neighborhoods
 Over committed families (multiple jobs,
multiple dependents, unemployment)
 Poor housing and transportation options
 Limited communication/collaboration
between social service & advocacy
organizations (ILC’s, VR, CBOs, schools)
Under-resourced schools
 Stressed organizations have a difficult time
of implementing “Best Practices”
 Unfair school funding formulas (property
taxes)
REALITY IN URBAN ENVIRONMENTS (CONTINUED)
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High demand on service providers contribute to
 Poor person-centered planning (e.g., IEPs, ITPG’s)
 Challenges of involving social support (families,
peers, friends)
 Challenges with collaborating with other agencies &
service providers
 Poor individual outcomes
 Academic (i.e., schools placed on academic
probation, high dropout rates, “crisis” driven
intervention and support)
 Transition (i.e., employment, independent living,
post-secondary education)
REALITY IN URBAN ENVIRONMENTS (CONTINUED)
Students are unmotivated and many do not care
about their education. They do not see education
as a real mechanism for social mobility
 Many teachers do not expect minority students
with disabilities to go to college and pursue posthigh school education. They do not challenge or
have high expectations for these students
 Most low-income minority families have similar low
expectations about their children with disabilities
and are unaware of VR and other college
assistance programs
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ISSUES FOR WOMEN WITH DISABILITIES
Pregnancy
 Dropout
 Lower incomes than boys
 Low expectations from parents and teachers
 Dependency
 Low self-esteem
 Discrimination

WHAT IS MISSING?
Direct facilitation of development and learning
 Addressing contextual barriers

ENABLING COMPONENT
(1)
Addressing
interfering factors
(2)
Re-engaging
students in
classroom
instruction
ADDRESSING INTERFERING FACTORS:
The College Connection to Career Development
and Choices in Transition Projects from UIC
 Projects funded by RSA and OSERS

The College Connection to Career Development
Intervention Model
CPS
Organizations
Activities
Outreach
&
Training
Service
Delivery
CCC
UIC Case
Manager
Special
Education
Personnel
Skills
•College Application
Development •Finical Aid
•Vocational Assessment
•Job Shadowing
•Training in goal setting
action planning and
help-recruiting
•Self-Advocacy training
IORS
Post-Secondary
Support
UIC Case
Manager
Disability
Services
Personnel
•Tutoring
•Curriculum Adaptations
•Assistive technology
•Problem Solving
•Advocacy regarding
rights & Services
•Peer Support
Job
Development
UIC Case
Manager
On-the-job
Support
CCC
Career
UIC Case
Dev. Office Manager
Personnel
•Job Searching
•Job Interviewing
•Resume writing
•Job Clubs
VR
Counselor
•Job Etiquette
•Job Maintenance
•Career Advice
•Assistive Tech.
WHAT DID THE CASE MANAGERS DO?
Problem solving with the students (including
crisis managing)
 Parents’ education and negotiation
(referrals)
 Classroom support, co-teaching (at high
schools); visits to colleges; test preparation
 Advocacy at the city colleges (dealing with
teachers; accessibility); tutoring
 Scheduled VR appointments with
counselors; advocacy
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134 (82%) OF PARTICIPANTS PLACED IN
POST-SECONDARY EDUCATION PROGRAMS
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Associate’s credit (30)
Office specialist (19)
Pre-college credit (12)
Referred to IORS for job
placement (9)
Pharmacy tech (6)
A+ certification (5)
Security training (5)
Auto-mechanic program (4)
CNA (4)
Medical billing/coding (4)
Cosmetology (3)
Vocational training through
Harold Washington College (3)
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Computer literacy (3)
4-year college (2)
Radiology (2)
EMT (2)
Computer graphics (2)
Medical terminology (2)
Electronic industrial
maintenance mgr. (2)
Medical office specialist (2)
Fiber optics, electrical classes,
carpentry, sign language &
PT/OT (1 each)
Dropped for various reasons (8)
CONCLUSIONS
The school does not function independently of
the issues of the community that surrounds it.
It is an integral part and a reflection of the
problems affecting the community.
 There is a need for comprehensive school
reform that promotes school engagement in
classroom instruction and deals with the
multiple barriers facing low-performing youth.

CONCLUSIONS (CONTINUED)
The school services and supports should be
coordinated with community agencies and
state programs that deal with the multiple
barriers that low-performing students face.
 Additional resources could be used to build the
networks and provide the supports
(comprehensive case management) that lowincome students with disabilities and their
families need to graduate.

CONCLUSIONS (CONTINUED)
We need to agree on what success means for
low-income minority youth with disabilities.
Graduating with low standards or aging-out is
not.
 There is great variability among schools,
districts, and states with regards to transition
preparation and outcomes. There is a need for
instituting and enforcing national standards for
transition planning, preparation and curricula
based on specific skills and experiences that
promote post-high school employment.

CONCLUSIONS (CONTINUED)

Adult education and certificate programs at
local colleges can offer multiple career
opportunities to youth with disabilities. Some of
these programs could be offered while the
students are still in high school, since most
professional training programs have been
eliminated as a result of the NCLB emphasis on
meeting academic standards.
REFERENCES
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Garcia-Iriarte, E., Balcazar, F. E., & Taylor-Ritzler, T. (2007).
Analysis of case managers’ support of youth with disabilities
transitioning from school to work. Journal of Vocational
Rehabilitation, 26, 129-140.
McDonald, K. E., Keys, C. B., & Balcazar, F. E. (2007).
Disability, race/ethnicity and gender: Themes of cultural
oppression, acts of individual resistance. American Journal
of Community Psychology, 39, 145-161.
National Center for Mental Health in Schools at UCLA
(2008). Frameworks for systematic transformation of
students and learning supports. Los Angeles, CA: Author.
http://smhp.psych.ucla.edu