Transcript NCO presents

New Community Opportunities Center
at ILRU Presents…
CIL Strategies for Involving Parents in the
Transition Process
June 29, 2011
Presented by:
Aaron Baier
Jayne Chase
Stacey Milbern
New Community Opportunities Center at ILRU – Independent Living Research Utilization
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New Community Opportunities Center
at ILRU Presents…
CIL Strategies for Involving Parents in the
Transition Process
June 29, 2011
Presented by:
Aaron Baier
Jayne Chase
Stacey Milbern
New Community Opportunities Center at ILRU – Independent Living Research Utilization
1
Purpose of the Project
This presentation is part of a series of trainings
and other activities provided to the IL field by the
New Community Opportunities Center at ILRU.
The project’s purpose is to assist CILs in
developing self-sustaining programs that support
community alternatives to institutionalization for
individuals of any age, and youth transition from
school to post-secondary education, employment,
and community living.
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Youth Transition Project Team
ILRU’s partners and collaborators in the youth
transition activities include
• Utah State University, Center for Persons with
Disabilities
• National Youth Leadership Network
• Michele Martin, Social Media Consultant
• Margo Vreeburg Izzo, Ohio State’s Nisonger
Center
• Association of Programs for Rural Independent
Living
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You will learn…
 The important role and value of parental
involvement at key points in the youth transition
process
 When and how Centers can involve parents in a
way that maintains consumer self-determination
 Best practices and strategies to assist parents with
challenging situations through real life examples of
effective parent/child collaboration through the
transition process
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Common Perception of Youth and
Families in the Transition Process
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“They don’t know.”
“They don’t care.”
“They can’t / don’t have the skills to do this.”
“What made them become parents?”
“We know better than they do about this.”
New Community Opportunities Center at ILRU – Independent Living Research Utilization
Systemic Reasons for these
Perceptions
• Ableism – system of power that favors people
marked as able-bodied and polices those marked
as having a disability
• Ageism – system of power that says people of a
certain age group (e.g. older people, youth) are
less valuable or deserving of self-determination
• Classism and racism
• Presumed incompetence
• Paternalism
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Who/What is a Parent?
• What has traditionally been viewed as a parent(s)
devalues/excludes youth who do not have this
traditional model as a part of their lives.
• Biological or Adoptive
• Foster
• Grandparents
• Older Sibling
• Adult Ally
• How can we move beyond this definition of
“parent” into an understanding of a support
system?
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The Role of Parents/Support System
• Parents are sometimes the one consistent
relationship in a young person’s life.
• Parents often provide, among other things:
Food
Shelter
Transportation
Medical Care / Disability-related Access Support
Learning Educational Laws (www.wrightslaw.com)
Keeping track of appointments
Support for young person’s dreams
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Take Time to Know Your Customer
• What does this support system look like? Different
generations often share one roof. Familiarize
yourself with diverse living situations.
• What barriers are in place for this family? e.g. lack
of interpreter, parents who are linguistically diverse
especially need support to navigate the transition
process.
• Does the parent work? Who are other people
providing support?
• How does power play out between the adult, young
person, others? Is there harm taking place?
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What Parents Wish You Knew
• Parents often feel, due to prior experiences, they
are asked to participate in meetings simply
because it is required and do not feel their
contribution is valued nor listened to.
– Listen to me - I know better than anyone, my
son or daughter’s unique gifts and talents
– I can go to school to learn what you know, there
is nowhere for you to go to learn what I know
– I know you do this every day but these concepts
are sometimes frightening, please respect and
recognize my feelings
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Independent Living is not a Place
• The very term, Independent Living, is often times
viewed as unobtainable to a young person with a
disability and/or their parents or support system
due to the misconception of the word Independent
• Talk to me about Interdependence
• Know Best Practices
“I have fought for years for my son to be in fully
inclusive schools, do not talk to me about
segregated work or living arrangements”
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Transition is a Rite of Passage
• Too often for students with disabilities, the word
transition is just another word which means
separate and apart from community and students
without disabilities.
• The Transition Process should be celebrated as a
rite of passage for students with disabilities as
other rites are celebrated for students without
disabilities.
• “I am not ‘grieving’ because of my son’s
disability.”
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Questions and Answers
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Consider Existing Youth
Programming
May include:
• Peer Counseling / Mentoring / Support
• Advocacy Services – Within Schools or Vocational
Rehabilitation Services
• Peer Support / Youth-Run Groups
• Tutoring / Educational Assistance
• Job / Life Skills Workshops and Trainings
• General Education for Students (Disability History,
etc)
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 CIL  Youth  Parent 
• CIL Employees are often going to be a liaison
between the young person, their parents, and
other organizations/entities.
• Network and find appropriate connections in the
community that can benefit the young person and
will aid in the transition process.
• Remember, while the young person is driving their
own transition, it is okay for the CIL and Parent to
provide positive support and direction.
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Consider the Young Person’s Goals
• College / Trade School
• Employment / Career
• Undecided / Unmotivated
 Look closely at these goals. Break them down into
smaller objectives that the young person will need
to achieve.
 This is where parental involvement and support
will be most important!
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What does Parent Involvement Look
Like?
• College / Trade School
– Encouragement
– Graduation with “high school diploma” (study,
accommodations, tutoring)
– ASAT / SAT Preparation (study)
– Seeking out Appropriate College (Tours)
– Financial Aid (FAFSA, Scholarships)
– What to expect during first year of college
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What does Parent Involvement Look
Like? cont’d.
• Employment / Career
– Encouragement
– Allow choice in career
– Job readiness support
– Applications, Resumes, Cover Letters, oh my…
– Positive Attitude / Appropriate Behavior
– Time Management
– Money Management
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What does Parent Involvement Look
Like? cont’d. 2
• Undecided / Unmotivated
– Encouragement
– Think outside the box for ways a young person
can use their unique talents
– Show Options (college tours, bring to work,
volunteerism)
– Positive Optimism (I know you’ll figure it out)
– High Expectations / Challenge
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Provide Support to Parents
• Parents are often scared to let go of the control
they once had over their young person’s life.
Provide support to ensure they don’t…
• try for a hostile takeover
• feel a lessened value
• drop out too quickly
• Facilitate a “mutual agreement” between the
young person and parent
• Be a gentle reminder to the parent
• Keep things positive, with everyone
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Outreach to Parents
• Hopefully, the parent is seeking involvement from the
beginning. However, some young people seek out assistance
themselves, or through school.
• Support young person’s self determination. Ask how they see
their parent/adult ally being involved. Remember to:
– Maintain Confidentiality
– Call parent to inform of participation
– Encourage parents through outreach to be more involved
(if they aren’t)
– Keep parent apprised of drastic changes in young person’s
life
– Send home information and updates to help parents know
where they can provide support
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Provide Support to Parent, cont’d
Facilitate a Parent Mentorship Group
• Create an open forum for parents to discuss
positive outcomes and air their concerns
• Moderate to ensure the group keeps their young
people in the “driver’s seat”
• Teach strategies for helping parents support their
young people to become more independent
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Foreseeable Barriers
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Lack of Parent Involvement
Inaccessibility for parents / Work schedule
Past experiences / Lack of trust / Disconnection
Bad power dynamics – Harmful behavior
Dependence on SSA Benefits
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Questions and Answers
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On the Ground…Best Practices
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Detroit Summer
• Youth led with authentic
intergenerational support
• Tools – skill-shares, potluck,
media making
• Addresses issues by focusing
on how to solve them with
community transformation
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NYLN Reap What You Sow
• A youth-made curriculum that says
family must be in the trenches with
us and includes support systems
receiving political education, thinking
about their own support systems and
creating goals
• Focuses on interdependence,
maximizing self-determination, and
creating spaces where we can be
safe / whole
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Putting Young People “at the Center”
• What would it look like for a transition program to
be youth-led? e.g. a CIL staff person who is a
young person with a disability-- what would have
to happen to support that young person’s work
and development?
• How do we support youth voice and understand
the power of this work, especially in a world where
youth with disabilities do not experience much self
determination?
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CIL Case Study: Christine
CIL contacted by mental health counselor. Young person,
pressured toward IEP Diploma, unmotivated. Parent feared
youth being labeled as mentally ill. CIL provided…
• Peer Counseling
• Goal Development
• IEP Advocacy
• Career Exploration
• Study Assistance
• Participation in Peer Youth Group
• Parent remained active throughout and in many cases
was the determining factor for Christine to follow-through
and as a result she graduated with a high school diploma.
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Recap!
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It takes a village…
• How can we support parent involvement? What
does accessibility look like to working class
parents? Parents who do not speak English? Single
parents?
• How can we incorporate young people building
support systems that involve other people?
Siblings? Teachers? Neighbors?
• How can we support intergenerational
mentorship? Peer mentorship?
• What else??
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Questions and Answers
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Resources
• www.nyln.org – National Youth Leadership
Network
• www.wrightslaw.com – site for parents/advocates
to learn about educational laws
• www.kidstogether.org – Information & resources
for children and adults with disabilities
Check out Community and Perspectives!
• www.bls.gov/k12/ - The Bureau of Labor Statistics
• http://www.arcnetc.org/uploads/Guardianship_an
d_Alternatives_.pdf - Guardianship Alternatives
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Contact Information
• Aaron T. Baier
• Jayne Chase
• Stacey Milbern
[email protected]
[email protected]
[email protected]
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Wrap Up and Evaluation
• Please complete the evaluation of this program by
clicking here:
https://vovici.com/wsb.dll/s/12291g4a93f
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New Community Opportunities
Attribution
This webinar is presented by the New Community
Opportunities Center, a national training and technical
assistance project of ILRU, Independent Living Research
Utilization. Support for development of this presentation
was provided by the U.S. Department of Education,
Rehabilitation Services Administration under grant number
H400B100003. No official endorsement of the Department
of Education should be inferred. Permission is granted for
duplication of any portion of this slide presentation,
providing that the following credit is given to the project:
Developed as part of the New Community Opportunities
Center at ILRU.
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