Part B State Performance Plan (SPP) for 2005-2010

Overview of the State Performance Plan Development

See Overview of the State Performance Plan Development preceding Indicator #1.  In addition to the plan development activities described previously, the Department sought the input on data collection for this indicator with the transition subcommittee of the Commissioner's Advisory Panel for Special Education, representatives of the Transition Coordination Sites (TCS) and representatives of the Employment and Disability Institute of Cornell University working on TransQUAL Online, a tool to support school district teams to improve their practices in career development and transition. 

Monitoring Priority:  Effective General Supervision Part B / Effective Transition

 

Indicator #13:  Percent of youth aged 15[2] and above with an IEP that includes coordinated, measurable, annual IEP goals and transition services that will reasonably enable the student to meet the post-secondary goals.

 

(20 U.S.C. 1416(a)(3)(B))

 

 

Overview of Issue/Description of System or Process

 

State law and regulations define transition services to mean a coordinated set of activities for a student with a disability, designed within a results-oriented process that is focused on improving the academic and functional achievement of the student with a disability to facilitate the student's movement from school to post-school activities, including, but not limited to, post-secondary education, vocational education, integrated competitive employment (including supported employment), continuing and adult education, adult services, independent living, or community participation.  The coordinated set of activities must be based on the individual student's needs, taking into account the student's strengths, preferences and interests, and must include needed activities in 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.

 

When the purpose of an IEP meeting is to consider transition services, the meeting notice must indicate this purpose, indicate that the school district/agency will invite the student to participate in the meeting; and identify any other agency that will be invited to send a representative.

 

In NYS, transition services must be on a student's IEP beginning not later than the first IEP to be in effect when the student is age 15 (and at a younger age, if determined appropriate), and updated annually.  The IEP must, under the applicable components of the student’s IEP, include:

• under the student’s present levels of performance, a statement of the student's needs, taking into account the student's strengths, preferences and interests, as they relate to transition from school to post-school activities;

• appropriate measurable postsecondary goals based upon age appropriate transition assessments relating to training, education, employment and, where appropriate, independent living skills;

• statement of the transition service needs of the student that focuses on the student's courses of study, such as participation in advanced-placement courses or a vocational education program;

• needed activities to facilitate the student’s movement from school to post-school activities, including 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; and

•  a statement of the responsibilities of the school district and, when applicable, participating agencies for the provision of such services and activities that promote movement from school to post-school opportunities, or both, before the student leaves the school setting.

VESID’s Strategic Plan Goals, Key Performance Indicators and Targets (June 2004, revised October 2004) included the Key Performance Indicator, “Individualized Education Program (IEP) with transition goals, objectives and services for students with disabilities.” 

Plan to collect baseline data

 

NYS will collect data from a statewide representative sample of school districts on this indicator and use a monitoring protocol to select and review the IEPs in the representative sample of school districts. Over a six-year period beginning with the 2005-06 school year, all school districts will provide data on this indicator.

 

Sampling methodology

 

NYS has distributed all school districts among six statewide representative samples. These six groups of school districts were tested with Analysis of Variance (ANOVA) and there was no statistical difference among the six groups of school districts on the population variables described in Attachment 2.  These population variables were from the 2000 decennial census.  New York City is the only school district in the State with a total enrollment of 50,000 or more students, so it will be represented in each of the six samples.

 

By January 2006, SED will notify the selected sample districts that they must conduct a self-review of a randomly selected sample of IEPs of all students with disabilities ages 15-21. 

 

Federal Indicator Number	Eligible Population of Students From Which A Random Sample Must be Selected	Minimum Number of Students in the Sample	Method for Selecting Students	Required Documentation
13	All students with disabilities ages 15-21 who are provided special education services in district-operated programs or under contract with other service providers.	All students up to 30 eligible students.   NYC samples 100 students.	Random selection using a random number table	Documentation period is seven years.   Maintain list of all eligible students, copy of Random Number Table used, beginning random number for selecting students and list of all students who were selected and their number

 

A school district may choose to review additional IEPs above the minimum number in order to improve the confidence with which results can be generalized to the entire population especially when there is wide variation in the results.  In some cases, the State may require the review of additional IEPs. 

 

SED will require that school districts maintain documentation as described above if they choose to report data on a sample of students. The totally random sampling methodology and required documentation should eliminate selection bias.  The State will attempt to prevent missing data by first describing precisely what SED needs to collect, providing technical assistance and then following up with school districts to request missing data. The completeness of data collection will improve after the first year and will continue to improve as long as requirements remain unchanged.  All issues of confidentiality will be handled in accordance with the rules and procedures in FERPA. SED will also guard against divulging personally identifiable information by not reporting results when there are less than five students for whom data are available or when those results can be easily calculated based on other data provided. 

 

IEP Review Process

 

By February 2006, SED will provide an “IEP/Transition Self-Review” monitoring protocol to all school districts.  The school districts selected for the representative sample will be directed to complete the “Transition IEP” self-review monitoring protocol on a representative sample of IEPs and document results on a form prescribed by SED.  The form will require documentation of the percent of students whose IEPs met each of the compliance requirements on the monitoring protocol.  The State is exploring the development of an on-line reporting system (e.g., an adaptation of the TransQUAL, Online system) through which school districts would be required to submit the aggregate results of the self-review.   SED will arrange for professional development on the self-review protocol and TransQUAL, Online system through TCS and SETRC.  Training will be ongoing in subsequent years, as needed.

 

Districts will be directed to complete and enter data on their IEP reviews by August 31.  SED will arrange for random verification reviews of reported data in school districts in each SEQA region.  All school districts identified through the self-review or verification process as not having IEPs that include appropriate documentation of post-secondary goals and transition services on a student's IEP will be directed to correct the noncompliance as soon as possible, but no later than one year from the date of identification. 

 

The review of IEPs required a determination as to whether the IEPs in the sample selected included specific transition content information and whether the content of the IEP would reasonably enable the student to meet measurable post-secondary goals.  A qualitative review of the IEPs around the following eight components was conducted:

• Students actively participate in planning their educational programs leading toward achievement of post-secondary goals.

• IEPs are individualized and are based on the assessment information about the student's, including individual needs, preferences, interests and strengths of the students.
• Transition needs identified in the students' assessment information are included in the students' present levels of performance.

• Annual goals address students' transition needs identified in the present levels of performance and are calculated to help each student progress incrementally toward the attainment of the post-secondary goals.

• The recommended special education programs and services will assist the students to meet their annual goals relating to transition.

• The statements of needed transition services are developed in consideration of the students' needs, preferences and interests, are directly related to the students' goals beyond secondary education and will assist the students to reach their post-secondary goals.

• Courses of student are linked to attainment of the students' post-secondary goals.
• The school district and appropriate participating agencies coordinate their activities in support of the students' attainment of post-secondary goals.

Baseline Data for FFY 2005 (2005-06)

 

33.3 percent of youth, ages 15 and above, had IEPs that included coordinated, measurable annual IEP goals and transition services to reasonably enable them to meet their post-secondary goals.

 

Discussion of Baseline Data

 

The 2005 baseline data is based on the monitoring review of IEPs from a representative sample of 108 school districts, including New York City.  The total number of students with IEPs, ages 15-21 in NYS during the 2005-06 school year was 54,780.  The total number of IEPs reviewed from these representative school districts was 3,541.  Of the 3,541 IEPs, 1,176 were found to have been in compliance with all IEP transition requirements.

 

Of the 108 school districts:

• 43 school districts reported that 0 percent of their student's IEPs that were reviewed met compliance with the IEP transition requirements.

• 34 school districts reported between 1 and 49 percent of their students' IEPs that were reviewed met the transition requirements.

• 12 school districts reported between 50 and 79 percent of their IEPs that were reviewed met the transition requirements

• 19 percent reported between 80 and 100 percent of IEPs that were reviewed met the transition requirements.

Regional variations are noted in the following chart.  NYC, from which nearly one third of the students with disabilities are educated, reported that none of their IEPs met all of the compliance indicators.    

 

 

 

Technical assistance personnel from VESID's funded TCSs and/or SETRC facilitated the reviews of most of the school districts compliance with this indicator.  This served as part of the verification process and afforded districts technical assistance during the compliance review.  In most cases it was indicated that districts are often providing appropriate transition programs and services but not accurately documenting this information on the students' IEPs.

 

Data for each of the eight compliance indicators is reported in the chart below.  Major findings include:

• 23 percent of districts reported compliance with the requirement for measurable post-secondary goals.  This is a new requirement for school districts (IDEA 2004).

• 24 percent reported compliance with documenting a student's transition needs under the IEP section "present levels of performance."  However, TCS and SETRC staff participating in these reviews reported that district staff were generally able to orally describe the student's needs, but often failed to accurately capture those needs in writing in the IEPs.

• More than 70 percent of school districts were in compliance with the requirement to document recommended special education programs and services.

•  More than 57 percent of the school districts invited and/or otherwise provided for the student's participation in the transition planning process. 

 

 

 

Measurable and Rigorous Targets

 

FFY	Measurable and Rigorous Target
2005 (2005-06)	100 percent of youth* aged 15 and above will have IEPs that include coordinated, measurable, annual IEP goals and transition services that will reasonably enable the student to meet the post-secondary goals.
2006 (2006-07)	100 percent of youth* aged 15 and above will have IEPs that include coordinated, measurable, annual IEP goals and transition services that will reasonably enable the student to meet the post-secondary goals.
2007 (2007-08)	100 percent of youth* aged 15 and above will have IEPs that include coordinated, measurable, annual IEP goals and transition services that will reasonably enable the student to meet the post-secondary goals.
2008 (2008-09)	100 percent of youth* aged 15 and above will have IEPs that include coordinated, measurable, annual IEP goals and transition services that will reasonably enable the student to meet the post-secondary goals.
2009 (2009-10)	100 percent of youth* aged 15 and above will have IEPs that include coordinated, measurable, annual IEP goals and transition services that will reasonably enable the student to meet the post-secondary goals.
2010 (2010-11)	100 percent of youth* aged 15 and above will have IEPs that include coordinated, measurable, annual IEP goals and transition services that will reasonably enable the student to meet the post-secondary goals.

* percent of youth with IEPs reviewed