As an epilogue to this special issue, this article provides a brief overview of the research undertaken by the Rehabilitation Research and Training Center on Evidence-Based Practice in Vocational Rehabilitation (RRTC-EBP VR) in Phase II of their studies, and what was learned from the comprehensive review of the literature (e.g., Fleming, Del Valle, Kim & Leahy, 2013) and multi-state case studies in terms of promising practices in state VR agencies . Gaps identified in EBP research that hinders the implementation of efficacious, effective, and efficient services based on the best scientific evidence are discussed, and finally, recommendations for future research directions and knowledge translation initiatives that will improve the effectiveness of VR service delivery practices are provided.

Empowering individuals to actively engage in their own treatment is increasingly considered a cornerstone of highquality health care and rehabilitation services (Barello,

Objective: To examine the relations of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics’s (STEM) self-efficacy, outcome expectations, interests, and contextual supports and barriers to STEM educational goals in college students with disabilities from racial and ethnic minority backgroundsDesign: Quantitative descriptive research design using hierarchical regression analysis (HRA)Participants: 115 underrepresented minority students with disabilities receiving services from the National Science Foundation (NSF) funded Minority-Disability (MIND) Alliance in STEM project at Hunter College, City University of New York and Southern University at Baton Rouge for the years 2008−2011.Outcome Measures: The Social-Cognitive STEM measuresResults: The HRA results indicated that gender, advanced placement (AP) classes, father’s educational level, academic milestone self-efficacy, and STEM interest were significant predictors of goal persistence in African American and Hispanic college students with disabilities. The final model accounted for 57% of the variance in STEM persistence, which is considered a large effect size.Conclusion: The research findings provide good support for the use of the social cognitive career theory (SCCT) framework to identify predictors of STEM persistence and to design academic retention services and career development interventions for college students who are underrepresented minorities with disabilities.

PURPOSE: To present the findings of World Café focused community conversations organized to identify existing and needed resources for transition age youth with disabilities. DESIGN: A qualitative descriptive research design. PARTICIPANTS: 52 professionals, parents, and students with disabilities with knowledge of transition services for youth with disabilities residing in a medium size city in the southern U.S. RESULTS:The results identified five important areas of service for transition age youth with disabilities. They are (a) demand side focused vocational rehabilitation services, (b) transition services for building employment skills, (c) connecting existing community based resources, (d) advocacy services, and (e) parent and family involvement in transition. CONCLUSION:The study demonstrated the usefulness of community conversations in encouraging participants to think critically and in generating action plans to address a social exigency. In the process this study re-established the need for further investigation of the potential of community conversations to address key challenges facing diverse populations with disabilities, their families and communities, service providers, educators, researchers, and policy makers.

OBJECTIVE: To test the Social-Cognitive Career Theory (SCCT) as a STEM career interests and goal persistence model for minority college students with disabilities. METHODS: A quantitative descriptive research design using path analysis. Participants included 115 minority college students with disabilities from the Minority Disability Alliance in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (MIND Alliance) project. RESULTS:The results indicated that the SCCT causal model fits the data very well, with χ 2 /df = 1.15; CFI = 0.99; and RMSEA = 0.04. SCCT constructs accounted for 16% of the variance in STEM career interest and 48% of the variance in STEM goal persistence. CONCLUSION:The SCCT model provides useful guidance for designing postsecondary education interventions for minority students with disabilities in STEM education to help crystalize their career interest and increase goal persistence.