Perspectives on the implementation of pre-ETS services: Identification of barriers and facilitators to early career planning for youth with disabilities

Abstract

BACKGROUND: There are differences between and within states in the delivery of Pre-Employment Transition Services (Pre-ETS) for students with significant disabilities early in their career planning process. This complicates the delivery of services for these youth with disabilities (YWD) and leaves gaps in communication between families, educators, and vocational rehabilitation (VR) counselors. OBJECTIVE: To identify facilitators and barriers in the implementation of Pre-ETS to students with significant disabilities ages 14–16. Additionally, to gather data from rural, urban, and suburban areas spanning across two states to analyze the similarities and differences between these states. METHODS: Researchers from Virginia and Kentucky conducted semi-structured interviews with 56 participants representing VR counselors providing Pre-ETS, educators, and families. RESULTS: A majority of respondents stated that starting Pre-ETS with 14–16 year-olds provided numerous benefits. In both Virginia and Kentucky, educators and VR counselors expressed the need for more resources, particularly ongoing training for providing Pre-ETS to younger students in the transition process. Families recommended making activities meaningful and engaging by increasing job exploration and workplace readiness experiences. CONCLUSION: The results of the study provide insight on the implementation of Pre-ETS activities in local communities across two states. Implications are discussed for providing Pre-ETS to students with significant disabilities early in their career planning process.

Transition self-assessment tool: The development and field testing of a statewide assessment of pre-employment transition services

“…Diving deeper into the results of Work-Based Learning Experiences, TSAT data show that paid work experiences are among the least frequently accessed services out of the 101 TSAT items. While this finding is not entirely surprising giving the recent scholarship on Pre-ETS (e.g., Bromley et al, 2022;Lambert et al, 2023), it is still perplexing given the longstanding evidence that paid work experiences have a significant impact on students' with disabilities post-school employment outcomes (e.g., Carter et al, 2012;Mazzotti et al, 2021). We recommend that VR agencies use this information to intensify their focus on Work-Based Learning Experiences.…”

“…Since WIOA was signed into law in 2014, VR agencies have been addressing barriers to effective and equitable transition services such as creating shared understanding of these services, building local partnerships, partnering with families, and addressing disparate transition outcomes based on race, sex, and disability category (e.g., Awsumb et al, 2020;Frentzel et al, 2021;Poppen et al, 2021;Wilt & Morningstar, 2019). Yet, these barriers persist and are compounded by imperfect communication between VR and state education agencies (SEAs) and LEAs, and limited time and resources (e.g., Carter et al, 2021;Lambert et al, 2023;Zhang et al, 2023). Furthermore, VR agencies have continued to struggle with translating policy into practice to meet WIOA requirements (e.g., GAO, 2018;Taylor et al, 2022;Whittenburg et al, 2023).…”

Preliminary data from effects of knowledge translation methods on VR counselors providing pre-ETS to youth with significant disabilities: A brief report

“…In Phase 1, we conducted interviews to hone in on ways to address barriers and enhance facilitators, as well as the KT strategies that Pre-ETS counselors will prefer (Lambert et al, 2023). Demographic information was also collected to ensure representation from a variety of disability categories, as well as representation from rural, suburban, and urban areas.…”

“…Across VR counselors, educators, and families, participants felt that providing an interest-driven community-based experience was lacking (Lambert et al, 2023). Participants wanted students with significant disabilities to be exposed to those experiences as early as possible in order to have consistency of exposure, while giving a variety of possibilities.…”

State-level characteristics and trends in pre-employment transition service delivery to students with disabilities

“…Therefore, receipt of Pre-ETS for any one student is somewhat impacted by the limits of the training received by local providers and the resources they have available to provide these services. Overall, educators and service providers agree that students still need better preparation for post-school employment and indicate a desire for further training in Pre-ETS, better instructions on providing Pre-ETS to younger students (ages 14-16), more extensive collaboration with key partners, and a greater emphasis on individual interest-driven experiences during Pre-ETS (Awsumb et al, 2020;Carter et al, 2021;Lambert et al, 2023;Lau & McKelvey, 2023).…”