The question of what happens after high school looms large for every child as they complete their educational journey. This question looms even larger for children with special needs.
Special needs is a spectrum of abilities with students who need minimal assistance to students who need a great deal of assistance to achieve success. What happens to those students once high school has ended?
According to the Council for Exceptional Children, as many as one-third of people living in poverty have disabilities, and “72% of individuals with disabilities are unemployed”. (https://exceptionalchildren.org/blog/preparing-students-real-world-lce,May 2020)
Our special education students who need the most assistance, but also qualify to stay in our district, have two programs available to them at the secondary level, Life Skills, and Basic Skills. At the high school level Life Skills and Basic Skills, students have several opportunities to improve their job skills through their daily curricular activities combined with daily and weekly activities such as the Sweet Treat Cafe, Cafe 113, Recycling, and our newest addition, the PAES Lab.
Sweet Treat Cafe is a weekly program where students working in conjunction with our cafeteria staff sell quick buy treats to other students during the lunch periods. The Basic Skills students operate the cash register learning how to complete transactions as well as gaining socialization skills in customer service.
Cafe 113 is a bi-monthly cafe open on Friday mornings to staff members in the high school and the middle school. Cafe 113 offers both pick up and delivery. Students in the Life Skills program prepare treats like bacon/egg/cheese bagels, quiche, hashbrown casseroles, banana bread, coffee cake and coffee,tea, and bottled water. Their classroom is transformed into a grab-and-go cafe where staff members can come and buy their products or they can request delivery! Quiches and baked items are available to buy by the slice or the entire pan. Staff submits orders by Google Form and then students work to fill the orders. The students learn how to prepare the menu and inventory so that they keep up with the supplies they need; they practice their customer service and delivery skills as well as use their computer skills to collect and fulfill the orders and run the cash register as well as keep track of the accounting of how the cafe is doing.
The Recycling Program gives the students not only an opportunity to practice vocational skills, but also improve the environment and fundraise for upcoming class trips. Students collect bottles and cans from classrooms and then sort them into two categories: Bottles that Can Be Returned for Cash, and Bottles that Can Be Recycled.
Soft Skills provides students within the 11/12th-grade Basic Skills classroom the opportunity to learn the skills that are needed for the workplace environment. The topics taught alternate every year. Skills to Pay the Bills to provide career and workplace readiness skills in the areas of Communication, Enthusiasm & Attitude, Teamwork, Networking, Problem Solving & Critical Thinking, and Professionalism. Youth @ Work Talking Safety, the NIOSH certified program, teaches core health and safety skills and knowledge as well as covers basic information relevant to any occupation at any stage of work life. Teens learn how hazards can be controlled, what to do in an emergency, what rights they have on the job, and how to speak up effectively when problems arise at work. The students also work on completing applications and various other work-related forms. Each student creates a resume and participates in mock job interviews.
The PAES Lab was introduced in September 2021 at VCHS. The district has invested in the Practical Assessment Exploration System, a product of Talent Assessment Inc and Life Productions Inc. The goal of this system is to introduce and teach students employability skills for 200 different community-level jobs. On a daily basis, students are assessed on their ability to complete certain tasks and their performance determines their next responsibilities.
In the PAES Lab at VCHS, students become employees and their teacher becomes the employer. This program allows students to explore various jobs, use real tools, and develop proper work behaviors in five fields of employment: Business/ Marketing, Computer Technology, Construction/ Industrial, Consumer/ Service, and Processing/ Production.
The skillset for Business/Marketing includes alphabetizing, identification/filing, numerical sorting, collating, making change, ten-key calculator, cash register, and typing.
The skillset for Computer Technology includes data entry, word processing, mailing technology, e-mail, information technology, information management, PowerPoint, and digital photos.
The skillset for Construction/ Industrial includes shop measurement, wrenches, and bolts, screws and nails, shop saws, wood projects, metal projects, electrical projects, and parts identification.
The skillset for Consumer/Service includes food measurement, food preparation, kitchen appliances, food service, food weights, cloth measurement, hand sewing, machine sewing, cloth construction, housekeeping, and custodial.
The skillset for Processing/Production includes bolt assembly, pipe assembly, color assembly, form design, peg design, visual perception, thread design, paper cutting, analog time, and digital time.
Upon completion of the PAES program, families will be given a comprehensive performance summary report that will inform them of their child’s employment strengths and abilities to best support their independence. The students who complete this program will have a clearer career path, allowing them to contribute and feel connected to their local community.
These programs for our Life Skills and Basic Skills students help to ensure that they are developing vocational skills to help them succeed in their lives beyond high school.
Another program that can help aid in the success of our special education students after they complete high school is ACCES-VR. It is a program available to any level special needs student (or students with 504 plans) and they are encouraged to apply when in junior or senior year.
ACCES-VR can help eligible individuals with a disability plan for a career, get training to achieve work goals, and find employment that matches personal abilities, interests, and needs. ACCES-VR works with students, families, and school districts to coordinate appropriate services for students with disabilities who are leaving secondary education and entering the world of work, post-secondary education, or rehabilitation services.
These collaborative efforts are crucial to help support students in achieving maximum success in post-high school endeavors. To connect with ACCES-VR, please complete this application and return it to the Valley Central High School Guidance Office.