Authorizes school districts that provide transition services to allow the delivery of such transition services, including integrated employment, during school hours.
Summary
This bill amends the Education Law to expressly allow school districts that provide transition services for students with disabilities to deliver those services during school hours. The authorization applies in particular to transition services in the last three years of secondary education and specifically includes vocational training programs approved by the State Education Department or another state agency, as well as integrated employment opportunities.
The measure is aimed at making transition planning more flexible for students with disabilities by permitting work-based learning, vocational preparation, and other transition activities to occur during the school day rather than only outside regular instructional hours. It does not require districts to offer these services, but clarifies that districts may do so when such services are selected as part of a student’s special education program.
Impact
The bill would amend section 4402 of the Education Law, affecting the rules governing special education services and transition programming for students with disabilities. Its practical effect is to remove any legal uncertainty that might prevent school districts from scheduling approved transition services, including integrated employment and vocational training, during school hours in the final three years of secondary education. School districts, committees on special education, students with disabilities, and providers of approved vocational or employment-based programs would be the primary parties affected.
Sentiment
Based on the bill’s purpose and the absence of recorded opposition in the provided materials, the measure appears to have a generally supportive and practical policy rationale. It is framed as a flexibility and access bill for students with disabilities, and the language suggests an effort to align school scheduling with transition-to-adulthood goals. No committee debate or vote record was provided, so there is no documented controversy in the supplied context.
Contention
The main potential point of contention is whether allowing transition services during school hours could affect instructional time, staffing, scheduling, or district resources. Some stakeholders may favor the added flexibility for students with disabilities and employers, while others may be concerned about implementation burdens or how districts balance academic requirements with vocational and employment-based transition programming. No specific objections or named opponents appear in the provided record.
Authorizes school districts that provide transition services to allow the delivery of such transition services, including integrated employment, during school hours.
Authorizes school districts that provide transition services to allow the delivery of such transition services, including integrated employment, during school hours.
Transition-to-Success Mentoring Act This bill establishes a transition-to-success mentoring program requiring the Department of Education (ED) to award grants to eligible entities (e.g., local educational agencies) to provide school-based mentoring programs to assist at-risk students in transitioning from middle to high school. ED must also work with the Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention to (1) refer grant recipients to the National Mentoring Resource Center to obtain mentoring resources, and (2) provide grant recipients with information regarding transitional services for eligible students returning from correctional facilities and transition services for students with disabilities.