Children and Families

Serving as a single point of entry, the Project SEARCH program provides a comprehensive approach to employment, retention, and career advancement for individuals with disabilities transitioning from high school. New Hampshires' goal is to begin training the first Project SEARCH group of 12 student interns for the full school year starting in September 2011 and graduating that group in June 2012.

In November 2010, UnitedHealthcare and the National Alliance for Caregiving conducted a study in order to better understand how family caregivers use home technologies in order to assist them in caring for their loved ones while allowing them to remain independent. Explore the study's key findings in order to learn more about 12 particular technologies that have been found to be helpful, perceived barriers to using technology, and influencing factors on family's use of technology.

The National Post-School Outcomes Center (NPSO) developed a toolkit to assist States and local education agencies, their stakeholders, and partners in using post-school outcome data to improve programs for youth with disabilities. The Data Use Toolkit consists of two components: preparing and sharing post-school outcomes data and examining local post-school data. Explore this guide for facilitators to learn more.

In honor of the upcoming one-year anniversary of the Affordable Care Act, Family Caregiver Alliance releases this guide which highlights some of the most important developments in 2010 affecting family caregivers, including legislative and policy changes; research focused on caregivers; and media coverage of family caregiving. A great resource for families, researchers, policymakers, and others.

How is California helping youths with disabilities to connect with needed supports and services as they transition to work or postsecondary education? Explore several presentations and toolkits put out by the California Health Incentives Improvement Project (CHIIP) that aim to facilitate the transition process for these youth. May be replicable by other states seeking to assist similar populations.

Youth with disabilities experience an extreme sense of social isolation, which comes out of not sharing a collective disability identity, and disability pride. YO! will assist youth with disabilities to learn about the disability rights movement, disability history, disability pride, disability organizing and advocacy. To learn more, explore the attached website and outreach material.

“The Innovation Center” is a new engine for revitalizing and sustaining the Medicare, Medicaid and CHIP programs and ultimately to help to improve the healthcare system for all Americans. The Center, established by the Affordable Care Act, was given the flexibility and resources to rapidly test innovative care and payment models and scale up successful models. Visit the website to read about new initiatives such as Partnership for Patients. There is also an area to share your own ideas.

With tax revenues still declining as a result of the recession and budget reserves largely drained, the vast majority of states have made spending cuts that hurt families and reduce necessary services. Explore the reasons for these cuts as well as arguments for the continuing and increasing need for these services through the attached report.

In one stop, find numerous examples of how the state of Nevada provides outreach and information to its consumers with disabilities. The attached portfolio includes PowerPoint presentations, training materials, brochures, and advertisements that serve as helpful examples of how to successfully disseminate this important information.

Computer-based testing (CBT) has emerged as one of the recent innovative approaches to assessments most pursued by states. CBT is lauded as the answer to having cheaper and speedier test delivery for state and district-wide assessments, as well as an avenue toward greater accessibility for students with disabilities. This report explores the context of CBT, current state computer-based tests, and considerations for students with disabilities.