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Youth with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD) share the same post-school goals as their peers without disabilities to attend college, secure employment, and contribute to their community. Although legislation, policy initiatives, and improved transition service delivery have begun equipping students to achieve these goals, the transition outcomes for many students still fall short of their expectations. Data show that only 27% of youth with intellectual disability attend any type of post-secondary education program within two years of graduation (Newman et al., 2011). Students enrolled in these programs experience more inclusion in their communities and higher levels of employment. Graduates are 26% more likely to exit a vocational rehabilitation program with employment, and earn a 73% higher weekly income. Moreover, after participating in post-secondary education programs, youth report increased satisfaction across several domains including personal relationships, self-determination, and social inclusion (Migliore, Butterworth, & Hart, 2009). New approaches are needed to identify ways school systems, parents, youth with disabilities, and local campuses might work together to develop new and high-quality options for post-secondary education in their communities. One promising approach to facilitate these collaborations is community conversations (Carter et al., 2009). Community conversations use the World Café model (Brown & Isaacs, 2005) to bring diverse stakeholders together to address barriers facing their community. Attendees generate innovative, solutions-focused ideas over series of small and large-group conversations, and build relationships to support sustainable action after the event. This presentation focuses on "community conversations"€ as a practical and asset-based approach to support the development of post-secondary education programs. As part of our Transition and Postsecondary Programs for Students with Intellectual Disabilities (TPSID) grant, we conducted a mixed methods study to learn how three geographically and economically diverse communities within one state might implement community conversations to launch efforts to develop new higher education options for local youth with IDD. Through this study we sought to understand: (a) effective strategies planning teams used to engage with local campuses; (b) attendee perspectives on what an inclusive program might look like on their campus; (c) attendee perceptions of the people, resources, or supports that would be critical for success, and (d) how planning teams used the ideas generated at their events to spur future action. We will share our findings from these three community conversation events as well as strategies that any stakeholder (including families, service providers, post-secondary educators, and people with disabilities) might use to begin conversations about higher education for youth with IDD in their community. References Brown, J. Isaacs, D. (2005). The World Café: Shaping our Futures Through Conversations that Matter. Barrett-Koehler Publishers, Inc: San Francisco. Carter, E. W., Owens, L., Swedeen, B., Trainor, A. A., Thompson, C., Ditchman, N., & Cole, O. (2009). Conversations that matter: Engaging communities to expand employment opportunities for youth with disabilities. Teaching Exceptional Children, 41, 38-46. Migliore, A., Butterworth, J., & Hart, D. (2009). Postsecondary education and employment outcomes for youth with intellectual disabilities. Think College. Newman, L., Wagner, M., Knokey, A.-M., Marder, C., Nagle, K., Shaver, D., Wei, X., with Cameto, R., Contreras, E., Ferguson, K., Greene, S., and Schwarting, M. (2011). The Post-High School Outcomes of Young Adults With Disabilities up to 8 Years After High School. A Report From the National Longitudinal Transition Study-2 (NLTS2) (NCSER 2011-3005). Menlo Park, CA: SRI International.
