December 14, 2010, 4:00 PM EST

1. Early Childhood TransitionPart C Indicator C-8& Part B Indicator B-12Analysis and Summary Report of All States’ 2008-2009Annual Performance ReportsKathy Whaley & Debbie Cate(NECTAC) December 14, 2010, 4:00 PM EST

2. Webinar Focus • National Trend Data for APR Indicators C-8 & B-12 • Continuing Challenges • Improvement activities Contributing to Improved Performance • Implications for Practice • Policy Makers • Administrators • Front Line Staff

3. Part C Transition Indicator The analysis of data across Indicators C-8 and B-12 provides a national perspective on early childhood transition from Part C to Part B for the following requirements: • C8a - IFSPs with transition steps and services • C8b - Notification to LEA, if child is potentially eligible for Part B • C8c - Transition conference for potentially eligible children

4. Part B Indicator B12 - Children referred by Part C prior to age three, who are found eligible for Part B and have an IEP developed and implemented by age 3

5. Performance does not necessarily provide measures of the quality of transitions, but the extent to which specific requirements of IDEA are being met. • These analyses yield data on practices that are necessary but may not sufficient to ensure quality • States have worked diligently to improve transition!

6. NationalTrendData

7. Transition Indicator Trend Data (C8 & B12)

8. C8a - Change from Baseline to FFY 08-09 Actual Performance

9. C8b - Change from Baseline to FFY 08-09 Actual Performance

10. C8c - Change from Baseline to FFY 08-09 Actual Performance

11. B12 – Change from Baseline to FFY 08-09 Actual Performance

12. Indicator B12 - Early Childhood Transition by Child Count

13. Trends in Capacity to Collect and Use Data Increasing use of state data systems by Part C & Part B Part C continuing to use monitoring mechanisms for reporting C8a Variation in process, practices and category descriptions Few states using unique child identifiers Improved ability to match specific child data from C to B Improvements in migrating sets of data from C to B

14. Challenges to Meeting Timelines and Requirements of Early Childhood Transition

15. Challenges Influencing Practices Maintaining adequate numbers of qualified personnel Scheduling and completing evaluations Increasing numbers of children referred & transitioned Conducting transition conferences & IEP meetings for children with summer birthdays

16. Challenges Influencing Practices • Late referrals to both 619 and Part C programs • Addressing family circumstances & parent refusals • Sharing child specific data across programs • Maintaining local expertise due to turnover • State funding issues

17. Collaboration & CoordinationChallenges Almost all the steps along the transition timeline require effective communication and coordination. Delays may be caused by: • Differences in procedures • Developing relationships and maintaining effective communication • Changes/shortages in personnel

18. Comprehensive and Targeted Improvement Activities

19. Improvement Activities In addition to improvements in data capacity, improvement activities were categorized as improvements to: • Policies and Procedures • Training and technical assistance • Monitoring and data verification • Interagency Collaboration and Coordination

20. Collaborative Improvement Activities Collaborative activities between Part C & 619: • Child identifiers that follow the child • Mechanisms to share data elements • Coordinated policy clarification • Joint program evaluation • Collaborative training

21. Part C - Explanation of Progress Strategies specific to C-8 sub-indicators: C8a – • Clarifying requirements for documentation • Modifying the IFSP to include sections designed to address outcomes, steps and services • More states seem to be moving to statewide forms (17)

22. Part C – Explanation of Progress C8b – Improvements in data systems, data management and interagency communication C8c – strategies for local collaboration, data system alerts and local MOUs

23. Part B – Explanation of Progress The most frequently cited Part B improvement activities reflected themes: • Joint clarification of policies and procedures • The ability to collect needed data elements. • Collaborative Training, TA and other coordinated activities.

24. Themes - High Performing States • Embrace the mission: Promote young children’s successful transitions through collaborative support of families by both Part C and Part B. • Develop joint or coordinated policies and procedures to ensure the best possible transitions. • Include quality measures about transition in on-going and joint monitoring activities. • Continue to coordinate transition efforts between Part C & B in the ability to gather, report and analyze data. • Together, use transition data to guide and improve transition processes and procedures.

25. Implications for Policy Makers Knowledge and awareness of issues and context for front line staff and families Deliberate, systematic anticipation of intended and unintended consequences Capacity of policies and procedures to create improvements Decisions influenced by program evaluation and family feedback Use of evidence-based practices when known

26. Implications for Administrators • Knowledge of rules and policies • Promoting relationships with key partners • Designation of staff to be responsible for transition • Administrative support for interagency coordination • Ongoing training and orientation processes • Local agreements • Mechanism for input and feedback from families

27. Implications for Front Line Staff • Key source of accurate and consistent information for families • Willingness to learn about other program’s rules and policies • Ability to access information and resources • Ability to develop relationships and partnerships • Support families while implementing requirements

28. Full Reports Available On-line Part C State Performance Plan Annual Performance Report 2009 Indicator Analysis FFY 2008-2009 http://www.nectac.org/~pdfs/partc/ part-c_sppapr_10.pdf (this link is available from the webinar series page)

29. Full Reports Available On-line Part B State Performance Plan Annual Performance Report 2009 Indicator Analysis FFY 2008-2009 http://www.nectac.org/~pdfs/sec619/ part-b_sppapr_10.pdf (this link is available from the webinar series page)

30. Transition Resources National Early Childhood Transition Initiative http://www.nectac.org/topics/transition/ ectransitionta.asp OSEP SPP/APR Calendar http://spp-apr-calendar.rrfcnetwork.org/ (these links are available from the webinar series page)

31. Transition Resources NECTAC Transition Topic Page http://www.nectac.org/topics/transition/ transition.asp National Early Childhood Transition Center (NECTC) http://www.hdi.uky.edu/SF/NECTC/Home.aspx (these links are available from the webinar series page) 31

32. Early Childhood TransitionPart C Indicator C-8& Part B Indicator B-12 Thank you for participating. Presentations from this series and their related resources are made available on the NECTAC website at: http://www.nectac.org/~calls/2010/partcapr/partcapr.asp