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The Way to Work
How to Facilitate Work Experiences for Youth in Transition
By Richard G. Luecking, Ed.D.

Employment is one of the biggest contributors to quality of life for people with disabilities—and that means well-planned work experiences should be an integral part of transition preparation for every secondary and postsecondary school aged youth. Make that happen with this practical guide, developed to help educators, transition specialists, and employment specialists facilitate individualized, person-centered work experiences and jobs for high school students and young adults with a wide range of disabilities.

Readers will get the specific, ready-to-use guidance they need to

• uncover students' strengths, needs, and interests through formal and informal assessments
  
  
• promote students' social skills—a major key to success in the workplace
  
  
• recruit employers and help them accept and understand disability and accommodations
  
  
• help students decide when and how to disclose a disability to an employer
  
  
• guide students in advocating effectively for accommodations on the job
  
  
• involve families in negotiating, organizing, and supporting the work experience
  
  
• help employers and employees meet each other's expectations and develop mutually beneficial partnerships
  
  
• support and mentor young people in the workplace
  
  
• collaborate with other professionals to develop and sustain work experiences
  
  
• build their own knowledge of legal considerations, including the requirements of the Fair Labor Standards Act and the ADA
  

To help with every step of facilitating meaningful employment, readers will get examples of model programs, stories that illustrate what works and doesn't work, more than a dozen photocopiable tools and forms [see box], and end-of-chapter "Learning Labs" with reflection questions and thought-provoking activities.

Teachers and transition specialists will rely on this strategy-filled guidebook to connect students with the early work experiences they really want—and make lifelong career satisfaction the rule, not the exception, for people with disabilities.

Includes helpful tools & forms! Positive Personal Profile Work Experience/Job Search Plan Inventory of Employer's Needs and Tasks Work Experience Proposal Template Youth Performance Feedback Form Satisfaction Questionnaire for Employers and more!

About the Author and Contributors
Forewords
Preface
Acknowledgments
Introduction

Chapter 1: Work-based learning and work experiences as indispensable educational tools

Chapter 2: Setting the stage for quality work experiences

Chapter 3: Planning for work experiences
Richard Luecking and George Tilson

Chapter 4: Work experience and disability disclosure

Chapter 5: Supporting families to support work experiences
Richard Luecking and Karen Leggett

Chapter 6: Workplace partners: Strategies for finding and recruiting employers

Chapter 7: Workplace partners: Strategies for retaining effective employer participation

Chapter 8: Supporting youth in the workplace
Richard Luecking and George Tilson

Chapter 9: Workplace mentors for youth workers
Richard Luecking and Meredith Gramlich

Chapter 10: Connecting with professional and agency partners to fostr and sustain work success

Chapter 11: The pursuit of work-based learning