Course Summary: Post School Success

What Are the Key Predictors of Employment Outcomes for Youth with Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities?

What can we do as a part of the transition process that is associated with better employment outcomes for youth with significant disabilities?  According to a literature review by Southward & Kyzar (2017), there are 7 key variables. We will examine each in turn. 

  1. Paid employment while still in high school
  2. Vocational skills instruction
  3. Family expectations
  4. Completing high school
  5. IEP goals directly related to securing competitive employment
  6. A focus on self-determination
  7. Participation in post-secondary education

Southward, J., & Kyzar, K. (2017). Predictors of competitive employment for students with intellectual and/or developmental disabilities. Education in Autism and Developmental Disabilities, 52, 26-37.

These are variables perhaps not as robustly related to employment outcomes as the first seven, but they are important for post-school success and independence!

A graphic of a girl smiling

These are variables perhaps not as robustly related to employment outcomes as the first seven, but they are important for post-school success and independence!

And students with intellectual disabilities, multiple disabilities, and autism do not fare as well on those variables as do all other students with disabilities:

  1. Got together weekly with friends
  2. Participated in a school sport or club
  3. Performs activities of daily living well
  4. Communicates effectively with others.

Lesson 1: What are the strongest predictors of competitive employment for youth with significant disabilities?

A man sits in a car dealership show room, holding a clipboard.
Photo Credit: Photo Credit: Kentucky Employment Files, Jake – Leon Riley Ford Benton, KY

? Which is the strongest predictor of competitive employment for youth with significant disabilities?

What Are the Key Predictors of Employment Outcomes for Youth with Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities?

What can we do to improve employment outcomes for youth with significant disabilities?  According to research studies (Southward & Kyzar, 2017; Wehman et al., 2015), there are several key predictors. We will examine five of the most important variables in this module.

  1. Paid employment while still in high school
  2. Vocational skills instruction and other employment-related experiences in high school  
  3. Family expectations and aspirations for their student’s post-school employment
  4. A focus on self-determination
  5. Participation in post-secondary education

* Southward, J., & Kyzar, K. (2017). Predictors of competitive employment for students with intellectual and/or developmental disabilities. Education in Autism and Developmental Disabilities, 52, 26-37.

Lesson 2: What life skills prepare students for life after high school?

A young man leans over the counter of a store, completing a customer order form.
Photo Credit: Kentucky Employment Files – Giovanni, clerk, Kitchen Connections Paducah, Kentucky

There are, of course, other important variables related to successful transitions for students with the significant disabilities.  Three of these are:

  • Having a Reliable Means of Communication        
  • Friendships and Relationships with Peers
  • Independent and Practical Living Skills

In this brief concluding lesson, we will highlight the importance of these three additional factors, and provide you with national and KY-based resources that can help you improve each of these factors for the students you serve.

About the Course

An Introduction to Kentucky Resources for Early Care and Education Trainers

This online course consists of four interactive sections, each of which is followed by a final assessment. The final assessment will help you to review what you have learned in the course. 

Course Download

Throughout this module, you will explore a variety of online resources. A comprehensive list of these resources has been created for you. 
Each resource lists the website and a brief description of what that resource is. You may want to print this document or save it to your desktop for easy access. It is a valuable reference tool.

Course Outcomes

World Class Manufacturing Academy

In this course, the learner will:

  • Review various resources available in the community and at the state level, to assist with developing and maintaining high-quality services for young children and their families
  • Review sample resources that are available through the web
  • Practice identifying available resources that offer guidance in resolving issues that may arise in an early care and education program

Course Overview

Section 1: Regulatory Agencies

Section 2: Support Services

Section 3: Professional Development

Section 4: Health and Safety


Course Completion

Upon completion of each final assessment, you will receive notification of your grade and will have the option to review your results from each attempt. Click “View Answers’ to review questions and answers from the quiz. In order to move on in the course, you must score a minimum of eighty percent (80%) on each final assessment. You may retake the quiz as often as you would like.

Once you have successfully completed all course components a course completion certificate will be available to download or print and your ECE-TRIS training record will be updated within 10 working days to reflect the completion of this course. Note: this course has a 3-year expiration, so please be sure to submit your initial trainers credential application before the 3-year window lapses.


Troubleshooting

If you have technical issues while completing the course, please click the ‘Contact Us’ button at the bottom of each page for assistance.

Regulatory Agencies

For this first module, we will examine the agencies that regulate child care in Kentucky.


– Division of Child Care
– Division of Regulated Child Care

Support Services

In this section, we will examine the following programs and services which support early care and education.

  • Kynect
  • Building a Strong Foundation for School Success
  • Child and Adult Care Food Program (CACFP)
  • Child Care Assistance Program (CCAP)
  • Child Care Aware of Kentucky
  • Community Early Childhood Councils/Regional Collaboratives
  • Cooperative Extension Agents
  • Family Resource and Youth Services Centers (FRYSC)
  • Governor’s Office of Early Childhood
  • Head Start and Early Head Start
  • Regional Training Centers (RTC)
  • Family Child Care Network
  • Kentucky Strengthening Families Initiative

Professional Development

In this section we will cover the following supports for professional development for early care and education professionals in Kentucky.

– ECE-TRIS
– Professional Development Scholarships
– Professional Organizations

Health and Safety

In this section, we will review resources available to help support physical health, mental health, and safety in early care and education.

  • Child Care Health Consultants (CCHC)
  • Office for Children with Special Health Care Needs
  • Early Childhood Mental Health Specialists
  • First Steps
  • HANDS
  • Kentucky Children’s Health Insurance Plan (KCHIP)
  • Prevent Child Abuse Kentucky
  • Regional Poison Control Center
  • Oral and Dental Health
  • Women, Infants, and Children (WIC)

Wrap Up

Congratulations! Just a few steps left to complete An Introduction to Kentucky Resources for Early Care and Education Trainers!!!!

Final Steps for Completion:

  1. Review additional supports for credentialed trainers.
  2. Complete course evaluation.
  3. Submit your information to ensure that you receive credit in your ECE-TRIS record for completion.

IMPORTANT⟶ To fully complete the course and receive completion credit, you must go through all remaining sections and finish the content. After completion credit will be entered into ECE-TRIS within 10 days of your completion.

No completion certificate is mailed to you. Your personal training record in ECE-TRIS serves as official documentation of completion. However, a certificate recognizing completion of the course is available on the final course page, after all sections have been marked complete. This certificate is also available anytime you log into the course.