School-Age and Post-Secondary Projects

Current Projects

Completed Projects

    • Customized and Customizing Employment - In addition to numerous trainings and collaboration with multiples state agencies provided by the UCEDD, Customized Employment now is an official initiative of the CT Departments of Developmental Services and Education and the state Bureau of Rehabilitation Services. Most recently, the UCEDD produced a toolkit for families about how to take the lead in customizing employment for their family members with disabilities. These activities were funded by the CT Council on Developmental Disabilities.
    • Alternatives to Punishment - This white paper presents a compelling argument about why restraints and seclusion time-out are unnecessary aversive consequences inflicted on people with disabilities for behaviors that are communicative.
    • Coaches Academy Project  - Coaches Academy was a three-year project funded by the Connecticut Department of Education. The purpose was to increase the number of educators qualified to serve as Instructional Coaches to support the education of children with significant disabilities in general education settings.
        • Discover Learn Work Career Training Services - From 2012-2018, the UCEDD had provided community training and technical assistance to Discover Learn Work (DLW) Career Training Services, a service of Ability Beyond, Inc., one of our community partner organizations.
        • Families as Partners - This project was funded by the Connecticut Children's Trust Fund. The purpose of the project was to increase the number of families from different backgrounds who are satisfied with their participation in the Individualized Education Program (IEP) planning process.
        • Juvenile Justice Project - The purpose of this project was to investigate the collaboration between Connecticut's juvenile justice system and public schools from the perspective of probation officers.
        • Secondary Transition Project - The purpose of the study was to gather information on post-school outcomes for students with disabilities who had exited the special education system.
        • Self-Determination - This one-day training program is designed to familiarize educators with issues pertaining to self-determination (SD) and how to include SD skill-building and opportunities for your students.
        • Student Technical Assistance Response (STAR) Teams - The purpose of this project was to develop, implement and evaluate a Student Technical Assistance Response (STAR) Team that provides technical assistance to school districts and parents of children with significant disabilities in general education settings.
        • Think College Initiative - Think College demonstration projects funded under federal grants since 2010 have shown that individuals with ID who attend college show many gains (e.g., academic, in independence, socially, and in obtaining employment) as compared to adolescents and young adults with ID who do not have this opportunity.
        • Transition Skills Training for Parents - This one-day training program is offered with the goal of preparing families of children with disabilities to advocate for their children as they transition from the K-12 system to life as a young adult in the community.