For our first Word Watch transition blog , PEAK enlisted friend and colleague Ian Watlington to contribute his wisdom and advice on how to avoid the “red flags” during the transition journey in order to move forward toward positive futures. We hope you enjoy hearing from Ian. Word Watch: Realistic By Ian Watlington It’s a question everyone gets asked at various stages in his/her life: What do you want to be when you grow up? As life goes along, suchRead more

If you need a guide that can help you make good decisions about transition and the supports and services you or your young person (if you are a parent) may need along the way, the Word Watch blog series from PEAK’s Shift Transition Project can help! There is a vast number of resources out there about transition to adulthood! Many are very good: they reflect best practices and current thinking about inclusion, belonging, respect, choices, and valuing the contributions ofRead more

A Vision for the Future By Guest Author Sue Swenson Here's to a day when a loving mother has options other than 'a group home,' options that provide gentle teaching and positive support, and that those options strengthen her connection to her son even if he lives elsewhere, and they do not make her feel that she is abandoning her beloved son, or abdicating her responsibilities, but rather the options allow her to feel that she is deserving of havingRead more

Shift! Transition To a Future of New Possibilities By Beth Schaffner Assuring productive, fulfilling lives as adults is the ultimate goal of schooling for any student. Schooling is preparation for life, and schools, along with families and communities, are charged with seeing that young people are prepared...for life! Families of children with disabilities move with our students through school and find there is a lot of extra, hard work to be done. But, we still remain engaged, learn everything weRead more

Editorial Column from Guest Author Michael Bailey PEAK Parent Center has, for a generation, empowered families to participate fully in special education advocacy. The lessons of family integration and full inclusion have not been lost on the children who have benefited from the advocacy of those families. A new generation of people with disability pride and high expectations is the result. "Nothing about us without us," is far more to these young people than just a slogan. It is aRead more