This issue focuses on assisting adolescents with serious emotional handicaps to make transitions from youth serving systems into society. A framework for developing transition-oriented programs is prevented that incorporates into the specific service goals of the current environment the skills required to function in the projected environment.…

Five newsletters examine a variety of topics dealing with learning disabilities. Topics include the following: ways to help learning disabled (LD) seniors plan for higher education, transitional college programs, the changing role of neurologists in the field of LD, the place of math in the education of LD students, instructional reasons for LD…

Eight papers outline the nature of the present federally funded effort to improve the evaluation data gathered by programs for the transition of handicapped adolescents to higher education or work. Evaluation research, program evaluation flexibility, and professional standards are considered. Two other evaluation studies consider international…

The lack of appropriate assessment tools designed for deaf adolescents and young adults making the transition from educational programs to adult life is cited as one of the most glaring deficits in the field of deafness. The Transition Competence Battery (TCB) is being developed as an assessment tool that will guide individual training decisions…

This issue of "Transition Summary" contains articles about self-determination and becoming a good self-advocate, with each article reflecting the experience of someone who has grown up with a disability. "The Many Facets of Self-Determination" (Michael Ward) discusses the concept of self-determination; offers an historical perspective of the…

This feature issue explores health needs of youth with disabilities as they make the transition from child to adult roles. "School Health Services: Supporting Students with Special Health Needs" (Dee K. Bauer) describes the role of the special needs nurse on multidisciplinary teams in Multnomah County (Oregon) schools. Two articles deal with…

This study used a focus group approach to examine the transition planning experiences and concerns of 30 family members of young adults with special health care needs throughout Massachusetts. Findings indicated: (1) parents experienced challenges with service delivery systems, day-to-day living, residential location, and uncertainty about the…

This issue of "Linkages" addresses the need for adult literacy programs to go beyond teaching basic academic skills to adults with learning disabilities to teaching skills in goal setting, problem solving, and self-advocacy that will assist adult learners in their transition into the workforce. Articles include: "Transition: Adult Literacy and…

This newsletter theme issue describes a state-local team partnership model for interagency transition efforts for young adults with deaf-blindness. Excepts from a presentation by Jane M. Everson identify key aspects and characteristics of effective state and local interagency partnerships. These include: (1) strategies for initiating and…

This newsletter issue describes a programmatic line of research to develop and standardize a test battery of transition skills (employment and independent living skills) for adolescents and young adults (ages 14 to 25) who are deaf. The newsletter first discusses the importance of assessment data to the transition process for persons who are deaf.…

The Family Support Act (FSA) of 1988 is the result of congressional efforts to restructure the nation's welfare system. This report examines the impact of the FSA on state programs that serve pregnant, parenting, and high-risk teenagers. The objective of FSA is to help families started by teen mothers and other welfare recipients make a transition…

This document identifies the costs of teen pregnancy in terms of high dropout rates, long-term educational decrements, the increased risks of the children of teen parents, loss of human capital, and increased welfare costs. Prevention and intervention and the features of operationally successful program models are included under the topic of…