In this study, I develop a transition follow-up system (TFS) — a data-collection system that tracks information about persons with disabilities from high school to adulthood — that is socially valid in Manitoba. I investigate the current data-collection practices regarding persons with disabilities in Manitoba and analyze stakeholders’ needs for a transition follow-up system using document review, surveys, focus groups, and individual interviews. There is currently no formal data-collection system documenting the transition from school to adulthood of persons with disabilities in the province. Stakeholders have acknowledged the need for such a data-collection system in order to improve current support systems. The key suggestions that stakeholders have made with regard to implementing a transition follow-up system are (a) ensuring impartial, reliable data management, (b) minimizing any additional work required for schools and adult services programs/agencies, (c) utilizing existing data collection practices, (d) applying various data collection methods, (e) carrying out longitudinal data collection regarding individuals with disabilities, (f) including persons with various disabilities, from mild to severe, (g) involving various government departments in the transition process, (h) protecting privacy and confidentiality, and i) ensuring user-friendly data collection and reporting. The most significant concern that stakeholders express relates to securing the financial and human capacity to develop and maintain a transition follow-up system. Based on these suggestions and the current Manitoba context, I propose a transition follow-up system model, recommending operative aspects such as scope, purpose, administrators, target youth, information to collect, data collectors, data-collection methods, data sources, timeline of data collection, reporting, confidentiality and privacy, and methods of ensuring the reliability and validity of data. Although the model proposed is relevant to the Manitoba context, it also offers a useful set of general guidelines on critical issues that need to be considered in developing and implementing a transition follow-up system.

In this study, I develop a transition follow-up system (TFS) — a data-collection system that tracks information about persons with disabilities from high school to adulthood — that is socially valid in Manitoba. I investigate the current data-collection practices regarding persons with disabilities in Manitoba and analyze stakeholders’ needs for a transition follow-up system using document review, surveys, focus groups, and individual interviews. There is currently no formal data-collection system documenting the transition from school to adulthood of persons with disabilities in the province. Stakeholders have acknowledged the need for such a data-collection system in order to improve current support systems. The key suggestions that stakeholders have made with regard to implementing a transition follow-up system are (a) ensuring impartial, reliable data management, (b) minimizing any additional work required for schools and adult services programs/agencies, (c) utilizing existing data collection practices, (d) applying various data collection methods, (e) carrying out longitudinal data collection regarding individuals with disabilities, (f) including persons with various disabilities, from mild to severe, (g) involving various government departments in the transition process, (h) protecting privacy and confidentiality, and i) ensuring user-friendly data collection and reporting. The most significant concern that stakeholders express relates to securing the financial and human capacity to develop and maintain a transition follow-up system. Based on these suggestions and the current Manitoba context, I propose a transition follow-up system model, recommending operative aspects such as scope, purpose, administrators, target youth, information to collect, data collectors, data-collection methods, data sources, timeline of data collection, reporting, confidentiality and privacy, and methods of ensuring the reliability and validity of data. Although the model proposed is relevant to the Manitoba context, it also offers a useful set of general guidelines on critical issues that need to be considered in developing and implementing a transition follow-up system.

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Research suggests youth with disabilities are less likely to experience positive outcomes compared to peers without disabilities. Identification of in-school predictors of postschool success can provide teachers (e.g., special education, general education, career technical education), administrators, district-level personnel, and vocational rehabilitation counselors with information to design, evaluate, and improve transition programs. The purpose of this systematic literature review was to examine secondary transition correlational literature to identify additional evidence to support existing predictors and identify new predictors of postschool success. Results provided additional evidence for 14 existing predictors and identified three new predictors. Limitations and implications for research, policy, and practice are discussed.

There is abundant research relating to transition supports and services for students with disabilities as they move out of high school into adulthood; however, relatively little is known about the relationship between the type of special education services they received and their postschool outcomes. Guided by the Social Cognitive Career Theory (SCCT) and Tennessee’s Indicator 14 survey, I sought to better understand the relationship between the type of special education services received in high school and student further schooling or employability after graduation. Data were drawn from Indicator 14 surveys from 2021 and 2024 conducted by a rural school district in Tennessee. The purpose of this quantitative study was to examine if there is a significant difference in postschool outcomes for students with disabilities who received supports through different service delivery methods in the high school setting. Through the Indicator 14 surveys, students and their parents reflected on what the student had done within the year since graduating from high school. Questions gathered information about work history, postsecondary enrollment, and other related topics. To investigate the relationship between postschool outcomes and student services, information was also assessed about the services that students received as well as their manner of exit from high school (general education diploma, special education diploma, alternate academic diploma, or drop out). Data analysis revealed that students who received consultation services in high school were significantly more likely to attend some type of postsecondary education program. There was no significant relationship between type of service and employability. Diploma or exit type also played a role in student outcomes, as well as the disability category under which they were served. Students who earned a general education diploma were more likely to attend some type of postsecondary education program than their peers who earned a special education diploma or dropped out of school. Similarly, students who were served under the specific learning disability category were more likely than their peers served under all other disability categories to attend some type of postsecondary education program and be employed.