Mission Statement

The mission of the STRIVE Department is to provide supplemental transition support to Boston Public Schools’ teachers, directors of specialized services, students, and families by providing ongoing access in the areas of transition assessment, prevocational training, in-school vocational training, community engagement, and post-secondary adult services.

 

Students We Serve

• Students with a documented disability
• Students who are 14 to 22 years of age
• Students who are identified, by the IEP Team as a student in need

 

All students receive their transition services at their home school and these services are supplemented by the STRIVE Department. The coordinated set of activities is a collaboration between schools and families. It takes into account a student's strengths, preferences and interests and includes:

Instruction

• transition instruction:
  • is a broad range of activities
  • promotes access to school curriculum
  • helps students gain needed skills to move toward their postsecondary goals
• instruction around daily living skills:
  • for students who need preparation of specific skills
  • include self-care, money management, transportation

Related Services

These are supports (for example, occupational therapy, speech therapy, assistive technology) that students need to access more integrated work, education, and living environments. Within the context of transition services, Related Service Providers [RSPs] help students determine:

• what related services are needed beyond high school
• how to identify the appropriate agency to provide those services
• help identify how the student can access those services
• make the connections to needed services prior to the student leaving school

Community experiences

Community experiences involve a variety of activities and experiences that are provided outside the school building. These activities can include:

• shopping for food and/or clothes
• using public transportation
• recreation and leisure activities
• job shadowing
• internships
• work experiences
• college exploration

Development of employment and other post-school adult living objectives

Development of employment focuses on the development of work-related behaviors:

• job seeking and keeping skills
• career exploration
• skill training
• employment

The acquisition of daily living skills and provision of a functional vocational evaluation, when appropriate.

Adult living objectives are those services that include support activities done occasionally such as:

• accessing employment support agencies
• registering to vote
• filing taxes
• renting a home
• accessing medical services and insurance
• accessing adult services, college information, Social Security Income [SSI]

Daily living skills are included, "if appropriate" to support the student's ability to do those activities that most adults do every day

• grooming
• preparing meals
• budgeting
• maintaining a home
• paying bills
• caring for clothes