The Way to Work: How to Facilitate Work Experiences for Youth in Transition (Paperback) (ISBN-13: 9781681253664)

Richard G. Luecking, Ed.D., is the President of TransCen, Inc., a non-profit organization based in Rockville, Maryland, that is dedicated to improving education and employment outcomes for people with disabilities. Dr. Luecking has held this position since 1987, when he was charged by the Board of Directors as the organization's first employee to create improved linkages between schools, employment service providers, government, business, and families so that youth with disabilities experience improved post-school employment outcomes. During his tenure with the organization, he and his TransCen colleagues have been responsible for the design and implementation of numerous model demonstration and research projects related to school-to-work transition and employment of people with disabilities. He is the author of a range of publications on related topics, including the book, The Way to Work: How to Facilitate Work Experiences for Youth in Transition (Paul H. Brookes Publishing Co., 2009).

Mary E. Morningstar, Ph.D., is Associate Professor in the Department of Special Education at the University of Kansas and Director of the Transition Coalition, which offers online transition training and resources for practitioners. She coordinates the online masters program in transition and teaches several classes related to secondary education and transition including vocational training and employment, interagency and community services, and transition assessment. She also coordinates the teacher education program for teachers of students with significant disabilities. Dr. Morningstar has been involved in training and staff development regarding transition from school to adult life for over 25 years. Prior to moving to Kansas, she worked as a teacher for students with significant intellectual disabilities. Dr. Morningstar has been an active advocate for all persons with disabilities based on her experiences as a sibling of a brother with disabilities.

Madeleine Will is the Director of the National Down Syndrome Society (NDSS) National Policy Center. Ms. Will chairs the NDSS Transition and Postsecondary Education Initiative for individuals with intellectual disabilities (ID). Technical assistance from NDSS is provided to parents, educators, and institutions of higher education in developing and implementing high-quality services. NDSS systems change efforts include funding the development of model demonstration projects for students with intellectual disabilities in New Jersey and South Carolina. Ms. Will is the former Chairperson of the President's Committee for People with Intellectual Disabilities (PCPID) and the former Assistant Secretary of the Office of Special Education and Rehabilitation Services in the U.S. Department of Education.

Kelli Thuli Crane is Assistant Research Professor at the Center for Transition and Career Innovation (CTCI), University of Maryland, College Park. She has extensive experience designing and implementing transition-related interventions to improve postschool outcomes for youth with disabilities, and she has served in leadership roles on several highly visible research and model demonstration projects funded by the U.S. Department of Education, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, and the Social Security Administration. Prior to joining CTCI, Dr. Crane worked for TranCen, Inc., as Senior Research Associate. In this capacity, she consulted with national, state, and local stakeholders to build their capacity in aligning and delivering evidence-based practices leading to improved education, employment, and financial outcomes for youth with disabilities. Dr. Crane also served as a consultant for the National School-to-Work Office (NSTWO) of the U.S. Departments of Education and Labor, where she collaborated with federal and state government entities to ensure the inclusion of youth with disabilities in high school reform and other programs and services. During her tenure at the NSTWO, Dr. Crane served in an advisory capacity on the youth subcommittee of the Presidential Task Force on the Employment of Adults with Disabilities. She has published journal articles as well as numerous products related to school-to-work transition. Dr. Crane is a Certified Rehabilitation Counselor and, early in her career, worked as a job coach and transition specialist for an urban school district.

Amy Dwyre D'Agati is Technical Assistance Specialist at the Center for Transition and Career Innovation at the University of Maryland, College Park. Prior to that, she spent more than 20 years as Senior Associate at TransCen, Inc. Throughout her career, Ms. D'Agati has assisted youth with disabilities find jobs and prepare for careers and has trained transition personnel in job development, customized employment, self-advocacy, postsecondary education transition options, and marketing and business partnerships. In addition, Ms. D'Agati has led a variety of model demonstration programs and has conducted implementation on several large research projects involving employment for people with disabilities. She has also learned so much from her younger sibling Patrick, a person with a disability who lives and works in his community.

Marie Parker Harvey is Training and Development Coordinator in the Center for Transition and Career Innovation in the College of Education at the University of Maryland, College Park. This position focuses on the development of webinars and curriculum to teach workers in the education and disability fields how to create individualized work experiences for youth with disabilities. It builds upon her many years of service to youth and individuals with disabilities through direct service work, advocacy, training, and program development. This next step in her career is the result of her many years as Program Director and County Liaison for the Montgomery County Customized Employment Public Intern Project (MCPIP) for Montgomery County (MD) Government. As the County Liaison for MCPIP, Ms. Harvey identified and created more than 120 part-time positions for people with disabilities in Montgomery County government offices, based on a department's need and the candidate's specific interests, skills, and abilities. Ms. Harvey also oversaw Youth with Disabilities programs through the Workforce Investment Act (WIA) and Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA), assisting hundreds of in- and out-of-school youth to find employment. She developed and led her team in a successful summer youth employment program that later expanded into a year round work-based learning program (Division of Rehabilitative Services/Summer Youth Employment/Pre-Employment Transition Services, or DORS/SYE/Pre-ETS) to place hundreds of in-school youth with disabilities in individualized work-based learning opportunities with cooperating employers. Ms. Harvey is well-known for her working relationships and collaborations with state and local government and nongovernmental agencies, local and private school systems, community service providers, nonprofits, private sector businesses, and families in need. Her experience and expertise has allowed her to serve people with a broad range of disabilities and barriers, and her work and advocacy continues to impact the field.

Meredith Gramlich, M.A., has worked with TransCen, Inc., since 1992 in a variety of capacities helping youth and adults with disabilities find successful career opportunities. She has worked throughout Maryland to facilitate business education partnerships and collaboration among disability service providers in their business partnering efforts. Ms. Gramlich has contributed to expanded customized employment opportunities for people with disabilities who access MontgomeryWorks, Montgomery County's One Stop Career Center. She has also written and contributed to a number of publications about business-education partnerships, customized work opportunities for people with disabilities, and workplace mentoring.