Volume 19, Number 1, Summer 2006
- The Process: Development of the Revised AHEAD Program Standards and Performance Indicators
- Postsecondary Disability Program Standards and Performance Indicators: Minimum Essentials for the Office for Students with Disabilities
- Career-Focused Experiential Education for Students with Disabilities: An Outline of the Legal Terrain
- Employment and Career Development Concerns of Postsecondary Students with Disabilities: Service and Policy Implications
- Perceptions of Academic Quality and Approaches to Studying Among Students with Print Disabilities Enrolled in Distance Education
- Student Perceptions Of The Accommodation Process in Postsecondary Education
- Improving the Transition to Career for College Students with Learning Disabilities: Suggestions from Graduates
- I’m Not the Gingerbread Man! Exploring the Experiences of College Students Diagnosed with ADHD
The Process: Development of the Revised AHEAD Program Standards and Performance Indicators
Abstract: In 1999, AHEAD formally approved its first set of Program Standards. The Standards spelled out the services considered essential for ensuring equal access to education for students with disabilities. In addition, the Standards were intended to establish the parameters of what practitioners do as well as assert the credibility and uniqueness of the Office For Students With Disabilities (Jarrow, 1997). The Standard’s utility diminished due to a number of factors, but especially the changing nature of disability services. Thus, a survey consisting of 30 service components and 147 performance indicators was completed by a group of postsecondary disability services experts to get a current look at today’s services. This survey led to the updated AHEAD Program Standards and Performance Indicators, which were formally approved in November 2004.
Postsecondary Disability Program Standards and Performance Indicators: Minimum Essentials for the Office for Students with Disabilities
Abstract: The development and dissemination of Program Standards and Performance Indicators for disability services in higher education provides research-based direction for postsecondary institutions, consumers and governmental agencies with respect to the services necessary to provide equal access for college students with disabilities. Twenty-eight Program Standards and 90 Performance Indicators are presented. The implications of the specific Performance Indicators for services for students with disabilities in postsecondary education are discussed.
Career-Focused Experiential Education for Students with Disabilities: An Outline of the Legal Terrain
Abstract: While experiential education has been part of higher education for a long time, access for students with disabilities is an emerging topic, broadening the scope of work for disability service providers. Participation in career-focused experiential education, such as internships and cooperative education, is an especially important learning experience for students with disabilities as a way of preparing them for the challenges of employment after graduation. To further understanding of the intersection of career-focused experiential education and disability service provision, this paper outlines the U.S. statutes, regulations, and a small number of key court and agency cases that impact students with disabilities who participate in career-focused experiential education at U.S. institutions of higher education.
Employment and Career Development Concerns of Postsecondary Students with Disabilities: Service and Policy Implications
Abstract: The purpose of this study was to (a) examine the employment concerns of postsecondary students with disabilities and (b) develop strategies for improving their post-graduation employment outcomes. Utilizing an established methodology grounded in the ideals of participatory action research, the researchers surveyed a 208 students with various disabilities in four states, representing seven colleges and universities, regarding their views on employment concerns. Once data from the survey were collected, the researchers convened focus groups of university faculty members, student service professionals, rehabilitation professionals, and students with disabilities to assist in interpreting of results and formulating of strategies for improving career services for students with disabilities.
Perceptions of Academic Quality and Approaches to Studying Among Students with Print Disabilities Enrolled in Distance Education
Abstract: A mailed survey compared the experiences of distance-learning students with print disabilities who were supported by audio recordings of materials, the experiences of students with print disabilities who were supported by an electronic system that permitted more effective access to the same materials, and the experiences of students with no disability. Findings showed that the students with print disabilities rated their courses less favorably and were more likely to adopt a surface approach to studying than were students with no disability. However, the students with print disabilities were just as likely to adopt a deep or a strategic approach to studying as were the students with no disability, and there was no significant difference in the satisfaction ratings of the students with and without print disabilities. Finally, there were no significant differences between the experiences of the students with print disabilities who used the electronic system and the experiences of those who used audio recordings, and no significant differences between the experiences of the students with print disabilities who were visually impaired and the experiences of those with another kind of disability.
Student Perceptions Of The Accommodation Process in Postsecondary Education
Abstract: One cause of the underrepresentation of students with disabilities in postsecondary education may be a lack of appropriate and effective accommodations (e.g., West et al., 1993). This study hypothesized that ineffective and inappropriate accommodations result from an accommodation selection process that focuses on disability type rather than students’ contextual and functional needs. Quantitative and qualitative methodologies were used to obtain students’ perspectives of the accommodation process and experienced or potential barriers to their participation in postsecondary education. Students with disabilities completed surveys (n=108) and participated in focus groups (n=104). These students, who had various disability conditions, attended 15 community and technical colleges in California, Minnesota and Kansas. Participants’ responses reflected satisfaction with certain practices and procedures as well as a need for improvements in others. More individualized methods of accommodation selection that consider the context of students’ lives, individual functional needs, trade-offs between immediate and long-term costs and benefits and incorporate systemwide universal design concepts are presented as an alternative framework for consideration by Disability Support Services staff.
Improving the Transition to Career for College Students with Learning Disabilities: Suggestions from Graduates
Abstract: There is a lack of literature on the transition to career for college graduates with learning disabilities (LD). The present study presents the results of 170 college graduates’ written, open-ended responses related to how the transition to career may be improved. Responses focused upon two main categories, Suggestions for Programs and Suggestions for Students. Within Suggestions for Programs, the subcategories of Internships, Mentoring Programs, Specific Courses or Seminars, ADA Knowledge and Follow-Up with Graduates were identified. The Suggestions for Students responses were subdivided into two categories, Self-Understanding and Workplace Accommodations. Specific insights from graduates are offered within each of the categories, and recommendations for postsecondary LD programs and career service programs are offered.
I’m Not the Gingerbread Man! Exploring the Experiences of College Students Diagnosed with ADHD
Abstract: This study explored how undergraduate students diagnosed with AD/HD
remain in college. Using a qualitative research design from a grounded theory
perspective, the researchers captured the personal stories of 10 college students
from two universities similar in location, size, and liberal arts tradition.
The findings included themes related to attitudes about their diagnosis, adapting
to college, and recommendations for students, college personnel, and parents.
