pre-vocational and vocational training

Job training is a very important part of education for people with disabilities. Starting young, with pre-vocational skills, can lead to vocational skills and job placement. The following are websites for teachers and families that provide information on pre-vocational and vocational training.

http://www.ilresources.com/articles/Pre-VocTales.htm
This article explains the importance of pre-vocational training—as early as possible—for students with disabilities.


http://hot-ideas.org/
This website gives ideas for Basic Skills Tasks, Vocational Tasks, Transitional Tasks,& Job Training skills activities for Special Needs,e.g. Autism related disorders, Self-Contained classrooms,Life Skills classrooms, Occupational Therapy, and Resource settings. It also offers boxes for purchase.

http://www.launchwoburnpublicschools.com/vocationaltraining.htm
A great site prepared by Woburn Public Schools (I believe they are located in Mass.) describing their vocational education program. Also included are links to functional academic skills and their pre-vocational program.

housing

Finding housing is very important for transitioning to an independent adult life. The following are websites that offer information on fair housing and housing rights for people with disabilities.

http://www.disabilityinfo.gov/digov-public/public/DisplayPage.do?parentFolderId=113
This section of DisabilityInfo.gov provides information on housing laws, design and technical advice for people with disabilities, their family members, public housing organizations and the nation's builders.

http://disabilityhousingnetwork.org/Default2.aspx
Disability Housing Network (DHN) was established to promote and support education and best practices in the development and management of rental housing for individuals with mental retardation and developmental disabilities by member nonprofit housing development corporations.

http://www.hud.gov/groups/disabilities.cfm
Learn about renting, buying and making your home accessible, and about your Fair Housing rights.

Finances

Finances can be a major problem for people with disabilities. The following are some websites which include some useful information for people with disabilities and their families as they plan for the future.

http://www.allsup.com/Personal-Finance/financial-matters-overview.aspx
Allsup is committed to creating opportunities for those with disabilities to lead lives that are as financially secure and as healthy as possible. We call this approach Disability Life Planning – taking a thorough look at the big picture, understanding the financial impact of a disability, understanding your options and resources available to you and, most importantly, doing it as soon as possible


http://www.kidsource.com/kidsource/content4/estate.dis.all.3.3.html.
The only reliable method of making sure that the inheritance actually has a chance of reaching a person with a disability when he or she needs it is through the legal device known as a Special Needs Trust (SNT). The SNT is developed to manage resources while maintaining the individual's eligibility for public assistance benefits. How is this done? Simply put, the family leaves whatever resources it deems appropriate to the trust. The trust is managed by a trustee on behalf of the person with the disability.


http://www.hud.gov/offices/hsg/mfh/progdesc/disab811.cfm
HUD provides funding to nonprofit organizations to develop rental housing with the availability of supportive services for very low-income adults with disabilities, and provides rent subsidies for the projects to help make them affordable


http://www.cdfa.net/cdfa/cdfaweb.nsf/pages/jun2005tlc.html
This article covers the status of Alternative Finance Programs (AFPs) for persons with disabilities. AFPs help people with disabilities finance the purchase assistive technology