Parent Perspectives on Preparing Students with Intellectual Disabilities for Inclusive Postsecondary Education

There are a greater number of inclusive postsecondary education (PSE) programs for students with intellectual disabilities (ID) in the U.S. than ever before. Consequently, there are a greater number of students with ID who now have the opportunity to participate in fully inclusive PSE programs with the intent of improving their transition outcomes related to employment, independent living, and quality of life. For students with ID to get the most out of these expanding PSE opportunities, it is imperative that they develop the personal competencies that will better prepare them to participate in such programs. The current study began the exploratory process of identifying, from a parent perspective, the personal competencies related to inclusive PSE readiness for students with intellectual disabilities in the broad categories of (a) the personal skills, (b) knowledge, and (c) attributes. This purpose was achieved by using a three-round Delphi survey, administered to a sample of parents of students with ID who have participated in one of the 44 federally funded Transition and Postsecondary Programs for Students with Intellectual Disabilities (TPSIDs). The first round of the survey generated 56 items that participants in Round Two then rated on a 7-point scale of importance related to preparing students with ID for participation in inclusive PSE. In the final round of the Delphi survey, participants were provided with the mean, standard deviation, and frequency distribution for each of the 56 items from Round Two and asked to rerate each item based on the additional information provided. In Round Three the expert panel of parents gained consensus on 33 items related to personal skills, knowledge, and attributes they deemed important for students with ID to develop in order to be prepared for an inclusive PSE program. Results of the study were discussed in the context of the literature related to personal competencies for college readiness for students with and without ID. Additionally, implications, limitations, and recommendations for future research were discussed

Creating a Counter-Storytelling Community: Connecting Students to Social Justice and Antiracist Narratives in the Arts and Beyond

To skillfully support the activities, roles and relationships of successful college students, instructors across all disciplines must learn to utilize inclusive pedagogies that create space for all students to engage in current conversations around social justice and antiracism that disproportionately impact students from underrepresented identities. This small panel discussion will explore the impacts that the Storytelling for Social Justice: Connecting Narrative and the Arts in Antiracist Teaching book (and related learning circle discussions) have had on their pedagogical approaches to enhance their student\u27s critical thinking and ability to meaningfully engage in difficult conversations that challenge the stock stories that perpetuate and reinforce racism and other systems of oppression and inequality in society. Panelists will share examples of concrete classroom activities and approaches that they implemented this most recent semester and/or plan to implement in the Fall. Ideas for implementing co-curricular activities to support increased student engagement in transforming conversations and communities will also be highlighted. By the end of the session, participants will have a clearer understanding of how to implement specific storytelling for social justice practices to better support their own inclusive pedagogical innovations and modification to collectively create an antiracist counter-storytelling community at USU