Transition Planning When the Only Internship Excludes Him
Devon is a 17-year-old Deaf junior who uses American Sign Language and an educational interpreter. He has a 3.2 GPA, plays on the basketball team, and wants to become a chef. His IEP transition plan, written two years ago, lists attend college with no further detail. This year the work-based learning coordinator arranged a paid internship at a hospital cafeteria, but the site refuses to provide an interpreter, citing safety and a fast pace. Devon's mother wants him to keep the cafeteria placement because it is close to home, while Devon says he would rather work in a restaurant but is worried about the interview. The annual review is in three weeks, and the school counselor asks whether Devon should be moved to a sheltered workshop for realistic goals. The coordinator adds that the cafeteria job is the only open site.
1. Evaluate the transition plan. What is missing, and what should replace it?
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The plan is not measurable and does not connect to Devon's stated goal. Attend college fails the postsecondary-goal standard in several ways: it is not measurable, it is inconsistent with the culinary interest, and it is not supported by age-appropriate transition assessment. The team should replace it with a measurable goal such as: after high school, Devon will enroll in a culinary certificate program and obtain competitive integrated employment in food service. Then build the coordinated set of activities: transition assessments (interest inventory, situational assessment in a kitchen, work samples), instruction in self-determination and interview skills, an employment-related goal for requesting accommodations, a course of study that includes culinary classes and math, and linkages to ACCES-VR and college disability services. Interpreting for the interview and job coaching should be named as services, not left to chance. The student's preferences and interests must drive the plan.
2. How should the DHH teacher respond to the mother, the coordinator, and the sheltered-workshop suggestion?
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Three short conversations, one consistent principle: the IEP is built on Devon's needs and preferences, not on the adults' convenience or on a single available site.
To the mother: acknowledge that proximity matters and that she is protecting him. Then ask what she wants in five years; a placement that cannot provide an interpreter does not build employability, it teaches him to accept exclusion.
To the coordinator: a setting that refuses an interpreter is not a placement the school should count as compliant. Under the ADA, employers must provide reasonable accommodation, and the school can also provide an interpreter or job coach. If the hospital will not, pursue restaurant sites, including through ACCES-VR, which can fund interpreter services and job development after school.
To the counselor: a sheltered workshop is the most restrictive option and is not supported by a 3.2 GPA and no data showing inability to work competitively. Say no, and put the rationale in the IEP minutes.
3. What would you do in the three weeks before the annual review to prepare Devon for the interview?
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Use the three weeks to build skill and evidence. Week 1: complete a situational assessment at a school kitchen or a restaurant willing to host, and have Devon identify the tasks he does well and the accommodations he would request. Week 2: two mock interviews with the interpreter present, one with a chef or food-service manager; practice a disclosure script and a request such as 'I will need an interpreter for the interview and written safety instructions on the job.' Week 3: assemble a portfolio (resume, food-safety certificate if available, references), rehearse a five-minute introduction, and set up the actual interview with interpreting arranged. Contact ACCES-VR now so the counselor can attend the annual review. Give Devon the choice of when and how to disclose; self-determination is part of the transition plan, not an afterthought.