Important Milestones Reached in Program Accreditation
The National Coordinating Center and its Accreditation Workgroup have recently met two critical milestones related to the accreditation of PSE programs for students with intellectual disability that will have a lasting and positive impact on the field of inclusive postsecondary education.
Most notably, a major milestone was achieved in March with the establishment of a program accreditation agency. The Inclusive Higher Education Accreditation Council will serve as the accrediting entity for postsecondary education programs for students with intellectual disability.
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First Program Accreditation Visit Completed
A related milestone was met when the newly developed program accreditation process, based on the Program Accreditation Standards finalized in 2020, was piloted for the first time at Western Carolina University in March. The first program accreditation visit in the country made headlines in the student newspaper!
An article on the new IHEA Council can be found on the Think College website. The Institute for Community Inclusion at UMass Boston shared a press release on its home page and Inside Higher Education included a comprehensive article about these developments in their March 30 edition.
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Webinar: How Engaged are Your Students in Campus Life?
Presenters: Jennifer Sulewski, University of New Hampshire, Lindsay Krech, Vanderbilt University, & Ashley Luce, UMass Boston
Register Today!
Some college programs require students with intellectual disabilities to participate in activities outside the classroom like internships, volunteering, or joining social clubs. How can you support students to be actively involved? Good question! On May 2, we have 3 presenters who will describe what campus engagement looks like and talk about four specific types of support. Presenters will provide examples of student engagement and share resources.
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IPSE Day is 2 Weeks Away!
Show your support and enthusiasm for inclusive postsecondary education and mark your calendars for #ISPEDay2023! This year we’ll celebrate on May 1. Visit the IPSE Day page for more information, logos, sample posts, and more.
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Habla Español? New Spanish Resources
We are so excited to announce the launch of a new resource page in Spanish. You’ll find lots of resources for family members of students with intellectual disability who are thinking about college. Visit the new webpage today! www.ThinkCollege.net/espanol
Estamos muy emocionados de anunciar el lanzamiento de una nueva página de recursos en español. Encontrará muchos recursos para familiares de estudiantes con discapacidad intelectual que están pensando en la Universidad. Visite la nueva página web hoy!
www.ThinkCollege.net/espanol
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College Fair at the National Down Syndrome Congress Annual Conference!
College and university programs at accredited community colleges, technical colleges, colleges or universities – you have a great opportunity to share information about your program with over 2500 attendees at the NDSC Convention, July 21 in Orlando, Florida. The College Fair is slated to be bigger and better than ever this year, and we hope you can join Think College there! Deadline to apply is June 1 - all the info you need is on the NDSC website.
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Submit your application!
There’s still time to submit an application for Think College Policy Advocates! This is an incredible opportunity for college students with ID and a staff person from their college to work together to learn about disability advocacy. Everything you need to know about becoming a Think College Policy Advocate can be found here. Applications are being accepted until Monday, April 24. (Read the blog below for more info about TCPA).
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It's That Time Again... Time for Think College Policy Advocates!
By Caroline Jurisich
What is Think College Policy Advocates, or TCPA, and why should I apply? Read this guest blog post by Caroline Jurisich and find out!
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By Clare Papay
Think College staff, Mindy Lingo and Clare Papay, visited three inclusive postsecondary education campuses to assist in the filming for our new public awareness campaign, "Think Higher. Think College." Read about their experiences here!
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Transition and Postsecondary Education Programs for Students with Intellectual Disability (TPSID) | | |
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Road Trip 2023 continues!
Clare Papay and Caitlyn Bukaty stopped by the TPSID program at the University of Hawaii Manoa while in Honolulu for a conference. Project coordinator Marla Arquero gave them a quick tour of the campus and the Center on Disability Studies. Clare and Caitlyn also had an opportunity to chat with a student and his coach. Clare and Caitlyn would like to thank Marla for taking the time to show them around and for finding the perfect spot for some local food before they headed off to the airport.
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Think College Affinity Groups | |
Think College hosts professional development Affinity Groups on topics related to higher education for students with intellectual disability. Below are upcoming meetings and links to registration pages. Sign up to receive email updates and announcements via this Google Form. | | |
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Graduate Student
April 19, 3:30-4:30pm ET, Zoom registration
Topic: Job search process
Vocational Rehabilitation
May 2, 2:00-3:30pm ET; Zoom registration
Early Career Researchers
May 18, 1:00-2:00pm ET; Zoom registration
Topic: Collaborative research
State Alliances
May 25, 3:00-4:00pm ET; Zoom registration
Employment Partnerships
May 30, 2:00-3:00pm ET; Zoom registration
Topic: State alliances supporting employment partnerships
Career and Technical Education (CTE)
June 6, 3:00-4:00pm ET; Zoom registration
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Emerging Advocates Student Group | |
Other Think College Project News | |
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Think College Inclusive Higher Education Network
Register for the Think College Awareness Week April 24-28, 2023!
Join us for Think College Awareness Week April 24-28, 2023 to explore all college options for people with intellectual disability. We’ll kick it off with the launch of the “Think Higher. Think College.” public awareness campaign, featuring the world premiere of a new video designed to raise awareness of college options for students with intellectual disability. This week-long event will offer daily virtual learning events sharing information and resources for students, families, educators, transition professionals, and higher education personnel. All events are FREE and open to the public. ALL are welcome to attend, and you’ll receive just one link to access any event - live or recorded! https://bit.ly/TCAwarenessWeekC
Learn more about our other projects:
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April 2023: Autism Acceptance Month
AUCD's Autism Special Interest Group (SIG) is sponsoring a series of webinars for Autism Acceptance Month. This webinar series will focus on mentorship and leadership in the Autism Spectrum community. Learn more.
AUCD Website: Requesting Feedback via User Survey
Deadline: Friday, April 21, 2023
We want to hear from you! The AUCD team is in the beginning stages of refreshing the aucd.org website. What brings you to the aucd.org website? How often do you visit? What information do you want to see more of? These are just a few of the questions in our 12-question survey. We value your input. By answering those questions, you will help us improve the AUCD website and prioritize website features. Please take 10 minutes to share your thoughts with us. Your responses are completely anonymous. You can only take the survey once. This survey will be open until Friday, April 21. Complete the survey today.
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2023 AHEAD Annual Conference
Equity and Excellence: Access in Higher Education
July 17-July 21, 2023
Oregon Convention Center, Portland, Oregon
AHEAD is excited to announce its 46th annual international conference, an opportunity for extraordinary professional development and networking! The week will be packed with learning opportunities, featuring over 120 concurrent sessions during the main conference Wednesday through Friday, plus 19 dynamic pre-conference opportunities to build your own personalized training on Monday and Tuesday. This year’s program focuses on the wide range of member interests and needs, with content specifically geared to new professionals, seasoned pros, ADA Coordinators, office leadership, and many more. Register.
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The National Technical Assistance Center on Transition: The Collaborative is hosting the second part of a 2-part webinar series focused on transition services for youth and young adults with mental health challenges on June 8 at 2:00 ET. The first webinar and its materials can be accessed on the NTACT:C website.
Don't forget to login at www.transitionta.org to take advantage of these webinars and the resources available. Under the Training and TA tab at the top of the homepage, there are numerous pre-recorded webinars, presenter guides, and quick video Life Hacks for transition at your fingertips so support your work or those of the practitioners and families you connect with. Also check back to the Center's website in a few weeks for an updated its Postsecondary Education and Training Preparation Toolkit.
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