Spring 2023, Issue 7

Welcome to the seventh issue of the Think College Inclusive Higher Education Network's newsletter, Network News. This quarterly newsletter features updates from the Think College Inclusive Higher Education Network (Think College Network) news from the field and upcoming events and opportunities related to inclusive higher education across the US.

Updates from the Think College Network

Think College Awareness Week: The Launch of the “Think Higher. Think College.” Public Awareness Campaign

Last week was Think College Awareness Week. Over 1,300 students, families, educators, transition professionals, and higher education personnel signed up to learn more about college options and planning for students with intellectual disability.

Did you miss the event? No worries! You can access all of the virtual event recordings, brand-new resources, and campaign materials at the “Think Higher. Think College.” campaign website.

The week also kicked off our public awareness campaign “Think Higher. Think College.” Through the campaign, we aim to increase knowledge of inclusive college options, share information about the benefits and outcomes of students with intellectual disability attending college, and offer people ways to spread the message: “Think Higher. Think College.”

A male college student with long hair, wearing glasses, smiling, sitting in a classroom.

We are very grateful to the inclusive postsecondary education programs that were a part of the campaign video. Want a behind-the-scenes look at how the video was made? Check out Mindy Lingo and Clare Papay’s recent blog post - Lights, Camera, Action & THANK YOU!

Share the message to “Think Higher. Think College.”

Launch week was just the beginning. Now we need YOUR help to spread the word to “Think Higher. Think College.” for students with intellectual disability!

Please make sure to follow us to stay up-to-date with information and to share important public awareness resources! Share these with your friends and those in your network.

Please share our message on social media, tag and hashtag!

Use these hashtags to share:

#THTC #ThinkHigher #ThinkCollege

Visit our website and share the campaign video: thinkhighered.net

If you attended one or more of the launch week events, don’t forget to tell us how you are spreading the word about “Think Higher. Think College.”

Regional Alliance Development

In mid-April, Susanna Miller-Raines and Mindy Lingo spent time with representatives from inclusive higher education programs in Oklahoma and Texas as part of the first annual OK/TX Summit on inclusive higher education. While there, Susanna spoke with members of the Oklahoma legislature, sharing the national landscape of inclusive higher education. She also gave the opening keynote for the one-day summit that brought together almost 150 families, students, family organizations, state agencies, and inclusive postsecondary education (IPSE) programs. Susanna and Mindy provided technical assistance and support to program representatives regarding collaboration between the two states. Plans are already underway for a second OK/TX Summit in Texas next year!

News from Think College

IPSE Day 2023 was a Big Hit!

We saw hundreds of students, program staff, and others share why Inclusive Postsecondary Education is important to them. Our social media feeds were flooded with reasons like:

Everyone of us deserves to go to college and have freedom.
I got to play ultimate frisbee!
College is where we learn and grow.
College is about community and community is about everyone!
Meaningful credentials lead to careers with higher salaries.

Check out our Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter feeds and search #IPSEDay2023 to see all the posts supporting college options for students with intellectual disability!

Visitors from Abroad!

Think College hosted visitors from Europe in April to discuss ideas for collaboration around growing inclusive postsecondary education (IPSE) in Europe and globally. Dr. Wolfgang Plaute, Professor at the University of Education Salzburg Stefan Zweig and Matthias Gubler from the University of Education Zurich visited our ICI offices in Boston on Thursday and Friday. Drs. Plaute and Gubler both have created IPSE Programs at their universities. They are two of the founding members of the newly developed organization, Join In, the European Network for Inclusive Higher Education. It was founded by the Erasmus+ Project of the European Union Inclusive Postsecondary Education Programme for Students with Intellectual Disabilities.

TPSID Annual Report is Now Available

Every year the Think College National Coordinating Center produces an annual report which reviews program- and student-level data across the domains of program characteristics, academic access, supports for students, and integration of the program within the institute of higher education. You can find the Cohort 3, Year 2 Annual Report, Executive Summary, and Highlights documents here.

What's Happening in Your State?

Stay in the know with this important tool!

Use the Think College interactive map to see updates on activities and policies related to college education for students with intellectual disability in each state.

You can also search for specific legislation and statewide organizations for IPSE by state.

Did you know we can support your state’s strategic planning?

The Think College Network has a team of technical assistance providers who can support your state alliance with strategic planning. Whether your alliance is brand new, informal, established, or in a transition period, our team can meet with your programs and state partners virtually or in person to meet your team’s strategic planning needs. We are here to support follow up efforts and provide ongoing targeted technical assistance. Reach out to us at [email protected], and someone will be in touch to help start, grow, or improve your state alliance!

News from the Field

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 2,500 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.

Calling all IPSE staff members in Michigan, Ohio, Indiana, and Wisconsin!

Please join the Great Lakes Inclusive Postsecondary Education Alliance (GLIPSEA) for their quarterly meeting on Monday, May 8 at 10:00 am EST for news, updates and a logo unveiling. GLIPSEA member states include Indiana, Michigan, Ohio, and Wisconsin, but all are welcome to join us via Microsoft Teams. Please email Kate Strater at [email protected] to receive the meeting link.

University of Missouri - St. Louis (UMSL)’s Dr. Register honored as a “Womxn on Fire”

The UMSL Succeed Program celebrated some big news in March! Dr. April Regester, Department Chair of Educator Preparation and Leadership and Associate Professor for Inclusive Education, was one of five womxn who received the 2023 Women Trailblazer Award from the University of Missouri - St. Louis Office of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion. *Please note spelling of the word, “womxn” is intentional for the purpose of inclusivity.

Support for students with intellectual disability to access postsecondary Career & Technical Education (CTE)

Did you know we have a CTE Collaborative Workgroup focused on expanding CTE opportunities for students with intellectual disability?

Please contact us if you:

Have an interest in developing inclusive postsecondary education opportunities at a CTE campus
Are at a CTE college that would like to know more about students with intellectual disability earning industry recognized credentials

Learn more by visiting the CTE Collaborative Workgroup page or contact the workgroup lead, Drew Andrews ([email protected]).

Job Opportunities

Looking for a new IPSE job? There are current opportunities available in California, South Carolina, Texas, Virginia, and Washington. Visit the Think College employment opportunities webpage for current IPSE-related job openings across the country.

View jobs

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Have a job you wanted shared? E-mail us at: [email protected]

For Students

Hey students! Interested in learning more about college? Hear from students just like you and take the next step with this resource.

ASAN 2023 Autism Campus Inclusion (ACI) Leadership Academy

The Autistic Self Advocacy Network (ASAN) is now accepting applications for the 2023 Autism Campus Inclusion (ACI) Leadership Academy! ACI helps autistic students learn to make their college campuses better for people with disabilities.

ACI 2023 will be held from July 10th through 19th, 2023.

Get more info

The Latest in Research

There’s a new issue of the Journal of Postsecondary Education !

We’ve enjoyed reading the introduction by Beth Myers and Meg Grigal “Ten Years of the State-of-the-Art Conference: Reflecting on the Progress of Inclusive Postsecondary Education” and other insightful articles. View the whole issue here.

April 2023 Issue of the Brady Bulletin

The Brady Bulletin is produced by the professionals at the Academy for Community Inclusion (ACI) at Florida Atlantic University (FAU), a Florida Postsecondary Comprehensive Transition Program (FPCTP).

The bulletin disseminates reports of research related to postsecondary comprehensive transition programs to professionals who deliver these postsecondary programs, and individuals and their families who participate in these programs.

Find the October issue and past issues on the FAU College of Education Research webpage.