Washington Annex Work Study Program
Coventry, Rhode Island

Contact

Jo-Ann Avedisian
Special Education Teacher
Coventry Public Schools
40 Reservoir Road
Coventry, Rhode Island 02816
Phone: 401-822-9499 x164
Fax: 401-822-9492
E-mail: jave7@aol.com

Mission

The Washington Annex Work Study Program provides comprehensive transition services to high school students with significant disabilities through a student-centered approach. Collaboration occurs between family, school, community, and agency officials. Planning is individualized through the Making Action Plans (MAPS) process and focuses on: vocational exploration, development, and instruction; community access; personal management skill development; practical academics and literacy; and self-determination instruction. Students have equal access to all school-based and co-curricular activities and participate in meaningful inclusive activities. Faculty and staff are committed to utilizing best practices and exemplary strategies and remain current through literature review and participation in a strong professional development program.

Organization

Organization Type: Education Agency  - School

Geographical Area:  Towns and cities

Primary Setting: Community-based training site, High school, Regular education class, Self-contained class in public school, Competitive employment worksite, Supported employment worksite, Other: Community service and volunteer sites

Funding: No special external funding source

Consumers

Target Population:  Secondary education students with disabilities, Teachers or faculty, Secondary education, Community service providers,  Parents, Business people or employer,  Other:  General education population, Adult service providers, Division of Developmental disability caseworkers, Office of Rehabilitation Services caseworkers

Disability Areas:  Deaf, Hearing impairment, Mental retardation (mild, moderate, severe), Orthopedic impairment, Multi-disabled (more than two), Speech impairment, Visual impairment, Autism, Traumatic brain injury, Other (Spina bifida, Angelman’s Syndrome, Fragile X, Cri du chat, secondary behavioral issues and sensory impairments)

NTA Framework Categories

• Student-Focused Planning and Development
• Career Pathways and Contextual Learning

Description

The Washington Annex Work Study Program (WAWSP) is a comprehensive transition education program for students age 15-21 with significant disabilities. The program is located at Coventry High School in Coventry, Rhode Island. Transition goals and objectives are selected on an individual basis by a collaborative planning team consisting of the student, the family, advocates, professionals and all other persons deemed significant by the student. Using the MAPS (Making Action Plans) process, all goals and objectives lead directly to the facilitation of independence as the student enters adulthood.

Inherent in this philosophy is the notion that students need to interact with others in the most inclusive manner through community-based instruction and a dynamic supported employment program. The employment program enables each student to experience a variety of real work situations and to advance through a five-step hierarchy of assessment, small businesses, community work groups, and supported employment towards independent employment with natural supports. Student choice is stressed in all situations. Documentation is provided through career portfolios.

In addition, all students participate in inclusive classes during the school day. Reach Out is a program in which students from the general education program spend study periods, co-curricular activity time, and after school hours with WAWSP students.

Evidence of Success

• Follow-up contacts to graduates were made for all program graduates (1990-1999). It was found that 90% of graduates are in community-based programs.
• A review of career portfolios and transition records showed that 67% of graduates experienced both paid and volunteer work placements. There are five stages of the work hierarchy which are as follows: (a) assessment, (b) small business, (c) small group, (d) individual supported employment, and (e) employment with natural supports. From 1999 to the present:

• Twenty-three paid worksites were offered; 6 in the food industry; 6 in retail; one in human services; 1 in the travel industry; 3 in manufacturing and construction industry; and 6 in the service industry.
• Forty-two work experience sites are available to students, which include experiences in the hospitality industry; human services; construction; retail; public services (e.g., fire department); education (e.g., schools and daycare); food industry; and churches.
• Four assessment sites are available for students to explore career options and experience the many different jobs the site has to offer. Two are in the food industry, one is at a nursing home and one is in the retail sector.

• In order to enable students to become informed adult service consumers:
• The total number of different adult service provider choices has increased since first graduates transitioned from program in 1990 from one provider, Kent County ARC, to over 10 providers. These include Cranston Chapter, ARC; Gateways to Change, Inc.; Groden Center; Kent County, ARC; People in Partnerships; Perspectives Corp.; Project Friends; South County Chapter ARC; West Bay Residential; and Sergeant Center (this is a list of providers students chose to receive support).

Success Story

A" started her high school career as a member of the Washington Annex Work Study Program at Coventry High School as a quiet, shy, reserved freshman six years ago. When "A" graduates in the Spring of 2000, she will be entering her life after school as a confident and outgoing young adult who is not afraid to advocate for herself. Through the use of MAP (Making Action Plans) process and self-determination training, "A" has matured academically, socially, and vocationally. In addition, "A's" mom and extended family have grown, too. They have come to realize and respect "A's" potential and desire to live life to its fullest in her community.

"A" will leave school with significant connections to the Division of Developmental Disabilities, the Office of Rehabilitative Services, and to several local adult service agencies. She will leave school with a job for pay at a local hair salon, with a volunteer placement in a day care program at the YMCA, and with over 20 different community-based vocational assessments and experiences. In addition, she will leave school with knowledge of her community and how to access services within it as well as personal management skills, which are apparent in both home and community settings. On top of this, "A" will leave school with friends, both with and without disabilities, who will remain actively involved in "A's" life. Most importantly, "A" will leave school a happy and successful young woman, a source of pride to Washington Annex and Coventry High School.

Back to Directory home page   

Back to TRI home page                                  

Updated 11/3/00