WSD’s 18-21 year old transition services for Wisconsin deaf/hard of hearing students is designed to develop independent living skills, social skills, employment and self-advocacy skills. The WSD STEP program engages students in age appropriate activities that provide a continuous connection to the community.
STEP utilizes transition assessments including the Enderle Severson Transition Rating scale (ESTR), career assessments, and interest inventories. Results are incorporated into IEP development for each student. WSD school nurses, school social worker, and dorm transition staff work closely with STEP teachers in providing a comprehensive 24 hour per day transition living program from Sunday evening through Friday afternoon each week.
The following courses encompass all aspects of WSD’s community based STEP program.
2 credits STEP Reading and Writing
1 credit STEP Budgeting
2 credits STEP Home Living
1 credit STEP Future’s Planning
2 credits STEP Work Experience
Course Descriptions
STEP Reading and Writing
In these classes, STEP students will learn vocabulary and written English related to independent living, social involvement, employment, self-advocacy and community services. Students read medications, contracts, daily living terms, food labels, written directions, current events, job applications, schedules, community signs, SSI paperwork, tax forms, and leisure activity vocabulary. These courses also involve writing personal information, applications completion, resumes, emergency communication, E-mails, job related writing, shopping lists, written language for asking directions, and community based writing. The final written project is a student written personal goal plan.
STEP Budgeting
This program helps to prepare students for independent living in the future. Via simulated budgeting (SB), students deal with simulated income, monthly expenses, liabilities, assets, and bonuses. Students learn to about financial management planning, money, savings and checking accounts, interest, ATMs, paychecks, insurance, taxes, and calculation of cost savings, sales, and discounts. Key to the SB program is the connection with dormitory life. When SB bills are not paid on time, dorm room electrical power is turned off. (Although emergency alarms, heat, etc. are not impacted as safety is of primary concern.)
*In addition to the simulated budgeting portion of the program, WSD provides real-life budgeting experiences. Each month, $30.00 of student earnings from paid work study experiences is held in a special Real Life Budgeting (RLB) account through the WSD business office. Deposits, withdrawals, and documented management of this money is conducted by students under the supervision of the budgeting/math teacher. Students are required to budget their RLB money toward specific school related events such as field trips and senior graduation expenses. Students may spend excess RLB money as they wish, but key to the RLB program is documentation of all expenditures during math class. All student earnings beyond $30.00 monthly is sent home for student-parent budgeting purposes.
Additional math skills including reading time, using measurements, addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division are also taught and reinforced in the budgeting and math class. The final project is a student written financial plan.
STEP Home Living
In this class STEP students will learn and practice how to do household cleaning, laundry, household maintenance, use of basic tools and appliances, home safety, basic home care tasks, the food groups, proper food storage, meal planning, kitchen safety procedures, food preparation and preparing and serving foods that require a variety of cooking procedures. Students learn about personal hygiene, body awareness, reproduction, parenting, interpersonal skills, feelings and emotions, time management, clothing choices, and leisure time activities. Students learn to respond to problems in the home such as plumbing and heating, fire, accidents, and poisoning. The final project is a student written home living plan.
STEP Future’s Planning
Students will learn about interaction with authority figures, know their personal goals, effectively communicates with others and communicate need for appropriate accommodations, making reasonable demands, acting courteously, practice self-advocacy skills in a variety of settings, knowing and obeying rules and laws, and demonstrating appropriate social behaviors in society. Students demonstrate skills in using technology devices such as Video Phones, cellphone pagers and using Relay services. Students learn to where to and how to vote, making own appointments (doctors, hairstylist, etc.), independently using public places, obtaining driver’s license or state identification, using public transportation independently when driving/vehicle are not obtained. Students understand and can secure secondary housing and plan living arrangements. Students identify and understand implications of their disabilities, utilize rehabilitation and adult services. Students understand higher education support services and can identify variety of post-secondary options such as universities, technical schools, community education, and applying for financial assistance such as the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) or Social Security.
Vocational assessments and career and interest inventories are used to identify students’ interests and skills. Students develop a career/college and community plan as a final project for this class.
STEP Work Experience
STEP students learn job skills needed for employment after graduation from the STEP work program. Students learn about employment agencies, work relationships, career choices, job coaching, and appropriate work behaviors. STEP students begin the year with on-campus work placements. Students complete timesheets for work assignments, develop resumes, and are evaluated on their work performance. Also during this time, teachers work with STEP students to immediately begin working on connections with their Division of Vocational Rehabilitation (DVR) counselors to work with them to develop the student’s Individualized Plans for Employment (IPEs) to reflect Trial Work Experiences (TWEs) in the community. By doing so, DVR is activated to assign the student to a TWE in the community during the second semester. DVR assigns a DVR Job Developer to locate and arrange for the TWE for the second semester of off campus work experience for STEP students. Students are paid by DVR for their TWE. STEP students must have bank accounts in which to have their earnings deposited. Transportation to and from WSD and the local TWE is arranged by WSD teachers, however, transportation is paid for by DVR.
Additional Staff Supporting STEP
Nursing Staff
Instructing alongside STEP teachers or acting in support as resources addressing personal safety, reproduction, medicines, first aid, weight control, sleep, exercise, medical information, making medical and dental appointments, poisoning, care of physical self, hygiene, sexuality, and individual health care plan development.
Dorm Transition Staff
Providing reinforcement of domestic skills, laundry, appliances, social skills, food preparation and storage, meal planning, cleanliness, eating and manners, personal property care, using communication devices, personal hygiene, weight, sleep, exercise programs, leisure activities, schedules, clothing choices, community activities, current events, social outings, peer interaction.
Social Worker
WSD’s social worker provides connections for students with community agencies such as DVR, adult services, and families. The social worker supports teachers in addressing student’s comprehensive post high school transition plans, post high school housing options, determining at home transportation options, arranging outside vocational assessments, scheduling appointments in the community, and assisting students in maintaining personal appointment calendars. Additionally, the social worker conducts Functional Behavioral Assessments (FBAs), provides group social skills counseling, and manages volunteer requirements and activities.