Transition services for students in special education are services that help students move from school to adult life. They should reflect the student’s own goals for their future. 

Federal and state special education law defines transition services as a coordinated set of activities for a student with a disability that – 

1. Is designed within a result-oriented process, which promotes movement from school to post-school activities, including post-secondary education, vocational training, integrated employment (including supported employment), continuing and adult education, adult services, independent living, or community participation; 
2. Is based upon the individual student’s needs, taking into account the student’s preferences, strengths and interests; and 
3. Includes instruction, related services, community experiences, the development or employment and other post-school adult living objectives, and, when appropriate, acquisition of daily living skills and functional vocational evaluation.^[1]

One court has found that a student’s services may include driver’s education, self-advocacy, and independent living skills such as cooking and cleaning.^[2]

California law further requires that the superintendent establish capacity to provide transition services to a broad range of students with exceptional needs such as employment and academic training, strategic planning, interagency coordination, and parent training.^[3]

State law goes on to define transition services as including, but not limited to, the following: 

1. In-service training programs, resource materials, and handbooks that identify the following: 
2. The definition of “transition,” including the major components of an effective school-based transitional program; 
3. Relevant laws and regulations; 
4. The roles of other agencies in the transition process including, but not limited to, the scope of their services, eligibility criteria, and funding; 
5. The components of effective transition planning; 
6. The role of families in the individualized transition process; 
7. Resources and model programs currently available in this state. 
8. Development of the role and responsibilities of special education in the transition process, including the following: 
9. The provision of work skills training, including those skills that are necessary in order to exhibit competence on the job; 
10. The provision of multiple employment options and facilitating job or career choice by providing a variety of vocational experiences; 
11. The collection and analysis of data on what happens to students once they leave the school system and enter the adult world; 
12. The coordination of the transition planning process, including development of necessary interagency agreements and procedures at both state and local levels; 
13. The provision of instructional learning strategies that will assist students who find learning difficult in acquiring skills that will enable them to obtain diplomas, promote a positive attitude toward secondary and post- secondary life. 
14.  The development and implementation of systematic and longitudinal vocational education curriculum including the following: 
15. Instructional strategies that will prepare students with significant disabilities to make a successful transition to supported employment and the community; 
16. The introduction of vocational and career education curriculum in the elementary grades for those students who can benefit from it. 
17. Materials, resource manuals, and in-service training programs to support the active participation of families in the planning and implementation of transition-related goals and activities. 
18. The development of resources and in-service training that will support the implementation of individualized transition planning for all special education students. 
19. The development of a network of model demonstration sites that illustrate a wide variety of transition models and implementation strategies. 
20. Coordination with other specialized programs that serve students who face barriers to successful transition.
21. A research, evaluation, and dissemination program that will support the major programmatic aspects of transition services.^[4]

1. 20 U.S.C. Sec. 1401(34); 34 C.F.R. Sec. 300.43(a); Cal. Ed. Code Sec. 56345.1.[↩]
2. Yankton Sch. Dist. v. Schramm, 93 F.3d 1369,1374 (8th Cir. 1996).[↩]
3. Cal. Ed. Code Sec. 56461.[↩]
4. Cal. Ed. Code Sec. 56462.[↩]