Get Everybody Thinking About Work

Expectations are a key. If your child, you, and his or her support network all have work as the goal, everybody will work harder to make it happen.

Explore Options with Your Child

Help your child start thinking about work:

• DB101’s Finding the Right Job for You article can help your child think about what type of work he or she might like.
• Help your child find a mentor or role model. This person can help with advice and support that can make work more realistic.
• Give your child chores. They teach your child skills and to assume responsibility.
• Get your child involved in the community. Social experiences, summer camps, volunteer projects, community education classes, and internships all teach aspects of what work is like and let your child meet more people who might help with work in the future.
• Encourage your child to enjoy hobbies. Activities like sewing, cooking, woodworking, or anything else can teach skills, enrich life, create job possibilities, and help develop relationships that may lead to work.
• Introduce your child to the local NCWorks Career Center. It’s a good place to see what types of strategies other people with disabilities use to find and keep work.

Make Work a Part of Your Child’s Individualized Education Program (IEP)

If your child is still in middle school or high school, he or she probably has an Individualized Education Program (IEP). Make sure that your child’s IEP team knows that your child’s long-term objective as an adult is work and make it a part of the IEP Transition Plan. For example, the IEP could increase its focus on developing work skills, such as reading with understanding, using technology, and having interest-based work experiences.

Connect with Employment and Independence for People with Disabilities (EIPD)

If your child is at least 14 years old, they can get Pre-Employment Transition Services (Pre-ETS) from EIPD, formerly called the Division of Vocational Rehabilitation Services (DVRS or VR). Pre-ETS services are provided in a group setting, and are designed to help your child explore careers, develop work skills, practice social skills, and create a network of community support while still in high school. After high school, your child’s IEP will end, but EIPD may still help your child with counseling, training, job skills, and job placement. A school transition counselor can refer your child to EIPD, or you can contact the closest Employment and Independence for People with Disabilities (EIPD) office and ask for Pre-ETS.

If your child needs extra help to transition from high school to college, career, and adult life, they can apply for transition services from EIPD. If your child is eligible, an EIPD counselor helps create an Individual Plan for Employment (IPE) that lists the services and supports your child needs to meet their long-term career goals. Learn more about EIPD's Pre-ETS and Youth Transition Services.

Make Work Part of Your Child’s County Plan

If your child has a county caseworker, make sure the caseworker knows work is in your child’s future and discuss what employment supports the county will offer as your child becomes an adult. You can also work with the caseworker to develop a vision for your child’s life as an adult, including both work and other aspects of adult life.