Impact Feature Issue on Postsecondary Education and Students with Intellectual, Developmental and Other Disabilities

Postsecondary education is a primary goal for the majority of high school students with transition plans, according to the National Longitudinal Transition Study–2. However, according to that same study, only about 3 in 10 young adults with disabilities have taken postsecondary education classes since high school. And among those with the lowest rates of participation are students with intellectual disabilities. This Impact issue explores what we know, and what we still need to know, about what works to support increased participation of students with disabilities, especially those with intellectual disabilities, in postsecondary education and why that participation is important. It includes stories about students with disabilities succeeding in higher education, strategies for families and school personnel to use in supporting planning for postsecondary education during high school, research findings and historical overviews on our national journey to support full participation in all areas of life – including education – for individuals with intellectual and other disabilities, and explanations of the education laws that can undergird that participation. It's our hope that readers of this issue will find new ways of thinking about the role of post-high-school education in the lives of young people with disabilities, and about the benefits to those young people as well as our communities and nation.