HS/HT Near You: Find, Start or Expand a Program

HS/HT sites are supported by both public and private funding and the cooperation of businesses, federal and state agencies, not-for-profit organizations, and local school districts. NCWD/Youth also provide support and information to the sites.

Find a HS/HT Program

There are two different types of HS/HT programs listed on this website.  The first type is a state-wide program which has a state director and is sponsored by the Department of Labor's Office of Disability Employment Policy (ODEP).  The second type is an official affiliate program which

If there is not a program in your state, read below about starting a HS/HT program in your area.

LEGEND
State in orange indicate an ODEP-sponsored site with a state director.   There may also be affiliate sites in the state.

States in light blue indicate one or more official affiliate sites in that state.

Starting A HS/HT Program

HS/HT programs depend on building coalitions for three reasons: supporting programs, promoting them, and providing financial and support staff for managing them.

Much of the work in launching and building a program must be done at the state and local levels. Various state government agencies set policy and allocate the essential resources, both human and fiscal, needed to establish and run a HS/HT program. But there is no lead organization designated to make HS/HT a priority. Many state agencies should have a vested interest in HS/HT’s success. The organization that takes the lead to establish a HS/HT program does not need to necessarily manage the effort. It is best to involve a wide range of agencies and organizations at the state and local levels in promoting the development of programs throughout the state. Different strategies work for different organizations but there are several suggested steps all start up programs should consider.

Steps in developing a local site

1. Review the HS/HT Program Manual. Think about the needs of your community. How can the HS/HT model leverage the resources that are available in your area? Check above to see if there is a state-level HS/HT program to which your community can connect.
2. Meet with the appropriate people in your community to determine the steps needed to gain the support of the school system, local employers, WIA providers, and others who should be involved at the local level.
3. Organize a meeting to bring interested parties together to plan how to develop the HS/HT model in your area. Discuss the leadership of your site. Who will be the administrative entity? Will you have an advisory committee? Contact NCWD/Youth if you are interested in having a national representative attend.
4. Develop a plan to provide the design features to youth with disabilities in your community. The plan should include timelines, partners, goals, outcome measures, and funding resources. During this process stay in close contact with partners or local organizations that can provide services to the students and assist with developing funding sources.
5. Become an official HS/HT affiliate site.
6. Recognize the new HS/HT program by holding a kick-off event each year.

Expanding HS/HT

Several levels of support are required to grow and expand HS/HT. At the national level, ODEP uses its limited resources to help sites build stronger connections to funding sources available in communities that share HS/HT’s mission, including WIA, Vocational Rehabilitation, and IDEA. These funding sources will be discussed in the next chapter. ODEP uses data and anecdotes, as well as policy feedback from the field, to develop national level federal and business partnerships.

ODEP considers the growth and expansion of HS/HT to be a priority. Its staff is always looking for ways to strengthen the program at the national level.

NCWD/Youth | c/o Institute for Educational Leadership
4455 Connecticut Avenue NW, Suite 310 | Washington, DC 20008
Telephone: 1-877-871-0744 (Toll Free)
TTY: 877-871-0665 (Toll Free)