In this blog post, I will share resources related to the change in service delivery once your adult child “ages out” of the public school system and enters the adult service world. As a disclaimer, I am not a lawyer, so all information and resources presented are to be used as a starting point to follow up with your advocate/lawyer/team members.
When people ask me what the most significant change we experienced when going from school-based to adult-service-based was, from the parent perspective it was the shift from Entitlement Services to Eligibility Services.
What are the differences?
At its most basic description, entitlements are those services that fall under IDEA for students aged 3-22 (or upon receiving their high school diploma and terminating services), protecting the student to receive a Free and Appropriate Public Education (FAPE). Those entitlement protections no longer exist once you “age out” and go into adult services. Instead, your adult child will need to go through an eligibility determination first to find out if they are eligible for adult services. But, even if found eligible, there is no guarantee of services. What this meant for us was that even though L was found eligible under DDS for adult services and eligible to attend a CBDS (Community Based Day Support Program), because there were no openings in the programs in our area, they were not obligated to find a spot for him or “force” an agency to find room to take him. Those lack of openings was the primary reason we initially explored the Self-Directed programming route.
In MA, DDS is not obligated to find a placement for your child if there are no openings. Budget constraints may also occur on a year-to-year basis that can impact what services you receive. If there is a budget reduction, that could also impact your adult child’s program and placement. Also, the various CBDS programs are not obligated to take your adult child into their program; they can list various reasons why they are not a good fit.
Resources
I am a firm believer in not recreating the wheel……luckily, various organizations have already put together some great resources that talk about the differences between Entitlement and Eligibility. Check them out to read more about the differences between the two:
Entitlement vs. Eligibility from The Perkins School for the Blind website: I found this article to be one of the easiest and clearest ones to describe the differences between Entitlement and Eligibility: https://www.perkins.org/resource/transition-rights-entitlement-eligibility-services/
From Entitlement to Eligibility: Differences between Public Education and Post-Secondary Education for Individuals with Disabilities by the Pennsylvania Department of Education: This handout is a part of the resource link from the Perkins website (above): https://transition-guide-admin.s3.amazonaws.com/files/2012/07/17/Entitlement%20to%20Eligibility.pdf
A Parent’s Guide to Special Education by The Federation for Students with Special Needs and Massachusetts Department of Education: Pages 26 and 27 discuss the shift from entitlement to eligibility and a section outlining FAPE. https://fcsn.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/08/pgenglish.pdf
The Basics of Special Education Law by The Disability Law Center is a short handout that provides an overview of FAPE, LRE, Special Education Services, and 504 Plans: https://www.dlc-ma.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/06/The-Basics-of-Special-Education-Law.pdf
Eligibility For Adult Services and Supports from the Department of Developmental Services by The Disability Law Center is another short handout about applying for adult services. On page 3, the handout talks about what happens after the eligibility decision has been made and what it means for your adult child. https://www.dlc-ma.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/DDS-Eligibility-2024-02.pdf
The Dileman of Entitlement vs. Eligibility on the Pathfinders for Autism website: while this article was written by someone from the Maryland Department of Education, the information is still relevant in Massachusetts: https://pathfindersforautism.org/articles/maryland-services/the-dilemma-of-entitlement-vs-eligibility/
What does this mean for you?
All of our children will eventually transfer from entitlement services to eligibility services. Being aware of this shift ahead of time will help better prepare you and your adult child for the adult world. I also found that being able to “think outside of the box” and explore self-directed services ahead of time allowed us to create an appropriate program for L, while still being able to utilize the funding resources of DDS. As they said in the opening of Schoolhouse Rock “Knowledge is Power”, and the more you know, the better you can support and advocate for your child in the adult services world.
#Life Without a Filter 