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HTA Educational Program

Classroom and experiential learning includes a focus on problem solving, functional and social skills as well as independence skills development.

HTA Vocational Program

Since the Hamden Transition Academy began in September of 2003, we have developed several work sites on the SCSU campus. These include: Landscaping/Grounds, the Special Education/Reading Department office, Custodial/Maintenance, the Audio-Visual Department, the Duplicating Department, Warehouse/Shipping and Receiving, the Mailroom, the Communication Disorders Department office, the Academic Advisement office, the Purchasing Department, the Admissions office, Buley Library, the Science Building, Athletic equipment, and the Nursing Office. Unless incoming HTA students have worked independently and competitively in the community, they are placed in work sites on the Southern campus as they begin their first year. We try to match sites to student interests, but we also encourage students to expand their experiences and “comfort zone.” The purpose of the campus-based work sites is to help students develop their overall vocational skills and attitudes which they can then generalize to any job placement at a later date. Students are not paid for on-campus work experiences. 

During the past fifteen years, , the HTA Transition and Vocational Coordinator, has also been successful in developing several job sites in the community.  These have included: Presto Print II, Whitney Center, Wal-Mart, Wood-N-Tap, Chili’s, Marshalls, Jo-Ann Fabric and Crafts, the YMCA, Alice Peck Early Leaning Center, Dee's Laundromat, Pearle Vision Center, Eli Whitney Musuem, and the Youth Services Early Childhood Program in Hamden, the Forget-Me-Not Flower Shop in North Haven, and the Mary Wade Home in New Haven. During their years in the program, the HTA students move from job shadows and on campus work experiences to situational assessments and job sites in the community where they have the opportunity to do "real work." Once in the community, students receive a monitory stipend: $4.00 per hour to start with the opportunity for raises based upon work performance and work site evaluations conducted by the HTA Transition and Vocational Coordinator documenting that they can successfully handle the employer’s requirements for the job.

In all work settings, job coaches are available to support students. The level of support is based on the student’s needs and the student’s ability to independently carry out the job responsibilities. Our goal is to help students learn different job tasks and to enhance their productivity, independence, and social appropriateness on the job so they will be better prepared to work with BRS and DDS in seeking and retaining employment as adults. We have had some HTA students who have been hired by their employers upon graduation.

The Hamden Transition Academy (HTA) is a unique partnership between Hamden Public Schools and Southern Connecticut State University. HTA provides educational opportunities and workforce skills and experiences for 18-22 year old students.

The development and implementation of the Hamden Transition Academy have been partially supported by the Connecticut State Department of Education and the Grace Donahue and Doris Feldman Funds of The Community Foundation for Greater New Haven.

The overarching goal of the Hamden Transition Academy is to facilitate our students' continuous growth and independence, self-confidence, and self-esteem "while they are entrusted to our care," and to support our students and their parents as they exit from the school system and transition to appropriate adult agencies in the community.

The Hamden Transition Academy is a multi-faceted, community-based program which serves students with intellectual and other disabilities, ages 18 - 22, in an age-appropriate natural environment.

The program serves as a bridge between school and adult life by involving these students in a variety of vocational, social, cultural, recreational, and independent living activities on the campus of Southern Connecticut State University.

The unique features of the Hamden Transition Academy include:

• plans and daily schedules tailored to each student;
• individualized and small group instruction in a Life Skills Curriculum taught by a certified special education teacher on campus;
• individualized instruction in computer skills, including word processing, graphic arts, and educational/practical uses of the Internet;
• computer-assisted instruction tailored to the academic needs of each student (e.g., making correct change, telling time);
• opportunities for socialization and recreation with college student mentors from the SCSU Special Education/Reading, Department of Recreation, Tourism, and Sport Management, and Department of Exercise Science;
• exposure to a variety of vocational work sites on campus and – when ready – in the community with one-on-one job coaches, as needed;
• periodic situational assessments in community job sites;
• with the support of the consulting HTA Speech and Language Pathologist, the facilitation of appropriate social and pragmatic language skills by all HTA staff throughout the day;
• participation in worthwhile and rewarding community service experiences;
• a daily “Transition Seminar” on a variety of relevant topics;
• individual counseling with the HTA School Psychologist;
• a collaborative home-based approach to developing daily living skills, involving the use of HTA Daily Living Skills Rating Scale to identify priority areas and to set individualized action plans;
• opportunities for students and parents to network with each other and with representatives from the Department of Developmental Disabilities, the Bureau of Rehabilitation Services, and other adult agencies in the community.