Bill H.159

HOUSE DOCKET, NO. 423 FILED ON: 1/14/2011

HOUSE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . No. 159

The Commonwealth of Massachusetts

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PRESENTED BY:

Tom Sannicandro and Steven A. Tolman

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To the Honorable Senate and House of Representatives of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts in General
Court assembled:

The undersigned legislators and/or citizens respectfully petition for the adoption of the accompanying bill:

An Act to promote the successful transition of students with disabilities to post-secondary education, employment, and independent living.

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PETITION OF:

Name:	District/Address:	Date Added:
Tom Sannicandro	7th Middlesex	1/14/2011
Mark J. Cusack	5th Norfolk	2/4/2011
Kimberly N. Ferguson	1st Worcester	2/4/2011
Steven A. Tolman		2/4/2011
Rhonda Nyman	5th Plymouth	2/3/2011
Walter F. Timilty	7th Norfolk	2/3/2011
Patricia D. Jehlen		2/3/2011
John P. Fresolo	16th Worcester	2/3/2011
David B. Sullivan	6th Bristol	2/3/2011
Cory Atkins	14th Middlesex	2/3/2011
Thomas P. Conroy	13th Middlesex	2/4/2011
Brian A. Joyce	Norfolk, Bristol and Plymouth	2/4/2011
Karen E. Spilka		2/4/2011
Ellen Story	3rd Hampshire	2/4/2011
Louis L. Kafka	8th Norfolk	2/4/2011
James J. O'Day	14th Worcester	2/4/2011
John H. Rogers	12th Norfolk	2/4/2011
John V. Fernandes	10th Worcester	2/4/2011
Sonia Chang-Diaz		2/4/2011
Garrett J. Bradley	3rd Plymouth	2/4/2011
Sal N. DiDomenico	Middlesex and Suffolk	2/4/2011
Jonathan Hecht	29th Middlesex	2/4/2011
Cynthia S. Creem		2/4/2011
Patricia A. Haddad	5th Bristol	2/1/2011
Jason M. Lewis	31st Middlesex	2/2/2011
Stephen R. Canessa	12th Bristol	2/2/2011
James B. Eldridge		2/3/2011
David Paul Linsky	5th Middlesex	2/3/2011
James M. Murphy	4th Norfolk	2/3/2011
Frank I. Smizik	15th Norfolk	2/3/2011
William M. Straus	10th Bristol	2/3/2011
Cheryl A. Coakley-Rivera	10th Hampden	2/3/2011
Martha M. Walz	8th Suffolk	2/3/2011
George T. Ross	2nd Bristol	2/3/2011
James Arciero	2nd Middlesex	2/3/2011
James J. Dwyer	30th Middlesex	2/3/2011
John J. Binienda	17th Worcester	2/3/2011
Christine E. Canavan	10th Plymouth	2/3/2011
Kay Khan	11th Middlesex	1/24/2011
Jennifer E. Benson	37th Middlesex	1/25/2011
Alice K. Wolf	25th Middlesex	1/25/2011
David M. Torrisi	14th Essex	1/25/2011
Theodore C. Speliotis	13th Essex	1/26/2011
Carl M. Sciortino, Jr.	34th Middlesex	1/26/2011
Anne M. Gobi	5th Worcester	1/27/2011
William N. Brownsberger		1/31/2011
Katherine M. Clark	Fifth Middlesex	2/1/2011
Steven M. Walsh	11th Essex	2/1/2011
Ruth B. Balser	12th Middlesex	2/1/2011
Angelo J. Puppolo, Jr.	12th Hampden	2/4/2011
Denise Provost	27th Middlesex	2/4/2011

HOUSE DOCKET, NO. 423 FILED ON: 1/14/2011

HOUSE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . No. 159

By Representative Sannicandro of Ashland and Senator Tolman, a joint petition (accompanied by bill, House, No. 159) of Tom Sannicandro, Mark J. Cusack, Kimberly N. Ferguson, Steven A. Tolman and others for legislation to promote the successful transition of students with disabilities to post-secondary education, employment and independent living. Education.

The Commonwealth of Massachusetts

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In the Year Two Thousand Eleven

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An Act to promote the successful transition of students with disabilities to post-secondary education, employment, and independent living.

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Court assembled, and by the authority of the same, as follows:

SECTION 1. Chapter 71, section 38G, of the General Laws, as appearing in the 2008 Official Edition, is hereby amended by inserting after the definition of “temporary certificate” the following definition:-

“Transition Services”, as defined in 20 USC 1401 (34)

SECTION 2 Section 38G of said chapter 71 of the General Laws is hereby amended by adding the following paragraph:-

The board of education shall provide a specialist teacher license in transition services which shall include both coursework and field experience for previously licensed special education teachers and rehabilitation counselors to develop the competence necessary to serve as transition coordinators to facilitate provision of a coordinated set of activities to adequately prepare students with disabilities to achieve successful transition to post-school activities including further education, competitive employment, and independent living. The requirements for the specialist teacher license in transition services, as promulgated by the board, can also be used to satisfy the requirements for a professional license.