New GATOR Triad Study in January 2022

Next month, staff from the Guardianship Alternatives and Transfer of Rights (GATOR) project, in partnership with Massachusetts Advocates Standing Strong (MASS) and the Self Advocacy Association of New York State (SANYS), will be launching a new research study in New York (NY) and Massachusetts (MA).

We will interview students, parents, and special educators from six school districts in NY and six school districts in MA. We want to understand youths’ experiences of participating in guardianship and transfer-of-rights discussions during transition planning. We want to know what factors impact how special education staff address transfer-of-rights conversations between students and their parents, and how these practices affect parental expectations and student outcomes.

We will interview 24 “triads”, or groups of 3 people:

• 24 students with IDD ages 18–22 from six school districts in MA and six school districts in NY
• 24 students’ parents
• 24 special educators/transition coordinators who gave the family information about transfer-of-rights, guardianship, and alternatives.

We will begin looking in January 2022 for people to interview. Please contact Daria Domin at daria.domin@umb.edu if you know any students, parents, or special education/transition professionals who would like to participate in MA or NY.