Evidence first
The research behind every pathway.
What we learned from families, students, and educators — and how each finding shaped a piece of the platform.
of students with IEPs leave high school without a clear next-step plan.
more likely to be unemployed two years after graduation, vs. peers.
average time families spend decoding a single IEP document.
educators report no shared system for tracking transition goals.
From finding to feature
Every pain point maps to something we built.
Paperwork overload
Families spend hours decoding IEPs, evaluations, and transition plans written for compliance, not clarity.
Plain-language Pathway Report
Every plan is rewritten in family-friendly language, with the source documents one click away.
Student voice gets lost
Most transition plans are written about the student, not with them.
Student Hub & voice activities
Guided prompts capture strengths, interests, and goals in the student's own words.
No shared map
Educators, families, and partners often work from different documents and timelines.
Shared dashboards & action plans
One source of truth, four points of view — student, family, educator, partner.
Post-high-school cliff
Students with IEPs disproportionately end up without college, training, or employment two years out.
Verified resource & opportunity network
Universities, technical schools, and employers matched to the student's goals.
Meeting prep falls on memory
PPT/IEP meetings often happen without a shared agenda or follow-up loop.
Meeting Center
Agenda, prep questions, and follow-up actions generated from the plan itself.
Sources & voices
Built on data and lived experience.
Long-term post-school outcomes for students with disabilities.
Transition services must begin by age 16.
Indicator 13 and 14: transition planning quality + post-school outcomes.
Evidence-based predictors of post-school success.
Pre-employment transition services (Pre-ETS) requirements.
Better federal coordination could improve transition outcomes.
Best-practice guidance for transition planning teams.
Evidence-based secondary transition predictors meta-analysis.
Family experience navigating special education systems.
Self-determination and student-led IEP research.
Employment outcomes by disability status, annual series.
Vocational rehabilitation outcomes for transition-age youth.
Conducted across CT, MA, NY districts.
Special education teachers and transition coordinators.
High school students ages 15–21.
District-level leaders across the Northeast.
Young adults with IEPs reviewing every product surface.
Universities, technical schools, and employer partners.
Federally funded PTIs sharing common family questions.
On evaluation language and family comprehension.
SLPs, OTs, and counselors on goal alignment.
Diary studies of weekly transition-planning load.
Evidence is the floor. Action is the bridge.
Every feature in TransitionForward maps to a finding above. As the research grows, the platform grows with it.