Predicting Employment for Students Who Leave Special Education High School Programs

A hierarchical regression analysis featuring 35 community, family, student, and school program characteristics, entered in a controlled order, was used to assess prediction of employment. Results showed that personal characteristics (especially being male and having living skills and academic skills) dominated the prediction of postschool employment. Family income, our proxy for socioeconomic status, also contributed significantly to this prediction. School programs had minimal effect on postschool employment once student competence and family characteristics had been controlled (held constant) statistically.