Career and Community Studies
Portland State University

The Vision

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In 2015, a blueprint for the CCS program was developed through a US Department of Education Office of Postsecondary Education model development grant (also known as a TIPSID grant).

 

Drs. Ann Fullerton and Susan Burt set out to build something revolutionary in Oregon: a bridge for students with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD) to enter higher education. Victor Cummings, a Special Ed Teacher and Transition Specialist with Portland Public Schools, and Dr. Mary Morningstara, Professor of Special Education, joined Career and Community Services in 2018. 

 

CCS was developed as a rigorous, integrated experience that supported students' participation and learning in college courses. Students in CCS took classes as a cohort within the program, and they also took mainstream college courses with a modified curriculum. Students were also expected to find jobs and begin building careers. By the spring of their freshman year, employment was the expectation.

 

The Early Years: Success and Expansion

CCS students were successful in their classes, building community, and developing skills that would serve them in their communities and careers. Students achieved a 90% competitive integrated employment rate upon graduation. This is especially impressive given that the statewide average employment rate for people experiencing IDD is 30%.

 

Components of Early Success

• Portland Public Schools (PPS) provided support for dual enrollment of students in the PPS Community Transition Program who enrolled in the CCS program up to age 21.

• An agreement with Oregon Developmental Disability Services (ODDS) allowed for "K-Plan" billing, supporting coaching and advising services integrated directly into the campus experience. 

• VR and ODDS contracted with a community employment agency to provide employment services to all CCS students, both on campus and in the surrounding community. Through an affiliate agreement between the agency and PSU, employment staff even PSU IDs and offices

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CCS was resource-intensive, but it worked. PSU college students and faculty benefited as much as the CCS students themselves. Research supports the fact that inclusive classrooms:

• support the development of empathy, collaboration skills, and social skills

• break down barriers between neurodiverse and neurotypical peers

• promote a more inclusive perspective on challenges, supporting critical thinking and problem-solving

• Reduce social anxiety for all students. 

 

Challanges

While the program was a pedagogical triumph, it faced a "death by a thousand cuts" from several directions. When federal funding through the TIPSID grant ran out, the program was unable to secure more funding or support from the University. 

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• The "Academic Coordinator" Gap: This role was the glue—modifying syllabi, collaborating with instructors, and linking coursework to jobs. Because academic support didn't fit neatly into existing state services through Vocational Rehabilitation (VR) or the Office of Disability Services (ODDS), it required either PSU funding or external legislative funding, which the university and state didnt' support.

 

• District Drift: As PSU budget constraints hit, PPS withdrew its financial support. Other districts, such as West Linn, Wilsonville, and Lake Oswego, have entered into agreements with CCS to support a comprehensive transition for students interested in attending PSU. However, COVID-19 and administrative turnover eventually led them to develop their own internal programs.

 

• Funding model: Unlike other inclusive postsecondary education programs, PSU policy prevented charging a specific "program fee" for staffing to ensure the extra support CCS provided. This made the program more costly for students in CCS than for the student population as a whole. 

 

The Sunset of CCS

Despite the unwavering support of PSU's College of Education and a vocal community of alumni and self-advocates, PSU's Provost and President deemed the program too expensive to support a small number of students amid historic underfunding and more recent cuts to higher education in Oregon. 

 

Because CCS offered a Pre-Baccalaureate Certificate for non-degree students rather than a degree, it occupied a precarious space in PSU's Academic Affairs. When the university leadership declined to commit long-term institutional funding in 2025, the program was placed in moratorium and slated for elimination.

 

Lessons for the Future

“University goodwill” is not a sustainability plan. For a program like CCS to survive, it requires:

• Legislative Mandates: Funding the Academic Coordinator role through state law.

• Structural Integration: Embedding costs into tuition so federal aid can be triggered.

• External Pressure: Advocacy from alumni and families to ensure these programs aren't the first on the chopping block.