To celebrate Developmental Disabilities Awareness Month, we’re highlighting our transformative Campus-Based Transition (CBT) programs. At the ESC we’re dedicated to empowering students with disabilities to achieve independence and meaningful employment. Our CBT programs are pivotal in this mission, offering young adults aged 18-22 the opportunity to develop essential life and work skills within inclusive, real-world environments.
CBT at the ESC
Our CBT programs are strategically located on the campuses of Columbus State Community College and The Ohio State University, providing students with authentic learning experiences alongside their peers. Each program is tailored to address the unique needs and aspirations of our students:
WINGS Classroom: Focused on fostering independence, the WINGS program emphasizes daily living skills, self-advocacy, and community engagement. Students participate in various on-campus activities designed to enhance their social and functional abilities.
Student Transition Education Program (STEP): In partnership with The Ohio State University, STEP offers students the chance to explore career options, improve work skills, and increase independence. The program includes work experiences on campus, such as positions at dining halls and recreation centers, and emphasizes self-determination and community navigation skills.
Project Plus: Serving as a final transition from school to work, Project Plus provides students with internships around The Ohio State University campus and community. The program aims to ensure connections with adult agencies, incorporate curriculum emphasizing employability skills, and increase social and independence skills, guiding students toward gainful employment after graduation.
CBT Blog Slideshow 1 by ESC Comms
We checked in with our CBT program lead, Megan Mastrobuono to learn a little bit about each CBT class's day as they prepare students with disabilities for independent living and employment. By sharing insights into each program, we hope to inform educators, families, and the community about the valuable opportunities available to support the transition from school to adulthood.
Preparing for the Day
Once students have arrived on campus, each class participates in a morning meeting. Students discuss each other’s evening, often sharing leisure activities, chores, and dinner plans. The daily schedule is reviewed, and students prepare for either an internship site, a community outing or classroom activities. Students utilize a checklist and make sure they are ready for the day, ensuring proper dress for job site, name tag on and their overall appearance is job ready.
Classroom Learning: Developing Essential Skills
“Cooking with Lorraine” is a course in our STEP class. Lorraine Miles, a CBT staff member, leads the class through a cooking lesson, one that the student could replicate at home. The class prepares for the cooking lesson by planning the dish, making a grocery list, budgeting, purchasing the groceries and then preparing the meal. Lorraine reviews utensils and cookware to use, safety, and proper food handling. Following preparations, the students can taste their recipe and provide their opinions, including whether they would make the dish again.
Community-Based Instruction: Learning Beyond the Classroom
Each student in the WINGS and STEP classrooms plan a “Hometown Visit”. The students are responsible for identifying places to visit, like a local restaurant to eat at, and possible rec-leisure activities in the community. The itinerary may include visiting their high school, a park, an extracurricular activity, or day program visit and a trip to their favorite dining location.
Each student also prepares a PowerPoint presentation and shares it with the class. It includes upcoming events taking place, things they like to do, two places of employment they could work at and realistic places to show the class.
Vocational Training: Gaining Workplace Experience
Students complete 3-5 internships per year on OSU’s campus. Internship sites include the dining halls, The Blackwell Hotel, dorms, recreation facilities, catering and Sloopy’s Diner. Community volunteer opportunities that students participate in are at the Chadwick Arboretum and working with Mid-Ohio Market and Farm.
Megan, a Project Plus student, expressed that her favorite internship site this year was Sloopy's Diner, where she set up the dining area, filled Grubhub orders, and loaded online orders into rovers for campus delivery. In the classroom, she worked on updating her resume and refining her interview skills. At the start of the school year, she applied for a job at Giant Eagle, successfully interviewed, and was hired. Since September, she has been stocking and organizing shelves three days a week. In addition, Megan volunteers once a week at Dreams on Horseback.
Social & Recreational Activities
Throughout the year, skills are practiced throughout campus, during community outings, at CBT program gatherings, during Best Buddies events and at the CBT Reunion Prom.
While students build peer relationships throughout the year and particularly during CBT program gatherings, the culminating activity is the CBT Reunion Prom. Past and current CBT participants are invited to enjoy a night of dancing, taking photos, and chatting with friends. Current students of the STEP and WINGS classes plan the night’s festivities including making decorations, addressing the invitations, and setting up. It is always a night to remember.
CBT Blog Slideshow 2 by ESC Comms
Preparing for the Future
To help WINGS students continue to thrive after completing the program, they work on a word of the month and set personal goals. They started setting personal goals after listening to ESC’s Welcome Week speaker, Chris Nikic, and his message of how you can work to be 1% better. The word of the month is a durable or soft skill needed to be a good employee and they’re often the most requested skills in job postings. Students write a goal based on the word and how it can be applied in their current internship site or in the classroom. Students reflect on and share their progress with WINGS staff and their family and friends.
The ESC’s CBT programs are more than just educational initiatives—they are life-changing experiences that equip students with the skills, confidence, and independence they need to succeed beyond the classroom. Through hands-on learning, vocational training, and community engagement, students gain the tools to navigate adulthood and the workforce with purpose. As we celebrate Developmental Disabilities Awareness Month, we recognize the dedication of our staff, the resilience of our students, and the invaluable partnerships that make these programs possible. By continuing to support and expand opportunities for young adults with disabilities, we can create a more inclusive and empowered future for all.
Megan Mastrobuono serves as a Special Education Coordinator at the Educational Service Center of Central Ohio. In this role, she oversees special education programming covering ages 3 to 21. She also serves as the Resident Educator Program Coordinator for the Center for Student Services. Megan earned her M.A. in Educational Administration from The Ohio State University and an M.A. in Curriculum and Instruction from Otterbein University. Additionally, she holds the following Ohio teaching licenses, Principal License P-6, Intervention Specialist P-12, Early Childhood and Visual Arts K-12.