Parents wanted to be involved in finding job placements and community living arrangements more often than they had the opportunity to do so. It appears that many parents are left out of the transition planning process for their children with disabilities. The benefit of having parents serve on interdisciplinary teams is that they can help teachers pinpoint the specific skills needed by their children. They can also offer their perspectives on the effectiveness of the delivery system given their experience with it. The testimony of parents and consumers regarding benefits and pitfalls of the system provide valuable insight to parents with less experience and to other members of the team.
Parents can be extremely effective in maintaining continuity of training and of purpose.
Parents can act as system advocates, often facilitating changes professionals desire but are constrained to accomplish. Parents can act as community supporters and messengers to the community about positive agency efforts. Parents can act as service coordinators, thus ensuring more effective and positive results. Interagency teams empower parents to stay involved by providing them with leadership training and encouraging them to share what they have learned with other parents. Everson et al.