Baltimore schools host transition expo for special education families

Baltimore families planning for life after high school will find college pathways, career training and disability-related support under one roof at City Schools’ Transition Expo, a downtown event built for students with 504 plans and individualized education programs.

The expo is scheduled for Thursday, April 23, from 9:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. at the War Memorial Building, 101 N. Gay Street. Registration opened April 7 through Campus Portal, and the district said flyers are available in English and Spanish. For parents trying to sort out what comes next, the event is designed to connect them with colleges, vocational programs, service providers and employers.

Baltimore City Public Schools says the expo will cover college pathways, career and technical training programs and workforce opportunities for students with diverse learning needs. That matters because the district defines the two main paths differently: a 504 plan gives accommodations to general education students so they can access the curriculum, while an IEP provides a specialized program of instruction to students identified under disability law.

The timing also lines up with state transition rules. Maryland says formal secondary transition planning begins through the IEP process in the year a student turns 14, or earlier if appropriate. That means families may need answers long before graduation, especially when they are weighing college support, workplace readiness and adult services.

City Schools held a similar event last year, the Special Education Transition Fair, on April 24, 2025, at the Sheraton Inner Harbor Hotel, 300 S. Charles Street. That fair focused on post-secondary education, vocational training and employment opportunities for students with diverse abilities, showing the district has made transition planning an annual point of emphasis.

For a Baltimore student just starting that process, the expo can compress months of uncertainty into one morning. A parent can walk in with questions about accommodations, training options and job preparation, then leave with a clearer path to adulthood and a set of offices to contact next, including the Parent Response Unit, Partners for Success, Child Find, Assistive & Instructional Technology Services and the Special Education Citizens Advisory Committee.