Eric has cerebral palsy (CP), uses a wheelchair, and has a busy life. His family and school strongly supported mainstreaming children with disabilities, so when he entered school, he was not put into a separate special education classroom. However, he did get some additional support. An Individualized Education Program (IEP) team was formed, which included his parents, teachers, and counselors, to help him meet his educational goals. For example, the IEP team made sure he had accessible ways of participating in all school activities, including field trips, and that he could be successful in his classes.

When Eric started high school, “transition planning” was added to his IEP. This meant that his IEP team started looking at what classes Eric needed to take to be able to fulfill his job-related goals as an adult. They got input from his parents, teachers, and most importantly, from Eric himself. Eric really wanted to go to college after high school, so the IEP team focused on improving Eric’s test scores and making sure he was getting the help he needed to learn good study habits and organizational skills.

The IEP team discussed Eric’s work goals to make sure he was enrolled in the right classes to support them. Eric loved technology and solving problems. He often took things apart and put them back together. They all knew that whatever career path Eric chose, they should look for something where he could use those skills. So the IEP team put together a well-rounded class schedule, including computer science, biology, industrial arts, and algebra. Eric did well in them with the help of his parents, tutors, and his transition team.

At the start of his junior year of high school, Eric had the Arizona Rehabilitation Services Administration (AZRSA) help him with his IEP transition plan. A Vocational Rehabilitation (VR) counselor named Alice joined his IEP team and gave more information on how Eric could develop his career as an adult.

At one of their regular meetings Alice asked, “Eric, I’ve noticed that you’ve been especially successful in your math and science classes. Have you thought about going in that direction as an adult? Those are great areas to develop expertise because there are more and more jobs that require you to be knowledgeable in them.”

Eric replied, “Well yes, I do like them, but I’m not sure what exactly I want to do with them. Mainly, I just have always dreamed of going to college.”

Alice thought this was a great way of developing his future job skills. “You’re on exactly the right path. On average, people who graduate college make a lot more than people who don’t. Since you are going to be applying for college, we can work together this year to figure out what colleges might be good matches for you. Next fall, when you’re a high school senior, you’ll apply for college admission.”

During the rest of his junior year, Eric kept up his good grades and worked with Alice, his parents, and the rest of his IEP team to figure out which college might be best for him. Over time, he realized that he wanted to do something related to computers, since they were his favorite hobby anyway, so he wanted to make sure whatever college he went to had a good computer science program. He also wanted to stay local, so that he could keep living with his parents and save money on rent. Over the summer, he visited some local colleges and universities, making sure to talk to students attending them and to check out the disabled student services offices to make sure they could provide any reasonable accommodations he’d need as a college student.

During his senior year of high school, Eric applied to five different schools, including the University of Arizona, his first choice. In February, he got an acceptance letter from the University of Arizona and he immediately submitted his enrollment for his freshman year of college, starting in the fall. He was absolutely thrilled and started looking over the course catalog to see what classes he would take. He also got in touch with Connie, an employee at the university’s disabled student services office, who gave him an idea of what sorts of things might help him as he prepared for college. She also helped him make connections, including friendships with some other incoming students.

That June, Eric graduated from high school and his IEP ended. He applied for full services from AZRSA, but had to get on a waiting list, which meant he couldn’t get VR services immediately. That was difficult, because he couldn’t get all the counseling he would have liked. Still, he kept in touch with some of the former members of his IEP team and still had copies of his IEP transition plan they had worked on for years, so with support from his parents he was able to keep on track to meet his long-term goals.

Before he graduated from high school, Alice, the VR counselor on Eric’s IEP team, suggested he look into disability benefits through the Social Security Administration (SSA) when he turned 18 over the summer and recommended DB101’s Young People and Benefits section. Eric had never qualified for Supplemental Security Income (SSI) benefits in the past because of his family’s income and resources, but after he and his parents tried out DB101’s School and Work Estimator, they saw that that he probably would qualify after he turned 18.

Eric’s family used a speakerphone to call a Work Incentive Consultant because they didn’t understand why he could start getting benefits when he turned 18. Alan, an expert in disability issues, answered the phone. They asked Alan why Eric would start getting SSI even though he still lived at home, and Alan explained, “Eric, when you turn 18, Social Security will consider you an adult. That means that they won’t deem any of your parents’ income and resources when they consider your application. When I say they won’t deem, what that means is that they’ll completely ignore your parents’ money – you are considered an independent adult. Eric, do you have any income or resources of your own?”

Eric answered that he did not and Alan continued, “That’s why you’ll get SSI, because you will be an independent adult with no income and no resources. Before you turn 18, Social Security looks at your parents and figures they’ll support you financially, but once you turn 18, Social Security knows that you’ll need your own source of income.”

“That’s great news,” exclaimed Eric. “It’s exciting that I’ll have some spending money of my own for the first time!”

Alan had one more question for Eric related to SSI: “Will you be paying for rent or food while you live with your parents?”

“No,” responded Eric. “Why does that matter?”

“SSI will help you financially according to how much help you need. When they figure out your benefits amount, they’ll consider your living expenses. If you don’t pay for rent or food, they’ll reduce the monthly SSI benefits you get. It’s called a ‘Value of the One-Third Reduction (VTR).’ It means that the largest benefit you could possibly get would be 33% lower than the maximum SSI benefit for somebody who lives by himself. So, instead of getting a maximum benefit of $967 per month, the most you could possibly get would be $644.67 per month.”

Eric did some mental math and agreed that made sense.

Alan asked, “Anyway, when you’re about to turn 18, get in touch with Social Security and get that SSI application started. Now what about health insurance? Do you have any?”

Eric’s father piped up, “Yes, Eric has had AHCCCS for years. He has always qualified because our family income was below the AHCCCS income limit. Will anything change?”

“Eric will continue to get AHCCCS and won’t have to pay anything for it,” Alan replied. “I just wanted to make sure that Eric knew that when he starts qualifying for SSI, he’ll automatically qualify for AHCCCS as well. The family income won't matter anymore and he won't have to do any extra paperwork either.”

When Eric was close to turning 18, he started his SSI application. Then, right after he turned 18, he called Social Security at 1-800-772-1213 to schedule an appointment to complete the SSI application. The SSI claims representative he spoke with over the phone said that it was really important for Eric to come to his appointment with documentation about all the barriers he had from his disability, including medical records, doctor’s notes, school records, and anything else that would explain the situation.

On the day of his appointment, Eric had all his paperwork ready and the Social Security claims representative said it looked like they had everything they needed to make a decision, but it would take a while to process the application. Six weeks later, Eric got a letter saying that he was eligible for SSI benefits. As Alan had said, he wouldn’t get the maximum benefits amount of $967 per month because he was living with his parents and not paying for food or rent. Instead, he’d get $644.67 per month, which was still a big help with his expenses. He'd also get AHCCCS coverage automatically.

In September, Eric entered the University of Arizona as a computer science major. During his freshman year of college, Supplemental Security Income (SSI) helped cover Eric’s expenses. Ever since he turned 18, he’d been getting $644.67 in SSI benefits each month because of his disability and his lack of income and resources. Eric also got AHCCCS health coverage automatically.

Eric’s passion for computers and his hard work paid off. By the end of his first year at the University of Arizona, he had straight A’s and was offered a summer job at the university’s computer lab for $1,500 per month. It would be Eric’s first real job and he was pretty excited. Eric wanted to take the job immediately, but was worried that getting paid might impact his SSI benefits or AHCCCS health coverage.

He had a few days to think over whether he should take the job, so he decided not to make an immediate decision and to talk it over with Connie, an advisor at the university’s disabled student services office who had helped him in the past. “Getting a job might impact your benefits,” she warned. “Send me an email and I’ll put you in contact with a trained Work Incentive Consultant who can give you better advice.”

Over email, Connie introduced Eric to Kay, a Work Incentive Consultant at Benefits 2 Work Arizona. Kay replied and suggested that they talk over the phone. “This stuff is pretty complicated,” she wrote, “but it’s nothing that has to be done in person. Also, by talking on the phone, I can help you make a faster decision about whether to take the job.”

A couple of hours later, Eric called up Kay. He explained that his main concerns were about how taking the job might affect his SSI benefits and his AHCCCS coverage, since the job didn’t offer health benefits.

Kay promised they’d go over both benefits and then asked, “Eric, have you ever heard of the Student Earned Income Exclusion (SEIE)?”

Eric hadn’t.

Kay explained, “The Student Earned Income Exclusion is a rule that lets young people who are students get jobs without having their SSI benefits go down. Sometimes we just call it SEIE for short. You probably can get your job and keep all your benefits, but let me ask you a couple of questions first. Have you worked at all this year? And how long do you expect your job to last?”

Eric said that he had never had a paying job before and that the computer lab job would last for 2 months, until mid-August. Then he’d be going back to his sophomore year of college full-time.

“I’ve got good news for you, Eric,” Kay said. “The SEIE was created so that students can get some work experience and keep all of their SSI benefits. To get the SEIE, you have to be under the age of 22 and regularly attending school (that means 8 hours in class per week during the school year for you, because you’re in college). If you make more than $2,350 in any one month or more than $9,460 in a year, then your SSI will probably be reduced, even with the SEIE.”

Eric did the math. “I’m 19 and a full-time student. I’ll be making just $1,500 per month for 2 months, for a total of only $3,000 so far this year. If I want to, I can even get a little part-time job when school starts and I’ll still qualify for my SSI benefits.”

Kay then explained that Eric needed to remember to report his new income to Social Security when he got his first paycheck and to remind Social Security that he was in college and was claiming the SEIE. She emphasized, “If you don’t do your paperwork right, they might try to take your benefits away.”

Eric had one last question for Kay. “Since I'll still be getting SSI, I'll keep having AHCCCS coverage, right?”

Kay reassured Eric, “That's right! It's automatic as long as you're on SSI."

Eric thanked Kay, hung up the phone, and then called the university computer lab to let them know he’d accept their job offer.

Eric loved his summer job. He really knew his stuff with computers and at the University of Arizona, he learned a lot more. He also enjoyed earning money for the first time. He used some of it to buy a new computer, some new clothes for his sophomore year, and a really nice necklace for his girlfriend. He also managed to save $1,000 in a bank account to spend over the course of the year.

Eric was a high school student who graduated and went to college. During that time, his Individualized Education Program (IEP) ended and he started getting Supplemental Security Income (SSI). Eventually, he got his first job. Over the years, he got support from many different people and programs.

To improve his life situation, Eric:

• Worked with his IEP team on a transition plan
• Got help from a Vocational Rehabilitation (VR) counselor
• Applied for and enrolled in college
• Applied for services from the Arizona Rehabilitation Services Administration (AZRSA)
• Read DB101’s Young People and Benefits section
• Used DB101’s School and Work Estimator
• Applied for SSI benefits at his local Social Security office
• Got services and support from his university’s disabled student services office
• Learned about a summer job possibility
• Got help from a Work Incentive Consultant at Benefits 2 Work Arizona to make sure that his job would not create problems with his SSI benefits
• Learned about how the Student Earned Income Exclusion (SEIE) let him work and keep his full SSI benefits amount
• Took the summer job and earned his first paycheck

The following two summers, Eric did paid internships at local software companies. Both summers his earnings were lower than the limit set by the Student Earned Income Exclusion, so he had no problems with his benefits. He knew that in the long run, working would pay him a lot more than SSI would ever provide, so he was making sure to get good work experience that would help him get a solid job after graduation.