Utilizing Vocational Rehabilitation to Support Post-School Transition for Students With Learning Disabilities

Abstract

In addition to supporting the academic goals of students with learning disabilities, secondary special education teachers are tasked with providing services designed to improve post-school outcomes. To improve these offerings, special education teachers should ensure collaboration with vocational rehabilitation (VR) counselors during the transition process. Vocational rehabilitation counselors have unique knowledge for preparing individuals with learning disabilities to be successful in the workplace. Partnering with VR counselors may improve post-school goal acquisition for students. This article describes VR service mandates and provides recommendations for special education teachers to build relationships with VR personnel.

Post-high school outcomes of students with autism spectrum disorder and students with intellectual disability: Utilizing predictive analytics and state data for decision making

“…Among other initiatives, this may involve, for example, looking more closely at students’ IEPs and providing other in-school and after-school enrichment experiences and supports. Such information could also help educators collaborate more proactively with other teachers, school counselors, family members, and other external-agency professionals, such as vocational rehabilitation counselors (see Scheef and McKnight- Lizotte, 2021), as they discuss and write post-high school transition plans.…”

Supporting Positive Post-School Outcomes for Students With Disabilities in Rural Locations

“…By design, VR covers all geographic areas in the United States, including rural settings (Ysasi et al, 2018). Collaboration with VR may lead to additional services to students through pre-employment transition services (pre-ETS) while students are in high school (Scheef & McKnight-Lizotte, 2022). Accessing pre-ETS related to counseling on postsecondary education enrollment and work-based learning experiences may provide students and families from rural areas with the skills and knowledge needed to increase successful outcomes in these critical areas.…”

“…To develop relationships with VR personnel, Scheef and McKnight-Lizotte (2022) identified practices to improve collaboration with VR personnel. These include (a) contact VR offices to identify a local counselor, (b) schedule introductory meetings to develop the relationship and better understand VR services, (c) become familiar with Pre-ETS to better understand how VR may be able to help support employment goals, (d) consider specific requests for support (related to pre-ETS) rather than broadly asking for assistance, (e) seek training opportunities to complete with VR personnel, and (f) seek to formalize the relationship with inter-agency agreements.…”

Secondary Special Educators’ Perceptions of Transition Collaboration With Vocational Rehabilitation

“…It may be possible for VR counselors and special educators to complete training together to understand the other systems better. Different strategies special educators may use to better connect with VR counselors include: (a) starting with informal connections as a way to get to know a counselor, (b) familiarizing themselves with WIOA to understand better what specific services might be available through Pre-ETS, (c) maintaining regular communication (Plotner et al, 2020), (d) formalizing the relationship through a memorandum of understanding, and (e) seeking to develop local or regional transition councils if they do not already exist (Scheef & McKnight-Lizotte, 2021;Sprunger et al, 2017).…”