National Transition Network

Rehabilitation Services Available for Youth with Disabilities

Situation 1: Your son or daughter with disabilities will be graduating from high school in the next two or three years.

Strategy: Begin learning now about the programs and services available through Vocational Rehabilitation to meet his or her needs after high school. Avoid the morning - after - graduation headache of realizing that you'll no longer be working with a public school - whose procedures you may know well. Don't be forced to learn about other agencies and systems at the last minute.

Prepare in advance.

Situation 2: You have a disability and you're having a hard time finding and/or keeping a job.

Strategy: Learn about the Vocational Rehabilitation programs that are available to serve your vocational needs. They are there to provide training you may need to get and keep the kind of job you want. You must take an active role in seeking out these services in order to develop and/or enhance your job skills.

Explore your options.

Your state Vocational Rehabilitation (VR) agency offers important programs that can be of service to your son or daughter with a disability who may be leaving high school without adequate preparation for the job market, or who is out of school and finding it difficult to find and/or keep a job without additional training. Although considered an adult service agency, in some states VR counselors join the transition team and attend Individual Education Program (IEP) planning meetings before your son or daughter leaves high school. Their involvement may range from getting to know your son or daughter in order to provide transition services at a later date, or they can provide services while she/he is still in school. Check with your state agency to find out what its policies are. Following is an overview of Vocational Rehabilitation and the services it provides for students with disabilities.

How Does the VR System Work?
Vocational Rehabilitation counselors will first work with your son or daughter to assess his/her eligibility for VR services. To be eligible, your son or daughter must have a physical or mental impairment that constitutes or results in a substantial impediment to employment, and be able to benefit in terms of an employment outcome from VR services. Also, your son or daughter must require services to prepare for, enter into, or retain employment that meets their ability level.
Once she/he is determined eligible to receive services from Vocational Rehabilitation, a counselor will be assigned to work with your son or daughter, and together they will develop and coordinate the types of assistance she/he will need for employment, including the development of an Individual Written Rehabilitation Program (IWRP).

What is the IWRP?
The IWRP is a written agreement between Vocational Rehabilitation and the client. It is designed by the client and his/her VR case manager to achieve the individual's employment goal, and must be consistent with his/her interests, unique strengths, priorities, abilities, and capabilities.

What is Included in the IWRP?
The IWRP must include a statement, in the words of the client, describing how she/he was informed of, and involved in, choosing among alternative goals, objectives, services, and methods used to provide or obtain these services. It must be provided in the language or other mode of communication of the client and/or his/her parents.

What Services Can My Child Receive?

• Assessment to determine the extent of your son's or daughter's disability.
• Vocational evaluation and counseling to explore your son's or daughter's interests, potential, and limitations.
• Work adjustment training to help your son or daughter understand his/her vocational needs and abilities and the kind of employment she/he may expect to handle successfully.
• Auxiliary aids and services such as interpreters, notetakers, transcription services, TTYs, braille materials and large print materials, when needed by your son or daughter to communicate with his/her counselor
• Arrangement for vocational training.
• Independent living skills training that supports an employment goal.
• Placement in a suitable job and follow-up assistance to make sure your son or daughter is suitably and safely employed.

How Does My Son/Daughter Apply for Services?
Individuals still in school or their parents, can talk to a teacher or counselor about involving Vocational Rehabilitation in their transition planning. Individuals with disabilities who are no longer in school can also contact Vocational Rehabilitation and apply for services if they need further training to find and/or keep a job.

The easiest way to find the Vocational Rehabilitation office nearest you may be to call your Directory Assistance and ask for the State Vocational Rehabilitation Agency. A disability advocacy organization should also be able to refer you to the appropriate agency/office. The National Rehabilitation Information Center (NARIC) can also refer callers to their state Vocational Rehabilitation office. (NARIC phone number is 1-800-346-2742.)

The National Transition Network is a collaboration of the Colorado State University; University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign; University of Minnesota; PACER Center; and the University of Vermont. Its headquarters are at the Institute on Community Integration (UAP), University of Minnesota.

To order a hard copy of this document, please contact NTN at 103 U-Tech Center, 1313 SE 5th Street, Minneapolis, MN 55414, (612) 627-4008, ncset@umn.edu.