Inside Rehabilitation Counseling

We are in the process of a broad awareness campaign that highlights CRCs in their own words. We've seen videos and other testimonials as part of this campaign, driving CRCC's reach and engagement on social media and on our website to all-time highs. And we cannot do this without CRCs who take the time to tell us about their work and why it matters.  Dr. Abigail Akande is a CRC and tenure...

For many professionals who find this field, an interest in mental health is what draws them toward a deeper understanding of the full disability spectrum. The education and training to become a CRC incorporates mental health, but goes much deeper into the ways in which mental health impacts things like life and work, as well as other disabilities one might be experiencing.  Meaghan Flaherty is a C...

The need for strong transition education and services is rooted in a broader cultural and public commitment to equity, access, and full community participation for people with disabilities. In the United States, youth with disabilities continue to experience disproportionately lower rates of employment, postsecondary enrollment, and independent living compared to their peers without disabilities....

The transition from high school to college is tricky in general and involves a lot of adaptation and changes to routines, support systems, and structures. For students with disabilities, losing structured support provided by an IEP or 504 plan can make an already daunting transition more difficult.  We’re not talking about just a handful of isolated cases either; the National Center for Education...

Across organizations and agencies, disability services are reaching peak demand. The Case for Inclusion 2026 report finds that turnover for professionals working with disabled clients is the lowest it has been since 2014, and wages and employment rates are rising for individuals with disabilities. Despite this, funding for private and public programs across the United States is in question.  How d...

Nobody gets more questions here at CRCC than our Certification Department. Certification Supervisor Jen Marcu works with her team to answer questions, clarify steps in the certification process, and connect with thousands of certificants and future CRCs across the US every week. Jen returns as our guest this week, and we will explore some of the questions she hears most from CRCs and CVEs that are...

The Center for Independence of the Disabled, New York (CIDNY), founded in 1978, is a Manhattan-based non-profit organization advocating for the civil rights and independence of New Yorkers with disabilities. In 2024, CIDNY served over 40,000 consumers, connecting them to community programs and prodiving peer-support to address the challenges of living with a disability in a major metropolitan area...

During the week this episode is releasing, we observe Veterans Day, and as we all know, military service and the veteran community are the bedrock of how rehabilitation counseling came to be. Many Certified Rehabilitation Counselors themselves are veterans or have close ties to the veteran community, including those who directly work with individuals to find employment and navigate their return to...

Since the late 1970s, the Pittsburgh Public School system has hired Certified Rehabilitation Counselors to provide services for students with disabilities, ranging from ensuring accommodations are in place to providing transition services that prepare them for life after high school. The National Center for Education Statistics reports that 7.5 million, or 15% of all public school students, receiv...

According to the World Health Organization, around 50 million people worldwide have epilepsy, making it one of the most common neurological disorders globally. One of the challenges of epilepsy is that folks experiencing the disorder can’t always get a precise diagnosis. On top of that, many people misunderstand epilepsy, leading to stigma and a lack of public awareness of how to help someone expe...

An increasing amount of research is exploring the connection between work and wellness. This includes mental wellness and physical health, both of which can be positively impacted by having employment, particularly for those navigating a disability. Simply put, work is more than just a means to earn a living or spend a significant portion of your week.  For veterans who return to work after servic...

Since the early 1980s, Community Partnerships has worked to create new opportunities for people with intellectual and developmental disabilities. Serving over 1,100 people a year, their cross-functional team includes job coaches, consultants, trainers, and of course, Certified Rehabilitation Counselors – two of whom I had the pleasure to talk to for this episode of the podcast. Lindsay Prenoveau,...

Nobody gets more questions here at CRCC than our Certification Department. Certification Supervisor Jen Marcu works with her team to answer questions, clarify steps in the process, and connect with thousands of certificants and future CRCs across the US.  Jen is our guest this week, and we will explore some of the questions she hears most from students and test-takers. We made a list of the top 10...

Traumatic Brain Injury is the leading cause of death and disability worldwide, with an estimated 5.3 million Americans living today with the disability. Of all types of injury, those to the brain are among the most likely to result in death or permanent disability, making research and a deep understanding of how to navigate services for those impacted by TBI vital.   Shannon Juengst, PhD, CRC, is...

At the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, the Illinois Institute for Rehabilitation and Employment Research (IIRER) is a hub for innovation and discovery that addresses vocational behavior, community integration, career development, and employment. Partnering with communities in Illinois and around the world, IIRER is continuously innovating ways to enhance the skills of rehabilitation profe...

Joseph Young is a Certified Rehabilitation Counselor, an LRC in Massachusetts, and owner of JOSEPH YOUNG CONSULTING, L.L.C.  In this conversation, Joe shares his perspective on the importance of credentials, his journey with an invisible disability, and how CRCs who want to start their own private practice can begin their journey to working for themselves. Link to Joseph's Business Website: h...

Pietrina Probst is a Certified Rehabilitation Counselor and Director of ADA, Student Access & Disability Services at Elgin Community College. In this conversation, Pietrina shares insights into the unique considerations community colleges consider in providing disability services and why cross-departmental collaboration is a blueprint for success in expanding services for students with disabil...

Taylor talks to Charles McCaffrey, MBA, and Genia Hachenberg, CRC, MS at the Paralyzed Veterans of America about their Veterans Career Program. The program employs CRCs located all over the country to provide free employment support and vocational counseling assistance to all veterans, transitioning service members, spouses, and caregivers. Learn more about the PVA's Veterans Career Program....

In this preview of the next episode of Inside Rehabilitation Counseling, Taylor talks to Charles McCaffrey, MBA, and Genia Hachenberg, CRC, MS at the Paralyzed Veterans of America about their Veterans Career Program. The program employs CRCs located all over the country to provide free employment support and vocational counseling assistance to all veterans, transitioning service members, spouses,...

On this episode of Inside Rehabilitation Counseling, Sarah Price Hancock joins us to discuss her journey as a Certified Rehabilitation Counselor. Following a misdiagnosis of “treatment resistant” mental illness, Sarah received 116 bilateral electroconvulsive therapy (ECT) treatments resulting in Delayed Electrical Injury’s Myoneural Disorder. Sarah joins us to share her journey to becoming a CRC a...

In this preview of the next episode of Inside Rehabilitation Counseling, Sarah Price Hancock joins us to discuss her journey as a Certified Rehabilitation Counselor. Following a misdiagnosis of “treatment resistant” mental illness, Sarah received 116 bilateral electroconvulsive therapy (ECT) treatments resulting in Delayed Electrical Injury’s Myoneural Disorder. Sarah joins us to share her journey...

Certified Rehabilitation Counselors can explore a wide variety of job settings thanks to their credential. With many options and areas of focus available to them, CRCs can find themselves stuck while considering where they want their career to take them. The most common question we hear from CRCs is how do I navigate my options in private practice?  Dr. Aaron Mertes is a CRC and professor at the U...

Certified Rehabilitation Counselors can explore a wide variety of job settings thanks to their credential. With many options and areas of focus available to them, CRCs can find themselves stuck while considering where they want their career to take them. The most common question we hear from CRCs is how do I navigate my options in private practice?  Dr. Aaron Mertes is a CRC and professor at the U...

The Certified Vocational Evaluator certification, or CVE, is a high-demand specialty within rehabilitation counseling. CVEs possess unique, comprehensive, and holistic proficiencies in evaluation, career assessment services, and job placement cases. The CRC-CVE dual certification can also provide clients and employers with higher success rates and overall better client outcomes. Lisa Byrne was ins...

On the next episode of Inside Rehabilitation Counseling, we explore the Certified Vocational Evaluation Specialist (CVE) credential and how it compliments the CRC in serving individuals with disabilities. Our guest is Lisa Byrne, MA, CRC, CVE, LCPC, an integral reason that the CVE was revitalized as a credential for rehabilitation counseling professionals.