Inside Rehabilitation Counseling

Mental Health Awareness Month with Meaghan Flaherty, CRC

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 Certified Rehabilitation Counselor with Path Forward Counseling and Creative Wellness, and she is currently completing an advanced certificate in mental health counseling at the University of Rochester. As you'll hear in our discussion, Megan's story is a lot like many CRCs. She had an idea of what she wanted to study, tried a few different paths, and was then recommended a master's rehabilitation counseling program that really felt like it stuck for her.  Meaghan sees significant value and mindfulness for rehabilitation counseling services, as well as an intentional approach to engaging the whole person through leisure activities and passions outside of work to support employment goals. Learn more about Path Forward Counseling here. [https://www.explorepathforward.com/] CRCC Links CRCC Website [https://crccertification.com/] Facebook [https://www.facebook.com/crccert] Instagram [https://www.instagram.com/crccertification/] LinkedIn [https://www.linkedin.com/company/crccert] TikTok [https://www.tiktok.com/@crccert]

Interdisciplinary Collaboration with Kathleen Marie Oertle, PhD, CRC, LVRC-Utah and Cassandra McCall, Ph.D.

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. These gaps are not simply individual challenges—they reflect systemic barriers in education, workforce access, and community inclusion. A task like tackling structured supports for students requires many bright minds, and Utah State University is taking an interdisciplinary approach with their new Transition Education and Services Emphasis. Dr. Kathleen Oertle, is a CRC and Associate Professor in the Department of Special Education and Rehabilitation Counseling at Utah State University. She’s joined on this episode by Dr. Cassandra McCall, who is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Engineering Education. Kat and Cass, as they both like to go by, are the co-principal investigators for Utah State’s new Transition Education and Services Emphasis. As one of five grantees in the Rehabilitation Services Administration’s Comprehensive System of Personnel Development competition, this program is helping shift the narrative from limitation to opportunity for students with disabilities pursuing their goals.  More Information about the Transition Education and Services Emphasis [https://cehs.usu.edu/sperc/rehab-counseling/certificates/transition-services] Dr. Oertle's Bio https://cehs.usu.edu/sperc/directory/oertle-kathleen [https://cehs.usu.edu/sperc/directory/oertle-kathleen] https://www.usu.edu/experts/profile/kathleen-oertle/ [https://www.usu.edu/experts/profile/kathleen-oertle/]  Dr. McCall's Bio https://engineering.usu.edu/eed/people/faculty/mccall-cassandra [https://engineering.usu.edu/eed/people/faculty/mccall-cassandra] https://www.usu.edu/experts/profile/cassandra-mccall/ [https://www.usu.edu/experts/profile/cassandra-mccall/] CRCC Links CRCC Website [https://crccertification.com/] Facebook [https://www.facebook.com/crccert] Instagram [https://www.instagram.com/crccertification/] LinkedIn [https://www.linkedin.com/company/crccert] TikTok [https://www.tiktok.com/@crccert]

Higher Education Transition Strategies with Elena Wisniewski, M.Ed., CRC

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 Statistics reports that nearly 1 in 5 college students has a disability, and despite 88% of postsecondary institutions reporting enrolling students with disabilities, only 24% of faculty receive training on accommodating these students. Elena Wisniewski is a Certified Rehabilitation Counselor who started a business to address the gap that exists between high school and college. As the Founder and Lead Strategist for Equipped Transitions [https://www.equippedtransitions.com/], Elena directs clinical documentation audits for college-bound students with disabilities, helping them navigate the transition from IDEA to ADA to ensure institutional compliance and student access.  In our conversation, Elena explains how self-advocacy and understanding accommodations, inside and out, are crucial to a student’s success. Not to mention the ways in which CRCs are equipped to help students and their support systems prepare for all that’s ahead in this exciting next chapter.  Helpful Links for Equipped Transitions Equipped Transitions Website [https://www.equippedtransitions.com/] LinkedIn [https://www.linkedin.com/company/equipped-transitions] Facebook [https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61586992686484] Instagram [https://www.instagram.com/equippedtransitionsofficial]

Advocating for Funding Essential Programs with Aliza Hauser, MA., CRC-CVE, PHR

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 does this make sense? Well, it really doesn’t, and the threat isn’t just to services and programs – it’s to the well-being of the individuals with disabilities who depend on them.  Aliza Hauser is a Certified Rehabilitation Counselor and Certified Vocational Evaluator, and the Program Director for the Neurological Vocational Services Unit at the University of Washington Medical Center. Aliza laid out a case for sustained investment in these programs during our conversation, as well as for CRCs as a natural fit for human resources departments across public and private organizations. Learn more about NVSU at the UW Medical Center here. [https://www.nvsrehab.org/]

Top 10 Most Asked Questions about Certification Renewal with Jennifer Marcu

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 set to renew their certification.  We made a list of the top 10 most frequently asked questions about the renewal process and requirements and tackled them one by one, hopefully helping any of you out there preparing to stay certified! Helpful Links Discussed in Today's Episode: CRC Renewal Guide [https://crccertification.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/10/CRCRenewalCriteria.pdf] CVE Renewal Guide [https://crccertification.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/09/CVERenewalCriteriaSept2021.pdf]