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- Program-Specific Requirements for State Vocational Rehabilitation (Combined or General)
The Vocational Rehabilitation (VR) Services Portion of the Unified or Combined State Plan must include the following descriptions and estimates, as required by sections 101(a) and 606 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, as amended by title IV of WIOA.
- i. Comprehensive System of Personnel Development.
In accordance with the requirements in Section 101(a)(7) of the Rehabilitation Act, the VR agency must develop and maintain annually a description (consistent with the purposes of the Rehabilitation Act) of the VR agency’s comprehensive system of personnel development, which shall include a description of the procedures and activities the State VR agency will undertake to ensure it has an adequate supply of qualified State rehabilitation professionals and paraprofessionals that provides the following:
- i. Comprehensive System of Personnel Development.
i. 2. A. A list of the institutions of higher education in the State that are preparing VR professionals, by type of program; the number of students enrolled at each of those institutions, broken down by type of program; and the number of students who graduated during the prior year from each of those institutions with certification or licensure, or with the credentials for certification or licensure, broken down by the personnel category for which they have received, or have the credentials to receive, certification or licensure.
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Current Narrative:
Indiana does not have any CACREP Accredited Rehabilitation master’s programs in the state, and therefore there are 0 graduates to report. VR staff are encouraged to pursue online rehabilitation counselor preparation programs through out-of-state institutions which are CACREP-approved.
VR encourages students studying in related fields to participate in internships with the VR agency and believes this to be a valuable recruiting practice. VR will continue to work with local universities to increase the number of interns with hopes of increasing the recruitment pool for vacant VR Counselor positions.
Due to the lack of accredited rehabilitation graduate programs in Indiana and historic challenges in recruiting qualified candidates for VR Counselor positions, BRS modified its minimum educational requirements for VR Counselor positions after WIOA was passed. Current minimum qualifications include a bachelor’s degree in rehabilitation or a related area along with at least one year of related experience. Prior to this significant change, the minimum requirement was a master’s degree in Rehabilitation or related area.
| Institute of Higher Education | Type of Program | No. of Students Enrolled | No. of Prior Year Graduates |
|---|---|---|---|
| N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A |