School-based Rehabilitation Counselor I - Brighton (Term-Limited)

State of Colorado•Denver, CO

1d•Onsite

About The Position

The School-Based Rehabilitation Counselor plays a key role in supporting potentially eligible and eligible students within a designated school district. Funded by the Disability Innovation Fund (DIF) Grant, this position is part of an interdisciplinary team that includes the secondary education transition team, the local Center for Independent Living, family-led organizations, and other community partners including service providers and vendors with DVR. Responsibilities include determining eligibility for services, developing Individualized Plans for Employment (IPE), and coordinating and providing a variety of services to help students succeed. These services include pre-employment transition services, counseling and guidance, educational and skills training, physical and mental health restoration, and job placement assistance. By partnering closely with these teams, the counselor ensures that students have access to the resources needed to achieve Competitive Integrated Employment.

Requirements

Graduation from an accredited college or university with a Master's degree in Rehabilitation Counseling from a program fully accredited by the Council for Accreditation of Counseling and Related Education Programs (CACREP), or for graduation prior to July 1, 2017, accredited by the Council on Rehabilitation Education (CORE) OR Possession of a current certification in Vision Rehabilitation Therapist from the Academy for Certification of Vision Rehabilitation and Education Professionals (ACVREP), or a Commission on Rehabilitation Counseling Certification credential (CRCC) OR Graduation from an accredited college or university with a Master's degree in Counseling, Psychology, Special Education, Social Work, Behavioral Science, Disability Studies or closely related human services field AND two (2) years of experience providing services to individuals with disabilities appropriate to the work assignment.
Foundational understanding of federal regulations, policies, fee schedules, and procedures.
Knowledge of best practices in rehabilitation counseling and service delivery techniques for working with students with disabilities.
Awareness of cultural and socioeconomic diversity and its impact on service delivery.
Counseling skills, including appropriate verbal and non-verbal attending behavior to communicate understanding, create clarity, and build rapport with students.
Strong written and verbal communication skills for interacting with students, families, and professional partners.
Effective time management, quality documentation, and organizational skills.
Proficiency in using computer applications, including word processing, spreadsheets and virtual meeting software.
Problem-solving skills, including identifying and resolving problems in a timely manner, gathering and analyzing information, and developing alternative solutions.
Ability to foster a collaborative environment with community partners, vendors, and staff.
Capacity to work effectively with individuals from various cultural and socioeconomic backgrounds.
Flexibility in adjusting to changes in the work environment and managing competing demands.
Ability to build and maintain professional relationships.
Professional demeanor and ethical behavior in all interactions.
Commitment to ongoing professional development and staying current on best practices in rehabilitation counseling and service delivery to students with disabilities.

Nice To Haves

Experience working with Centers for Independent Living
Case management experience
Professional experience working for a state vocational rehabilitation agency as a rehabilitation counselor.
Experience working in special education within a secondary education setting
Professional experience working to assist transition aged youth (15-24) with disabilities to achieve successful employment outcomes.
Performing similar duties as a State of Colorado classified employee.

Responsibilities

Partners with interdisciplinary team members to obtain referrals and ensure students in the assigned school district are aware of the services available from DVR.
Schedules and completes the initial engagement process for potentially eligible and eligible youth with disabilities, and obtains their medical, social, and vocational history.
Analyzes collected data to determine additional information needs.
Arranges and schedules general medical examinations, specialty examinations, vocational assessments, and psychological testing, and requests existing information when available, after securing appropriate release of information forms.
Engages students and youth with disabilities in all decisions affecting them and provides clear methods for appealing decisions if disagreements arise.
Utilizes existing information from the interdisciplinary team, including school records, assessments, and existing medical records, to support Program Enrollment.
Provides students with informed choices about accessing Pre-Employment Transition Services (Pre-ETS) and determines the appropriate program for each student—either Pre-ETS programming or the full scope of Vocational Rehabilitation (VR) services.
Compiles and analyzes gathered data to ensure that apparent and suspected disabilities have been identified and evaluated.
Uses expertise in medical aspects, vocational and psychological assessment, and knowledge of individual differences to assess the limitations, assets, interests, and expectations of students and youth with disabilities.
Synthesizes and interprets all information to develop a written eligibility determination.
Follows up on all recommendations made by physicians, converts and translates data gathered into functional limitations, and determines if there is a resultant vocational barrier.
Certifies applicants as potentially eligible, eligible, or ineligible and follows due process ensuring the rights of students and youth with disabilities.
Makes determinations regarding the severity of disability and places individuals in the proper category of priority.
Engages in vocational planning to support students with Pre-Employment Transition Services (Pre-ETS), ensuring they have the opportunity to explore all stated vocational goals and develop necessary skills to prepare for entrance into Competitive Integrated Employment (CIE).
Counsels students and youth with disabilities and provides vocational guidance to develop a viable Individualized Plan for Employment (IPE) when the full scope of VR services are needed.
Uses expertise of available resources and provides counseling and guidance to ensure that the vocational goal is realistic and suitable.
Establishes evaluation criteria for measuring progress toward the goal, sets time frames, and identifies service providers.
Provides and coordinates services, including Pre-Employment Transition Services (Pre-ETS) and vocational services to students and youth with disabilities to support attainment of Competitive Integrated Employment.
Ensures that services provided complement and supplement current transition services offered by secondary education.
Assists with connecting students to apprenticeship opportunities within the local community.
Implements plans for meeting established vocational goals and intermediate objectives.
Identifies, coordinates, and authorizes vendors and resources to provide services and goods to meet the individual needs of each youth.
Identifies and assigns fiscal responsibility, including locating comparable benefits, determining financial participation ability, making written fiscal commitments, and applying cooperative arrangements with other agencies.
Collaborates with students and youth to monitor the provision of services, ensuring their quality and effectiveness in meeting the agreed-upon vocational goals.
Maintains financial accountability for services provided, ensuring that comparable benefits and resources are identified and utilized whenever possible.
Ensures that all planned services are provided and determines if new services are needed, making amendments to the Individualized Plan for Employment (IPE) as necessary.
Monitors the progress of students and youth toward their identified goals, ensuring satisfactory advancement.
Manages each case effectively throughout the vocational rehabilitation process, ensuring smooth progression and adherence to program integrity, fiscal rules, policies, and procedures.
Follows all areas of due process and maintains up-to-date documentation in each case file.
Provides services such as job-seeking skills training and job placement assistance to help students and youth achieve the outcomes of their Individualized Plan for Employment (IPE).
Utilizes knowledge of career pathways, sector strategies, and labor market information to assist students and youth in entering competitive, integrated employment.
Ensures that case closure decisions are compliant with policy.
Monitors contacts with employers and conducts ongoing activities to market the employment of individuals with disabilities in the community through individual contacts and group presentations.
Develops, and coordinates improved interagency practices and procedures that result in the creation of viable career pathways which lead to successful employment outcomes for students and youth with disabilities.
Interacts with local education staff, community system providers, community referral sources and DVR staff to promote VR services and local working agreements.

Benefits

Strong, secure, yet flexible retirement benefits including a PERA Defined Benefit Plan or PERA Defined Contribution Plan plus 401(k) and 457 plans
Medical and dental health plans
Employer supplemented Health Savings Account
Paid life insurance
Short- and long-term disability coverage
11 paid holidays per year plus vacation and sick leave
BenefitHub state employee discount program
MotivateMe employee wellness program
Excellent work-life programs, such as flexible schedules, training and more
Access to participate in employer-supported employee affinity spaces
RTD EcoPass Commuter Program
Some positions may qualify for the Public Service Loan Forgiveness Program.