June 2nd marks the 100th anniversary of what many of us think in the field of rehabilitation counseling as the beginning of our specialist advisory area. On June 2, 1920, President Woodrow Wilson signed the Smith Fess Act (also known as the Civilian Vocational Rehabilitation Act), which introduced the first occupational rehabilitation program for Americans with disabilities. It was modeled on a previous law that rehabilitated veterans with disabilities from World War I.
Rehabilitation counseling is a unique area of counseling that focuses primarily on advocacy for people with disabilities and professional rehabilitation counseling for people with disabilities. The field continues to grow, with new and expanded educational programs, opportunities for state licenses and rewarding career paths. Certification is available through the Commission on Rehabilitation Counselor Certification (crccertification.com), and counseling options are available in all 50 states. The latest developments in our field have further strengthened our relationship with the whole of the consulting profession and promoted opportunities for increased cooperation and education regarding the inclusion of disabled people in our entire profession.
Our focus in training as a specialist and history consultant
The American Rehabilitation Counseling Association (ARCA) was founded in 1957 and is a division of the American Counseling Association. ARCA's mission is "to promote the development of people with disabilities throughout their life span and to promote excellence in rehabilitation counseling." In 2019, the ACA Governing Council approved the ARCA recommended competencies for disability-related counseling (available on the ACA website under counseling .org / Knowledge Center / Competencies). ARCA urges all consultants to review these competencies, seek greater involvement of people with disabilities in counseling practice, and consider ARCA as their resource for the advocate for the disabled in our ACA community.
The accreditation of educational programs in the field of rehabilitation counseling has changed significantly in recent years. Due to the merger of the Council for Rehabilitation Education (CORE) with the Council for Accreditation of Counseling and Related Education Programs (CACREP) in 2017, rehabilitation counseling is the latest counseling specialty that is included in the current 2016 CACREP standards.
Rehabilitation counseling as a consulting subject has existed in some form for over 100 years. The history of rehabilitation counseling goes back to the federal law of 1918, which initiated a program for the professional rehabilitation of veterans with disabilities during the First World War. In 1920, an additional law introduced the first broad-based federal program for the professional support of people with disabilities, not the result of the war. Over the past 100 years, this state's professional rehabilitation system has expanded its services and served the population to become the primary public service system for all young people and adults of working age with disabilities in the United States. There is a specific agency for vocational rehabilitation in each state and there is an additional agency for the blind in some states. The Council of State Administrators for Vocational Rehabilitation maintains a directory of all state VR agencies at csavr.org/stateagencydirectory.
State rehabilitation facilities receive federal funding from the US Department of Education for Special Education and Rehabilitation Services (RSA) to provide services to people with disabilities. RSA's mission is to "provide leadership and resources to help government and other institutions provide occupational rehabilitation and other services to people with disabilities to maximize their employment, independence and integration into society and the competitive labor market . " All professional rehabilitation services are individualized and generally include a combination of the following:
Careers Advice and Careers Advice
Employment service
University or vocational training
Supported employment services
Skill training
Job coaching or tutoring
Transportation
Interpreting services for deaf or hard of hearing people
Services to support students with disabilities in the transition from school to working life
Reader services for the blind
Aid and Rehabilitation Technology
Mediation services
Support, advocacy and follow-up services for at least 90 days after the placement
CACREP is currently accrediting more than 100 Master's level rehabilitation counseling programs nationwide. Some of these institutions also offer doctorates specifically in rehabilitation counseling. The RSA regularly offers these institutions training grants to support students seeking a university degree in this advisory field. Rehabilitation counseling students receive special training on the medical aspects of disabilities, laws that affect people with disabilities, job placement strategies, and career counseling that focuses on job inclusion for multicultural people with disabilities. Over the years, the definition of employment in the RSA has been expanded to support efforts by people with disabilities to gain access to their communities, live independently, and determine the course of their own lives.
The emphasis on the inclusion of disabilities in educational programs of rehabilitation counseling gives students special knowledge and skills related to the history of discrimination against people with disabilities in our society, the effects of disabilities in our society, medical aspects of disabilities, workplace accommodation, Advocacy and advice Ethics specifically related to the inclusion of disabilities. These skills are useful in a variety of environments, including government vocational rehabilitation agencies, the U.S. Department of Veterans System, the county behavioral health systems, nonprofits, return programs, human resources, legal framework, private rehabilitation hospitals and universities, and many other settings in our communities. Rehabilitation counseling program graduates find employment as career counselors, case managers, career assessors, technology experts, forensic professional experts, teachers, researchers and private advisors in a variety of work environments.
Advocacy for social justice
Merriam-Webster's online dictionary defines ability awareness as "discrimination or prejudice against people with disabilities". Combating discrimination and segregation of people with disabilities has long been a principle and goal of rehabilitation counseling. Rehabilitation counseling researchers and educators have many years of experience in educating the public about the social construct of disability, the history of advocacy for disability rights and the existence of disability in our society, and fighting negative attitudes towards people with disabilities.
The greatest obstacles for people with significant disabilities in our society are social isolation and poverty. According to the Office of Labor Statistics, 19.1% of people with disabilities were employed in 2018. In contrast, the labor force population for people without disabilities was 65.9%. The representation of people with disabilities in the mainstream media is largely negative, which has a huge impact on our attitude towards disabilities as a society. Our facilities often strive to label people with disabilities as faulty, different or "special", with a focus on treating the person to correct their undesirable characteristics. Without enlightenment and awareness, our society views disability as "out of order" with the individual, rather than focusing on the barriers to attitudes and the environment that people with significant physical or mental disabilities experience when navigating the world. These negative and discriminatory attitudes are a major obstacle to financial independence and social inclusion for people with significant disabilities.
Mainstream media play an important role in our social attitude towards people with disabilities. In film, on television and in the press, these people are often portrayed stereotypically as tragic, evil, heroic, compassionate or inspiring. They are rarely portrayed as people whose identities span the full range of human experiences and developments, such as: B. intimate relationships, family members, students, work, travel, hobbies and other experiences that are a normal part of our lives and communities. In addition, characters with disabilities are rarely portrayed by people with disabilities in films and TV shows. This is another form of discrimination against actors with disabilities. Beth Haller, a prominent scientist who works for the positive portrayal of people with disabilities in the mainstream media, provides a variety of resources at bethhaller.wordpress.com for those who would like to investigate this topic in more detail.
Our schools, public services, and government agencies often perpetuate the social isolation and poverty of people with significant disabilities through the various processes, regulations, and financial constraints that exist in programs to "support" people with disabilities. The main focus of rehabilitation counseling is on promoting people with disabilities and advising our customers to reduce the environmental barriers that affect employment. Employment creates financial independence, creates meaning and connects us in our communities. Rehabilitation counseling education programs focus on professional development techniques, the Disabled Americans Act, and the impact of government legislation on the employment of people with disabilities. Rehabilitation counselors help individuals find their way around the complex welfare system to avoid being punished for their income in transitioning from reliance on public aid programs to work.
Disability and Cultural Identities
Most people with disabilities have intersectional identities. More than half of people with disabilities are women, while people with disabilities who identify themselves as belonging to different ethnic groups or as LGBTQ + are also well represented. People with disabilities live all over the world, and the disability culture itself is an aspect of multiculturalism. However, experience with disabilities is often overlooked or not taken into account as an
aspect of multiculturalism in educational programs and staff development curricula.
Since the movement for disability rights in the 1970s, the concepts of disability pride and culture have emerged. From the 1990s, a more formal construct of disability culture appeared in academic literature. Michelle Putnam, professor of social work at Simmons University in Boston, explains that pride in people with disabilities is an aspect of the identity of people with disabilities. It consists of claiming disability, recognizing disability as a natural part of the human constitution, advocating that disability is not inherently negative, and experiencing disability as creating awareness of a unique cultural minority. Examples of this experience are the Paralympic Games, the Deaf Culture and the Recovery Movement.
Disability pride: It is a common misconception that the Paralympics mean that the events are intended for "paralyzed" athletes. In fact, this means that it is a sporting competition that “parallels” the Olympic Games. Athletes with many different disabilities take part in the Paralympics, including athletes who use wheelchairs. According to the International Paralympic Committee (paralympic.org), Paralympic athletes celebrate diversity and show that the difference is a strength. Paralympic athletes who are pioneers of inclusion question stereotypes, change attitudes and break social barriers and discrimination against people with disabilities.
New Mobility magazine was launched in 1989 to provide high quality journalism to wheelchair users who want more information on how to live an active and healthy life. Editors, writers and interns with disabilities produce this unique resource that breaks clichés and tells real stories about life on wheels. Paralympic athletes and producers of New Mobility magazine are examples of individuals and groups who choose to build community, celebrate diversity, and stand up for pride in people with disabilities.
Deaf Culture: According to the sociolinguist Barbara Kannapel, the American Deaf Culture encompasses the values, traditions and language that are unique to the deaf. The focus of the deaf culture is the use of American Sign Language (ASL) as well as identification and unity with other deaf people. ASL is a complete and grammatically complex visual / gestural language without a vocal component. It differs significantly from written and oral communication in English. ASL is not a universal language. Sign languages exist in other countries. ASL reflects the unique and beautiful culture of the deaf in our country. The National Deaf Education Center at Gallaudet University (www3.gallaudet.edu/clerc-center/info-to-go/deaf-culture/american-deaf-culture.html) is a good source of additional information.
The Recovery Movement: Self-help groups available through the National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI) and other recovery organizations have created an ever-growing, cohesive, and diverse community of people living in recovery, hope, solutions, and strategies for people with mental illness and addiction.
The recovery movement goes back to the founding of Alcoholics Anonymous in 1935 by Bill Wilson and Dr. Bob Smith back. Alcoholics Anonymous's 12 steps have been adapted from numerous other 12-step programs, including Al-Anon, adult children of alcoholics and dysfunctional families, co-dependent anonymous, sex and love addicts anonymous, narcotics anonymous, crystal meth anonymous, player anonymous and better anonymous. This peer-led, self-identifying treatment self-help approach has spawned many other recovery groups in our communities, including SMART Recovery, Women for Sobriety, Secular Organizations for Sobriety (SOS), Refuge Recovery, and Buddhist Recovery Network. An estimated 23 million Americans are currently living on a long-term recovery from alcohol and drug addiction.
NAMI is the nation's largest grassroots mental health organization, committed to creating a better life for the millions of Americans affected by mental illness. NAMI, which started in 1979 as a small group of families gathered around a kitchen table, has expanded to more than 500 local branches across the country. The organization provides awareness, support and education about mental illness in our communities.
Although people with a history of mental illness and addiction continue to be affected by significant social stigma and discrimination, millions experience hope, healing, courage, support and pride as members of the recovery community. For more information on recovery, see the NAMI website (nami.org) or the documentary The Anonymous People.
Solutions and recommendations for the advocacy for disabled people
Rehabilitation counseling is the specialty for social justice, multicultural and disability-oriented advocacy. As specialists in rehabilitation counseling, we are committed to public relations, education and awareness-raising. The various advisory skills supported by ACA (available at counselling.org/knowledge-center/competencies) and the CACREP core curriculum standards emphasize multicultural awareness, education and advocacy. Below you will find some solutions and recommendations for the legal profession for disabled people in our entire consulting profession.
Include disability experience in all counseling curricula as a unique aspect of our diverse multicultural society.
Partnership with ARCA and other ACA departments that work for social justice.
Lawyer for the inclusion of people with disabilities. Do not separate and separate people with significant disabilities in our institutions, in our systems and in our work as consultants.
Help CACREP integrate a more accessible language into the core areas of the curriculum in its 2023 revisions to the standards. Contact the Standards Review Committee (cacrep.org) to express your ideas for the review.
Inclusion of works by multicultural disabled scientists in the counseling curriculum.
Read autobiographies of people with disabilities.
Track people with disabilities on Twitter.
Supporting the work of people with disabilities in the media.
Include academic articles from people with disabilities in the consultant curriculum.
Create a disability and recovery resource that you can give your customers.
Improve your counseling skills by viewing information on disability-related counseling skills on the ACA website (counselling.org/knowledge-center/competencies). read.
Resources
There are numerous resources available for those who want to learn more about the field of rehabilitation counseling and who want to contact educators and clinicians in rehabilitation counseling.
One of the most current and comprehensive sources for an overview of rehabilitation counseling is The Professional Practice of Rehabilitation Counseling, second edition, compiled by the publishers Vilia M. Tarvydas and Michael T. Hartley (2017).
The National Council for Rehabilitation Education maintains a directory of all of the country's rehabilitation counseling programs at tinyurl.com/NCRERCPrograms.
Also visit the ARCA website (arcaweb.org) for a variety of resources. We invite all readers to drop by the ARCA booth at the upcoming ACA Conference & Expo in April in San Diego. Also participate in our presentations at the ACA conference, which focuses on rehabilitation counseling and disability. We are looking forward to your contact.
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Sonia Peterson is a licensed clinical advisor, certified rehabilitation counselor, and assistant professor at the Department of Administration, Rehabilitation, and Post-Secondary Education at San Diego State University, where she is the program director for clinical concentration and certificate in psychiatric rehabilitation. She is also the chair of the American Rehabilitation Counseling Association (ARCA) Board of Directors for Public Order, Professional Preparation and Standards. Contact them at [email protected] or on the ARCA website at arcaweb.org.
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