Vocational Rehabilitation Counselor

State of Iowa; Sioux City (IA); On-site; USD 55,000 - 75,000; Full time

Job summary

The State of Iowa, Department for the Blind, is seeking a Vocational Rehabilitation Counselor to join a team serving northwest Iowa. The position will travel to support a caseload of 40-50 adults who are blind or low vision, with initial training in Des Moines before permanent placement in Sioux City.

Ideal candidates will understand vocational rehabilitation services, conduct interviews, and collaborate with providers, employers, and educators to facilitate successful job placement.

Responsibilities

• Lead case management activities for a territory in northwest Iowa, prioritizing workload and maintaining accurate records.
• Interview applicants, gather information from families, ophthalmologists, and employers to determine eligibility for services.
• Develop and implement individualized plans, counseling, and guidance to help clients pursue employment goals.

Job description

This is a non-merit position. Positions in this class are exempt from the screening and referral requirements of the Iowa Department of Administrative Services - Human Resources Enterprise.

Only applicants who meet the Minimum Qualification Requirements and meet all selective requirements (listed below) will be placed on the eligible list.

The Department for the Blind (IDB) is searching for experienced candidates for the position of Vocational Rehabilitation Counselor. As a member of a team of 10 vocational rehabilitation counselors, this position will be based in Sioux City or within northwest Iowa. The individual will travel to serve and manage a caseload of approximately 40-50 adult clients who are blind or have low vision in the northwest region of the state.

Following successful completion of the orientation and training activities, the position will be housed in the state of Iowa. The training for this position is a minimum of 14 weeks and is completed in Des Moines, Iowa. If the individual can demonstrate existing skills and supervisor and training instructor agree, the individual may be able to test out of certain aspects of training.

This position is responsible for assisting clients who are blind or have low vision to obtain, maintain, or advance in employment. The position provides counseling and guidance and ensures that clients receive training in the alternative techniques of blindness in order for the individual to make a positive adjustment to blindness and successfully pursue their vocational goals.

Ideal candidates will have a solid understanding of vocational rehabilitation services, including career development strategies, be able to conduct interviews and observations, in addition to developing plans, partnering with service providers, employers and education professionals and providing access to successful job placement. In addition, strong documentation, organization and time management skills are essential to the position.

Case Management

• Independently prioritize workload to maximize effective utilization of time, resources, and agency assets. This position covers a territory of several counties in northwest Iowa and requires frequent travel and overnight stays,
• Submit necessary reports, case recordings, authorizations, and correspondence in a timely and accurate manner.
• Maintain client files and other records in an organized and specified format.

Application and Eligibility Determination

• Interview applicant, consult with family, and contact other sources such as ophthalmologists, community partners, and employers to procure visual, medical, psychological, social and educational information.
• Determines eligibility for services, assesses vocational, social and medical needs through appropriate testing and medical reports.

Plan Development/Counseling and Guidance/Plan Implementation

• Provide guidance and counseling regarding client’s personal and vocational adjustment throughout the rehabilitation process.
• Assist clients through informed choice in determining appropriate vocational goals and serves as a resource for clients seeking information regarding employment and employment goals.
• Maintains a working knowledge of assistive technology and reasonable accommodations.
• Assist clients to obtain an employment outcome using a variety of job development and job placement strategies including contacting employers, assessing employers’ needs, and providing resources and education to employers and clients.
• Counsel and guide clients in the establishment of self-employment goals.

Public Awareness and Education

• Advocate, consult, advise, educate, mediate, and intercede with service providers, employers, and the general public.
• Develop and maintain referral sources by providing information and resources through personal contacts, written communication and presentations.

Essential Functions

• Interpret and analyze assessment data to develop goals and activities for individual plans of employment.
• It is the policy of the Iowa Department for the Blind to conduct background checks on all finalist candidates prior to any offer of employment.
• Provide pre-employment transition services including job exploration counseling, work-based learning opportunities, workplace readiness training, counseling opportunities for post-secondary educational programs, and instruction in self-advocacy/peer mentoring to students with disabilities.
• Communicate with educators, community rehabilitation providers, and employers statewide about equipment modifications, accommodations, and alternative techniques that help blind people succeed.
• Develop and implement approaches to help eligible individuals explore career alternatives, find and interview for available jobs, and keep and/or advance in current jobs.
• Develop relationships with employers statewide to assist blind students, youth, and adults (with and without additional disabilities) to obtain, maintain, and retain employment and explore careers.
• Ability and means to travel within the local area in order to meet with clients, educators, employers and other professionals and stakeholders to perform the work of the position.

E-Verify and Right to Work

The State of Iowa participates in E-Verify, a federal program that helps employers confirm the employment eligibility of all newly hired employees. Within the required timeframe, new hires will be verified through the E-Verify system to ensure authorization to work in the United States. The State of Iowa also complies with the federal Right to Work laws, which protect employees’ rights to work without being required to join a labor organization. For more information, please visit www.e-verify.gov.

752: Vocational Rehabilitation:

6 months’ experience, 12 semester hours, or a combination of both that specifically relates to employment and training services for individuals with disabilities. That knowledge base will include an awareness of the unique needs of this population, laws relating to discrimination or reasonable accommodations, assistive technology, and an understanding of employment and training systems and services, especially as provided in Iowa.

257: Career Development Counseling:

6 months’ experience at the high school or college level or in the public or private sector such as Iowa Workforce Development or an employment agency. In the case of the latter, must have experience analyzing and assessing applicants’ work and education history and applying it to career goals.

• Must possess broad knowledge of postsecondary education and/or job training infrastructure.
• Must be able to communicate with program participants of varying academic and vocational abilities.

Graduation from an accredited college or university with a degree in human service-oriented sciences, education, marketing or business and experience equal to three years of full time professional work; OR the equivalent of three years of full-time experience as a rehabilitation counselor or teacher shall be considered as qualifying provided the employee has successfully completed training to meet the certification criteria established by the agency; OR an equivalent combination of education and experience, substituting the equivalent of one year of full-time professional work experience for each year of the required education to a maximum substitution of four years.

For additional information, please click on this link to view the job description.