Disability Advocacy Solutions LLC

info@disabilityadvocacysolutions.com

Birmingham, Alabama, USA

Vocational Rehabilitation, College Sponsorship, and Who Qualifies

Every state in the U.S., the District of Columbia, and U.S. territories have vocational rehabilitation (VR) services that are federally funded. VR helps individuals with disabilities find, keep, and advance in employment. These agencies are part of a network supported by the U.S. Department of Education (ED) Rehabilitation Services Administration (RSA).

What does VR do? 

VR “sponsors” (pays for) education and training at a variety of institutions, including community colleges and universities, to help individuals with disabilities get the skills for a specific job. VR helps individuals with disabilities find, keep, and advance in employment. Financial assistance for education and job development can include tuition, fees, books, and supplies for a college degree, certificate program, or short-term training. Also, VR helps individuals find jobs by linking them to employment goals and training programs that lead to employment. 

Teens and VR

VR is required to provide five pre-employment transition activities for teens as outlined in 34 C.F.R. § 361.48(a)(2):

  1. Job exploration counseling; 
  2. Work-based learning experiences, such as in-school or after school opportunities, or experience outside the traditional school setting (including internships), provided in an integrated environment in the community to the maximum extent possible; 
  3. Counseling on opportunities for enrollment in comprehensive transition or postsecondary educational programs at institutions of higher education, including 2 or 4 year college, trade school, apprenticeships, and certifications if that is your goal; 
  4. Workplace readiness training to develop social skills and independent living; and 
  5. Instruction in self-advocacy, including instruction in person-centered planning – that’s where the disabled person sets their own goals rather than goals being set for them by the VR counselor, family, teachers, or others.

For assistance on better understanding Vocational Rehabilitation and your right to services, please reach out to Disability Advocacy Solutions.

A Word of Caution: Teens with disabilities, VR, and subminimum wages:

See page 4: https://rsa.ed.gov/sites/default/files/subregulatory/TAC-24-01.pdf

Section 511 of the Rehabilitation Act puts limits on paying below minimum wage to teens with disabilities C.F.R. § 361.5(c)(58). Requirements for this program support meaningful, sustained, and informed engagement of teens with disabilities, giving them opportunities for transition services, VR services, career counseling, and more. 

Section 511 of the Rehabilitation Act is a law that helps protect young people with disabilities from being unfairly paid below the minimum wage. It says that before a teenager with a disability can be paid less than minimum wage, they must first have real opportunities to explore other options. This includes getting career counseling, job training, and transition services through Vocational Rehabilitation (VR). The goal is to help each student make an informed choice about work — and to support them in finding meaningful, long-term jobs in the community whenever possible.

Adults and VR

YES! While this section is in the works, check out these links.

For assistance on better understanding Vocational Rehabilitation and your right to services, please reach out to Disability Advocacy Solutions.

Eligibility for VR services

You may be eligible for VR services if you meet all of the following requirements:

  • You have a disability: You must have a physical or mental condition.
  • It affects your work: This disability must make it difficult for you to find, keep, or prepare for a job. You must have a goal of obtaining or maintaining employment. 
  • You need VR’s help: You must need VR services to successfully get or keep a job that matches your skills and goals.

For assistance on better understanding Vocational Rehabilitation and your right to services, please reach out to Disability Advocacy Solutions.

Special consideration for SSI or SSDI recipients

The process of receiving services through VR is even easier if you receive Supplemental Security Income (SSI) or Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI) benefits for your disability.

If you receive SSI or SSDI:

  • You are presumed eligible for VR services as long as you intend to find a job.
  • You are considered to have a “significant disability.” This can streamline your application process and move you closer to receiving services.
  • Social Security may pay VR agencies for the services they provide to you, if the services result in you achieving work at a specified earnings level. To learn more https://www.ssa.gov/work/vocational_rehab.html 

A VR counselor will still need to confirm that you are capable of benefiting from the program, but your SSI or SSDI status makes you a top candidate for assistance.

Remember, if you do not receive SSI or SSDI, you still may qualify for services through VR!

The Ticket to Work Program is a free and voluntary program through the Social Security Administration that helps people receiving disability benefits prepare for, find, and maintain employment. It offers career counseling, job placement support, and access to vocational rehabilitation services while protecting certain benefits during the transition to work.

For assistance on better understanding Vocational Rehabilitation and your right to services, please reach out to Disability Advocacy Solutions.

How to Apply for VR Services

  • Find Your State Agency: Contact the Vocational Rehabilitation (VR) agency in your state. 
  • Establish Eligibility: A VR counselor will help you determine if you meet the eligibility criteria.
  • Develop an Individualized Plan for Employment (IPE): If eligible, you’ll work with your counselor to create an Individualized Plan for Employment (IPE), which outlines YOUR employment goal and the services you need. WARNING Be sure to read your IPE carefully and make absolutely sure the VR counselor is writing YOUR GOALS, not their goals for you based on their bias! This is a problem that is not uncommon, and you must advocate for your rights. Also, you have the right to have a representative, a family member or paid advocate, present with you at these meetings. This is very highly suggested. 

For assistance on better understanding Vocational Rehabilitation and your right to services, please reach out to Disability Advocacy Solutions.

Individualized Plan for Employment (IPE)

The Individualized Plan for Employment (IPE) is a personal plan that outlines your employment goals and the services you will receive to achieve them. It is created by you and your Vocational Rehabilitation (VR) counselor, and it helps you move from school to a fulfilling career. 

What is included in your IPE?

Your IPE will be unique to you and will consider your strengths, interests, and preferences. It will include: 

  • Your employment goal: This is the specific job or career you want to achieve. With your VR counselor, you will explore careers that offer good pay, benefits, and long-term potential, not just entry-level jobs.
  • A list of VR services: This includes all the support you will need to reach your goal.
  • Your current school services: For students, the IPE will build on services already in your Individualized Education Program (IEP) or Section 504 Plan.
  • Your choices: You will have a voice in choosing your employment goal, the services you receive, and who provides those services. 

For assistance on better understanding Vocational Rehabilitation and your right to services, please reach out to Disability Advocacy Solutions.

How is the IPE created?

Developing your IPE is a collaborative process between you and your VR counselor. 

  • Your active role: You have options for how involved you are in developing your plan. You can do it mostly on your own, with some technical help, or work closely with your VR counselor.
  • Making a choice: During this process, you and your VR counselor will talk about your goals, past experiences, and desired income to find the best career path for you.
  • Signing the plan: Once the IPE is finalized, you and your VR counselor will both sign it. This shows that you both agree to the plan and are committed to your success.  If you believe you are being asked or pressured to sign an IPE that doesn’t match your goals, advocate for yourself! Do NOT sign a plan that you do not agree with.

For assistance on better understanding Vocational Rehabilitation and your right to services, please reach out to Disability Advocacy Solutions.

Special plans for supported employment

If you have a most significant disability and need ongoing support to maintain a job, your IPE will include a supported employment plan.

  • Ongoing support: The plan will specify the type of supported employment services you will receive.
  • Transition to long-term support: If needed, the plan will arrange for a transition to extended, long-term support services.
  • Clear navigation: Your VR counselor will help you navigate the system of providers and services involved with your plan. 

For assistance on better understanding Vocational Rehabilitation and your right to services, please reach out to Disability Advocacy Solutions.

Can college be part of my IPE?

YES! And, you can even get college sponsorship from VR to cover the cost of tuition, books, room and board, and needed technology.

What if I have academic, merit scholarships to cover my college? Will VR still sponsor me and cover my expenses?

Scholarships based on merit are NOT considered comparable benefits and services and do NOT reduce VR’s responsibility to cover the cost of your college education if it is part of your IPE and you exhibit need for assistance, such as being on Social Security due to your disability. This means that state VR agencies cannot require clients to apply merit-based scholarships toward their cost of training before VR funding is applied. These scholarships are considered the individual’s resource and not a substitute for VR support.

The federal regulation that addresses merit-based scholarships as not being comparable benefits in the Vocational Rehabilitation (VR) program is found in 34 CFR § 361.48(f)(2) under the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, as amended.

For assistance on better understanding Vocational Rehabilitation and your right to services, please reach out to Disability Advocacy Solutions.

Can VR apply my merit scholarships to my college accounts prior to considering whether I need these funds for living expenses or other education related expenses? 

Can they refuse college sponsorship because they want me to use my merit scholarships instead?

The answers to these questions are most likely NO, but…

The truth is that it depends. First, find out if the merit scholarships are “restricted” or “unrestricted”. 

Restricted Scholarships

Some entities who award scholarships put restrictions on how scholarships must be used. For example, some require that scholarship funds they award be used to pay for tuition and fees only. Therefore, if a student chooses to accept the award, they must use the funds solely for that specific purpose. 

If the scholarship award received is a tuition waiver, it would be an example of a “restricted” award and must be used for tuition and fees; the tuition waiver, by definition, reduces the amount of tuition owed. Therefore, if the student accepts such an award, they must use the funds to reduce the tuition cost. Section 101(a)(8)(A)(ii) of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, as amended (Rehabilitation Act) states that “comparable benefits do not include awards and scholarships based on merit” (see also 34 C.F.R. § 361.5(b)(10)(ii)). 

When you receive such an award, these restricted awards do not trigger an issue of comparable benefits because they reduce the cost of tuition and can only be designated to be used for that specific purpose. Once the student accepts a restricted scholarship award, the tuition amount owed is reduced. With a reduction in tuition owed, there will be less for the VR agency to pay.  

Since VR cannot pay more towards the cost of tuition and fees than is owed and restricted scholarships reduce the amount owed, VR must take that into consideration when calculating its financial contributions towards the college costs. 

For assistance on better understanding Vocational Rehabilitation and your right to services, please reach out to Disability Advocacy Solutions.

Unrestricted Scholarships

Some awarding entities give the student discretion in how to spend scholarship funds and do not designate this award for “tuition only”. Because the student has discretion in how to spend the funds, those awards are “unrestricted.”  

“Unrestricted” awards are different. In such cases, Congress did not want the VR agency to require a student to apply for these funds or to restrict the student’s discretion in how to spend the funds. Merit-based scholarships may or may not be “unrestricted,” so students must ask the terms of the award from the entity issuing the scholarship. For example, if you are awarded a scholarship from your university, ask the university if the scholarship has restrictions on how the money is applied to your account.

If the student has discretion as to how to spend the funds for tuition, books, room and board, living expenses, or any other school related expense, then the award is “unrestricted.” In this case, the unrestricted scholarship could not be considered as a comparable benefit pursuant to section 101(a)(8)(A)(ii) of the Rehabilitation Act. As a result, the VR agency could not take into consideration the unrestricted scholarship when calculating its own financial contributions if the student chooses to apply the funds to expenses other than those paid for by the VR agency. Remember, the VR agency can’t make this decision for the student; it is the student’s choice! 

However, if the student chooses to apply the funds towards tuition or other VR-related expenses, the VR agency would be obligated to take that reduction in expenses into consideration when calculating its own financial contribution for the student. 

Questions to Ask Scholarship Provider: 

  • Are there specific expenses the scholarship must be used for?
    • I.e. Books, fees, tuition, housing etc. 
    • Are the funds unrestricted? Can it be used however the student sees fit towards their education, including living expenses? 
  • Can the scholarship awarding entity put the restrictions, or unrestricted rules, in writing?

Please work with the entity issuing your scholarships to determine if the scholarship is a merit scholarship and is a “restricted” or “unrestricted” award.

Scholarship Communication with VR:

  • Share the written rules for the scholarship with your VR counselor 
  • Work with the VR counselor and educational institution to calculate the amount of tuition and fees needed and financial contributions available.

If you believe the VR agency has provided you with inaccurate information and has made a decision that is not consistent with the Rehabilitation Act and the governing regulations, you may request a timely review of that determination made by your VR agency.

If you still disagree with the decision of the VR agency you may request a mediation from your VR agency. 

The regulations at 34 C.F.R. § 361.579(e)(1) require that the VR agency implement a formal review procedure for an impartial hearing officer review. You may consider requesting a review of the decision by an impartial hearing officer in writing to your state VR agency.  For assistance on better understanding Vocational Rehabilitation and your right to services, please reach out to Disability Advocacy Solutions.