IARP Forensic Section Board of Directors Election Slate 

Eligible voters: Individual Professional members of the association who are members of the Forensic Section.

Position and Candidate(s)

Vice Chair:    Dana

Member-at-Large

John B. Jarema

Justin King

Norma Stricklin

Vice Chair:  Dana

Describe your qualifications for the position

As a long-standing member of IARP, I have education in Vocational Rehabilitation and 16 years of experience in the private vocational rehabilitation industry. In addition, I have held board member and key leadership positions for professional organizations at a local level. Due to an opening, I have already been serving in a Board Member-a- Large position since 2016.

What do you hope to accomplish during your term if elected?

It is my hope to continue to lend ideas, contribute to conversations, and offer my personal and professional time to assist the Forensic team to meet their education, research, and outreach goals.

What is your vision for IARP during your term?

Groups of professionals with a common purpose drive change; I would like to be part of that process. I see participation leading to the updating of best practices, and making the information available to others in our profession. I have a vested interest in helping the profession thrive and grow, and would be honored to have the opportunity to continue to work with this inspired group of professionals.

Member-at-Large

John B. Jarema

Describe your qualifications for the position

Graduated Appalachian State University, Boone, NC, 1974. MA Rehabilitation Psychology. Graduated Georgia State University, Masters in Public Administration. 26 years State of NC Vocational Rehabilitation. Counselor-Assistant Director. 15 years Case Manager BroadSpire. CRC LPC CLCP

What do you hope to accomplish during your term if elected?

I would work to accomplish an agenda for training conferences that would be stimulating, cost beneficial, and pleasurable to attend.

What is your vision for IARP during your term?

I would like to see the international techniques researched a bit more and offered to the US counterparts for improved skills and techniques.

Justin King

Describe your qualifications for the position

From an educational perspective, I have a Bachelor Degree in psychology, a Doctorate in Clinical Psychology, and I also , one in rehabilitation counseling and the second in Forensic Vocational Evaluation. I am a Licensed Psychologist in Minnesota, a Certified Rehabilitation Counselor and a Professional Vocational  Evaluator.

I have worked in the forensic vocational rehabilitation field since 2014. Although I am a young professional, my background in test administration and interpretation has provided a foundation to expand within the vocational rehabilitation domain. When I entered the field, I worked under the supervision of Dr. Phillip Haber, who has practiced as a forensic vocational consultant for over 45 years. His mentorship, in combination with my education and the wisdom gained through communication with other professionals, has provided me with the training and experience to be an expert but also one in which allows serving the forensic vocational community in a larger role.

Prior to working within this subfield, I volunteered as a co-chair to the New Psychologist Network through the Minnesota Psychological Association. This opportunity allowed me to be part of a larger network of psychologists in a leadership role to engage other young professionals and interface the current trends of the field with those who have been practicing for several years. My position was both challenging and incredibly rewarding and I enjoyed advocating for the development of the field. I will bring this same ambition and drive now that I am cemented into my practice in vocational rehabilitation.

What do you hope to accomplish during your term if elected?

I believe that one of the most important roles in any leadership situation is gaining an understanding of what challenges and concerns individuals have within an organization and work to remedy those issues. The issue with this is that individuals need to feel comfortable and open to discussing what areas need improvement. Ultimately, one needs to create an atmosphere of open communication to promote this type of environment. My hope is that I will serve as a middle point between members and the representative to the board to convey the forensic community's needs and aspirations, areas of improvement, and goals for the future.

 As a young professional myself, I hope to continue the advancement of the forensic community with other young professionals entering this subfield. The listserv has an immense amount of information and communication and it is my goal to continue to encourage this form of communication for all professionals. Congruent with this goal is the promotion of mentorship opportunities within the forensic community. In general, it is my hope to continue to advocate for the field and to encourage engagement of the members at every level.

What is your vision for IARP during your term?

My ultimate vision for the forensic section of IARP is to promote the scientific standardization of the field. In my career thus far, I have seen a variety of approaches to and opinion formation. Each approach has its own consequences, both positive and negative, and there is significant benefit to enhancing the techniques used by forensic vocational consultants.  This vision is not to assert that each individual performs the exact same evaluation, rather continuing to develop the tools and techniques used by professionals to evaluate an individual. Ultimately, this goal can be accomplished through the promotion of research and publication within our field.  In addition,  promoting enhancement of research on test instruments and methodology is critically important, in my opinion, for the ongoing advancement of our field.

As I have previously mentioned, I have benefited greatly from the wisdom and experience of others. If elected, I would envision working to continue to promote the open communication amongst professionals so that we can continue to learn from each other.

Norma Stricklin

Describe your qualifications for the position

After obtaining a Master of Science in Vocational Rehabilitation Counseling from the University of Tennessee-Knoxville, I moved to Birmingham, Alabama and began my career in private rehabilitation. I have worked for over twenty years providing case management and vocational rehabilitation to injured workers. At the same time, I began to develop skills as an expert witness, giving testimony concerning vocational and earning loss. Since 1990, I have been in private practice, primarily offering forensic services in workers compensation and personal injury cases. I have experience in developing learning and educational programs for continuing education credit for counselors, case managers, life care planners and nurses. I am also pleased to be a vocational witness in Social Security Disability cases and to provide Life Care Planning evaluations for the catastrophically injured and/or chronically ill.

What do you hope to accomplish during your term if elected?

I believe our work is important, and we have the opportunity to impact the lives of others in significant ways. I also believe that the standards we uphold are the best path to successful, enjoyable and profitable work for our members. Therefore, I am committed to the Forensic Section in its goals, to promote the growth of our organization and to extend support to the membership. I would like to help ensure that the services provided by rehabilitation professionals are of the highest quality, going well beyond the minimum standards and qualifications required for this work.

What is your vision for IARP during your term?

I am in agreement with the vision, and goals of the Forensic Section Board. My vision is to work with and support this association that continues to rely on foundational principles while at the same time evaluating new ideas and engaging in innovative methods.