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Vocational Rehabilitation Transition Services section Working to Promote Members' Services As a benefit to our members, for the third consecutive year, the VRTS section exhibited at the COPAA Conference at the beginning of March. The purpose of the exhibit was to promote the services our members provide and give information on how to find a professional VRTS member. Exhibit materials available included a VRTS Professional Directory, developed for exhibiting at COPAA. VRTS section members provide valuable and underutilized transition related services for special education students and other youth. Yet, many educational professionals, attorneys, advocates, ...

Vocational Rehabilitation Transition Services Promoted at the Council of Parent Attorneys and Advocates Annual Conference, Baltimore, Maryland. VRTS member Elizabeth Watson & attorney Melissa Waugh presented IEP Transition Toolbox, at the COPAA 2020 Annual Conference in Baltimore, Maryland. The presentation emphasized that Transition Assessments are fundamental for setting appropriate and realistic transition goals. Attorney Waugh outlined the legal framework for transition plans. Elizabeth described the essential elements of a transition assessment and how to use the assessment information to write appropriate transition plans and goals, as well as ...

VRTS section members Bruce Bloom and James Williams presented at the Council of Parent Attorneys and Advocates Conference earlier in March. Their presentation, Top 10 Mistakes to Avoid in Transition Planning/Evaluation was presented to a full room. VRTS Chair, Bruce Bloom states that they received positive feedback from the attendees and he feels that those that advocate for special education students are starting to recognize the role that vocational rehabilitation professionals should have in transition planning.

Peter Wright is a prominent special education attorney, named by the New York Times as champion for children. He is an author, frequent trainer and has argued before the Supreme Court. Recently VRTS Board Member Lisa Byrne attended his training and presented attorney Wright with a copy of the Vocational Rehabilitation Transition Services Special Issue of the IARP publication; The Rehabilitation Professional, 28(4).

​ SPECIAL OUTREACH OPPORTUNITY FOR IARP MEMBERS The Vocational Rehabilitation Transition Services (VRTS) section of IARP is offering you an opportunity to directly market your services to the Counsel of Parent Attorney Advocates (COPAA) conference attendees. The VRTS Section exhibited at the 2018 COPAA conference and will be doing so again in 2019. Last year there were 650 attendees from throughout the US and COPAA reports that each year their conference attendance grows. The VRTS exhibit was the first exposure of vocational rehabilitation services for transition students at a COPAA conference. We were well received and COPAA members were asking for names ...

Again this year, board member Bruce Bloom will present at the Council of Parent Attorneys and Advocates annual conference. His presentation is titled: The Top Ten Mistakes To Avoid During Post-Secondary Transition Planning/Evaluation. And again this year, VRTS will exhibit at the conference. The VRTS exhibit will promote the use of vocational rehabilitation professionals for transition evaluations and planning. The COPAA conference is March 7-10, 2019 in New Orleans.

VRTS Chair-Elect, Bruce Bloom presented at the Texas Chapter of IARP on March 23, 2018. His presentation, " Preparing for Adulthood: Evaluating Students with Autism for Transition Services and Competitive Employment" was well received by the about 90 attendees. Bruce reports that the attendees’ feedback included that they wanted more information about how to evaluate individuals with Autism Spectrum Disorder and on how to provide Transition Services. The VRTS board is committed to providing training. And the board is committed to reaching everyone we can to educate rehabilitation professionals and others on vocational rehabilitation transition ...

On March 9 th and 10 th , the Vocational Rehabilitation Transition Services section exhibited at the Council of Parent Attorneys and Advocates annual conference. The exhibit included promotional materials on the Vocational Rehabilitation Transition Services our members provide. Many of the attorneys and advocates that stopped by the exhibit were not aware of private rehabilitation service providers and many were not familiar with vocational and independent living evaluations. And most reported that the transition goals that schools are writing are inadequate. The VRTS exhibit gave great exposure to a group of professionals that mostly did not know about ...

On March 10th, Bruce Bloom, the Chair-Elect for the Vocational Rehabilitation Transition Services section presented to a crowded room of attorneys, advocates and parents, on the "Essential Components of a Vocational Evaluation; Employable Goals, Environmental Adjustment, and Expert Interpretation." Bruce states: “From the feedback that I received from many in the room, this was the first time they have ever heard about a vocational evaluation performed by a Certified Rehabilitation Counselor, and why an expert in Vocational Expert is needed to interpret test results in light of students functional ability, tested performance, and current job market.” ...

IARP Vocational Rehabilitation Transition Services Section Board Eligible voters : Individual Professional members of the association who are members of the Vocational Rehabilitation Transition Services Section. Position and Candidate(s) Chair-Elect Bruce Bloom Member-at-Large-Secretary Erin Bailey Lisa Byrne Member-at-Large Giana Ferrari Ayers Chair-Elect Bruce Bloom Describe your qualifications for the position I am an M.Ed. and CRC. I have been evaluating individuals at the transition age for the last 5 years and have worked in the industry for 7. I have ...