For more than three decades, Portland State University’s Clinical Rehabilitation Counseling program has been training professionals who help people with disabilities live, work and thrive in their communities. That legacy continues with a new five-year, $1 million grant from the U.S. Department of Education’s Rehabilitation Services Administration (RSA) to fund student scholarships and strengthen Oregon’s rehabilitation counseling workforce.
The grant, led by Rana Yaghmaian, project director and counselor education professor, and Tina Peterman, co-project director and counselor education professor, will support 30 to 35 master’s students over the next five years. Recipients will receive tuition assistance and hands-on training to prepare for careers in vocational rehabilitation, where they work with individuals with disabilities to achieve educational, career and personal goals.
This new award builds on a long history of federal investment in the program, supporting students pursuing master’s degrees in a high-need career pathway. Hundreds of graduates have gone on to work in public agencies and community-based programs throughout Oregon and the Pacific Northwest, filling critical needs in the rehabilitation counseling field.
“It’s incredibly meaningful to see the Department of Education continue investing in preparing rehabilitation counselors who make a difference in people’s lives,” Yaghmaian said.
The Clinical Rehabilitation Counseling program, accredited by the Council for Accreditation of Counseling and Related Educational Programs (CACREP), offers a 90-credit curriculum that combines classroom learning with extensive practical experience. RSA scholars complete a two-term practicum at PSU’s Community Counseling Clinic and a yearlong, 600-hour internship at a public vocational rehabilitation agency such as Oregon Vocational Rehabilitation Services or the Oregon Commission for the Blind.
Peterman said the grant creates a direct pipeline into the workforce, ensuring that Oregon’s public agencies can meet critical personnel needs. It also opens doors for students. “Most of our RSA scholars have job offers from state agencies before they even graduate,” she said. “The grant helps fill important vacancies while giving our students invaluable real-world experience.”
The RSA grant helped me to focus on my academic performance and be a leader in my school community.
Since its inception, the PSU counseling program has helped hundreds of graduates launch careers in public and community-based agencies across Oregon and the Pacific Northwest. Many of those counselors continue to work in roles that expand access to employment and improve quality of life for people with disabilities.
“The ultimate goal is to strengthen the rehabilitation counseling workforce — especially vocational rehabilitation counselors — who help people with disabilities find and maintain meaningful, competitive employment,” Yaghmaian said. “The employment gap between people with and without disabilities is still significant, and since meaningful work is so closely tied to well-being, the impact of this program extends far beyond the classroom.”
Scholarship recipients commit to working in the field after graduation — two years of service in rehabilitation counseling for every year of financial assistance received. The service requirement ensures that public agencies benefit directly from the investment while helping graduates gain experience and career stability.
Most of our RSA scholars have job offers from state agencies before they even graduate.
For many students, this financial assistance is life-changing. Yaghmaian said the funding reduces a major financial barrier for those entering a helping profession that isn’t among the highest paid. “It allows them to focus on training rather than juggling multiple jobs just to stay in school,” she said.
Virginia Hicks, a third year graduate student and scholarship recipient, is grateful for the financial support.
"Not only has the RSA grant helped me to focus on my academic performance and be a leader in my school community, but it has also given me the opportunity to work in rehabilitation services during my internship,” said Hicks. “I am learning the ins and outs of vocational rehabilitation service plan development, and working under a team of experienced vocational rehabilitation counselors who are guiding me through the next chapter of my career."
The program attracts a diverse group of students, many of whom bring personal or professional experience with disability, and an increasing number of BIPOC and multilingual counselors. “It makes a huge difference for our students,” Peterman said. “Some have said they wouldn’t be able to stay in the program without this support. The grant helps us recruit and retain the kinds of students who bring invaluable lived experience to the field.”
Looking ahead, faculty plan to integrate new training in assistive technology and services for transition-age youth and look for opportunities to collaborate with PSU’s special education programs. “We’re looking forward to reinvigorating our partnerships with the rehabilitation community and creating more in-person opportunities for networking and connection,” Yaghmaian said.
Graduates of PSU counseling programs have a strong record of success, with more than 90 percent finding employment before, or soon after, graduation. Alumni work in public rehabilitation agencies, nonprofits, hospitals and private practices, supporting clients as they navigate barriers and pursue their goals.
With this renewed funding, Portland State’s Clinical Rehabilitation Counseling program continues to lead in preparing the next generation of rehabilitation counselors — professionals who make a lasting difference in the lives of individuals, families and communities across the region.