Student Disability Resources is a good place to start for students who have physical disabilities, mental illnesses or learning disabilities. But students will need to dig a little bit deeper to find resources related to future employment.

Some students may be concerned that if they receive accommodations while in school, they are not being adequately prepared for life after graduation. However, there are resources for people with disabilities in the real world as well, and students can begin tapping into those resources while they are still in school.

Steven Moats, director of Student Disability Resources, said he thinks all students should realize that, if a disability or medical condition is seriously affecting academic performance or work, he or she should “investigate what’s going on in order to implement strategies to overcome those challenges.”

Iowa Vocational Rehabilitation Services is a state and federal agency that falls under the Department of Education and has an office in the Student Services Building on campus.

This office, separate from Student Disability Resources, helps students with disabilities gain meaningful, competitive employment, said IVRS secretary Bobbi Borich. IVRS also pays for half of a student’s tuition if he or she is eligible for services.

Those seeking accommodations from Student Disability Resources or IVRS needs to provide some sort of official documentation of their diagnosis before they can receive assistance.

Moats said many students have documentation of their condition when they first come to Student Disability Resources, but they sometimes need to obtain additional documentation because their condition was not evident or did not exist before the student enrolled at the university.

On the other hand, Moats said, some students have a documented condition, but not to a great enough degree to qualify them for accommodations.

Iowa State adheres to the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), which was signed into law in 1990 and defines a disability as “a physical or mental impairment that substantially limits one or more major life activities.”

Moats said Student Disability Resources is responsible for helping students access classes and programs at Iowa State. Helping students prepare and look for future employment is not their primary objective.

John Hirschman, program coordinator for Student Disability Resources, said a lot of questions related to future employment can be answered by those working at IVRS.

In addition to financial assistance, Borich said, IVRS offers career counseling to eligible students. Those receiving services prepare an employment plan with a counselor that outlines attainable goals.

IVRS also offers assistance with job searches, resume writing and practicing interviewing skills.

Borich said the office keeps in contact with those receiving their services even after they graduate, and individuals’ files can be re-opened if they change jobs or if their disability changes.

“Once the person is employed, then we keep their file open for three months,” Borich said.

She said the campus location works specifically with college students, but other offices work in other domains as well.

Borich said students are welcome to visit the campus office to ask questions and talk with counselors, even if they don’t apply for services.

Students who are eligible for services, Borich said, fall into three status categories: the most significantly disabled, significantly disabled, and all others eligible for services. Eligible students are usually put on a waiting list, with those “most significantly disabled” having the highest priority on the list.

“In the time I’ve worked here, which is just a little over two years, we’ve gone from all three types of statuses being on waiting lists, to now, when our budget is strong enough that virtually nobody is on the waiting list any longer,” Borich said.

Borich said that, because IVRS covers 50 percent of tuition for eligible students, people sometimes look at the office as merely a financial resource. She said that’s really not the case. Until a student has prepared an employment plan with a counselor, he or she can’t receive any kind of financial assistance.

In addition to tuition assistance, IVRS sometimes provides financial assistance to uninsured students for counseling or medication. She said this sort of assistance sometimes requires approval from counselors’ supervisors.

Lynette Plander, rehabilitation counselor for IVRS, said that when it comes to helping students search for jobs, available assistance depends on what they want.

“Some people don’t want to disclose to the employer that they have a disability, and that’s totally fine,” Plander said. “When that’s the case, our work is behind the scenes.”

Plander said that, in that situation, counselors can look for jobs online or locally and help students decide whether to apply for them.

If a student wishes, IVRS employees can also talk to potential employers and discuss reasons to hire an individual. Sometimes, such conversations include discussing possible accommodations.

Moats (of Student Disability Resources) said that, although his office is primarily responsible for helping students with classes, workshops and other preparatory options are available.

Moats also encourages students with disabilities to actively seek such opportunities, which can even include employers coming to Iowa State to interview potential employees.