Stephen Zanskas
Professor, Associate Dean
About Dr. Zanskas
I earned my Ph.D. in Rehabilitation Counselor Education from Michigan State University in August of 2007. My teaching experience, work experience, commitment to professional service, and research interests contributed to my becoming a professional rehabilitation educator.
I have extensive applied practice experience in public, non-profit, and private–for-profit rehabilitation settings. My practical work experience includes employment as a work adjustment specialist, vocational evaluator, chemical dependency counselor and psychotherapist, vocational rehabilitation counselor, consultant, supervisor, and administrator. I am a CRC, hold an LPC credential in the states of Michigan and Wisconsin and have been accepted as a vocational expert by the Social Security Administration.
My applied practice, research, and teaching experience provided the basis for my dissertation research. Role and function studies have consistently demonstrated that rehabilitation counselors do not feel well prepared for the consultation activities they are required to perform. My dissertation, Consultation Competencies in Rehabilitation Counselor Education: A Mixed Methods Investigation, identifies the state of the art in the preparation of rehabilitation counselors for consultation roles and examines the development of best practice methods for their integration into rehabilitation counselor education programs. My research interests include the development of consultation skills in graduate rehabilitation counseling education programs, the psychosocial aspects of disability, professional issues and ethics.
At Michigan State University, I taught disability in a diverse society and the foundations of rehabilitation counseling course. I am currently teaching ethics and legal issues in counseling and the principles and techniques of rehabilitation counseling at The University of Memphis. Personally, I enjoy student interaction and conceptualize teaching as a matter of professional stewardship. I have extensive experience as a clinical supervisor in a variety of employment settings and have served as a university supervisor for graduate students during their clinical practicum experience.
I am the Past-President of the Michigan Rehabilitation Association, former President-Elect of the Wisconsin Rehabilitation Association, Past-President of the Great Lakes National Rehabilitation Counseling Association, Past-President of the Michigan Rehabilitation Counseling Association, Past-President of the Wisconsin Rehabilitation Counseling Association, and past Chair of the Wisconsin Board of Social Workers, Marriage and Family Therapists and Professional Counselors.