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Susan Cran, EdD

Position: Instructor / Graduate Specialization Coordinator

Room: 3rd Floor TRW

Phone: (403) 220-5669

Email: spcran@ucalgary.ca




Research Interests

Professional Identity and Certification

The field of community disability services attracts a variety of disciplines because of the interdisciplinary knowledge and training in community development, rehabilitation processes and strategies, and inclusive practices for supporting individuals with disabilities to be part of community. Individuals who choose to work in this field recognize that either their "discipline specific" association's scope of practice is too narrowly defined for what they do or that there is no professional association that meets the interdisciplinary nature of the work. My passion is to unite these professionals and create an association that works with these disciplines to support an interdisciplinary professional identity. An article, co-authored with Dr. Cheryl Crocker, "Two feet and a heart beat: The Canadian professional identity crisis in Community Disability Services" Journal of Developmental Disabilities (in press) describes the difficulties in Alberta for disability services workforce to establish a professional identity, a professional association and identifies possible solutions.

My previous involvement with the Vocational Rehabilitation Association of Canada (VRAC), formerly the Canadian Association of Rehabilitation Professionals (CARP) confirmed the interdisciplinary nature of the disability services field with its membership base. My work with CARP included the development of standards for the Registered Rehabilitation Professional (RRP) designation, a new aspirational interdisciplinary code, and a Canadian Educators Network (CEN) to connect and advance the fields of community support, rehabilitation services and disability studies. VRAC no longer supports an interdisciplinary membership base, preferring to be an association focused on vocational rehabilitation professionals so the quest for professional identity of disability service workers and a professional association for this workforce continue.

Leadership, Management and Innovation

The traditional paradigm of non-profit organizations is undergoing a major transformation, moving from acting as a "charity" to a philosophy that requires them to respond to the new demands of government and public accountability. Non-profit agencies are learning how to do "business differently". Because of the challenges and opportunities this paradigm shift presents, non-profit organizations are engaging in innovative practices, recognizing the need for new leadership and management accountability. My work has involved the creation of a leadership and innovation course that targets these areas and challenges students to become part of the future in creating dynamic and innovative solutions for non-profit agencies to meet the demands of an ever changing society. In addition, my doctoral work in higher education administration explored the changing paradigm of traditional academic institutions to respond to the demands of the global market economy on higher education. The research involved the concepts of entrepreneurial and innovation, initiatives that were developed that espoused new ideas and practices typically outside the realm of conducting traditional academic business. Publication: Cran, S.P. (2009). Entrepreneurial practices in higher education: A case study. The International Journal of Knowledge, Culture & Change Management, 9(1), 173-186

Employment and Vocational Rehabilitation

Past interest included vocational rehabilitation for adults with onset disabilities. My previous work history in the private sector (insurance carriers (LTD), WCB, litigation (FCC)) focused on individuals experiencing difficulties with return to work issues and is the basis for the course CORE 473 Vocational Rehabilitation & Disability. In conjunction with Alberta Council of Disability Services, my current focus is determining the competencies for employment support specialists in order to develop training/curriculum for the field.

Biography

Susan Cran is a full-time Instructor and Student Advisor for the Community Rehabilitation and Disability Studies program, University of Calgary, Calgary, Alberta, Canada. She holds an undergraduate degree in social work and her graduate work was completed in Educational Psychology with a specialization in Rehabilitation Studies. Susan is currently a Doctoral Candidate in Higher Education Administration. Her areas of interest are professional certification, rehabilitation management, career issues and disability .Susan coordinates the distributed learning graduate program in CRDS.

Prior to the University of Calgary, she worked in the private sector in vocational rehabilitation with adult onset disabilities and also with the not -for-profit sector assisting persons with developmental disabilities.

Susan was the National President of CARP (Canadian Association of Rehabilitation Professionals) from 2000 2002. She served as the Chair of the Standards and Credentials Committee, which encompasses the Registration Review Committee and the Continuing Education Committee. She was instrumental in the development of the Registered Rehabilitation Professional Guidelines. She also served as Chair of the Research and Development Committee and established the Canadian Network of Educators. As Chair of the Ad-Hoc Committee on Ethics, she helped develop the Canadian interdisciplinary Code of Ethics for Rehabilitation Professionals, and more recently the Guidelines for the Code of Ethics. Susan has achieved her RRP (Registered Rehabilitation Professional designation) and CCRC (Canadian Certified Rehabilitation Counselor designation).

Selected Publications

CV / Resume

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