Clovis counselor wins award

The New Mexico Division of Vocational Rehabilitation (NMDVR) State Rehabilitation Council (SRC) announced Clovis' Kayla Damron as a 2021 award winner.

Damron was named the top vocational rehabilitation counselor for Area IV, which includes Clovis, Roswell, Hobbs and Carlsbad.

"(Kayla) is a mentor to everyone around her and has a wealth of knowledge," said Tracy Agiovlasitas, chairperson of the awards committee. "She is really good at meeting different people with different life situations and meeting them where they are."

"Our primary mission is to empower people with disabilities to get gainful employment ," Agiovlasitas said about the NMDVR.

She said the job of a vocational rehabilitation counselor is "hard." The purpose of the awards is to recognize people who are "going really above and beyond."

"We received several nominations," she said.

Asked what makes a good vocational rehabilitation counselor, she said: "It is patience and understanding and a real passion for helping people get ahead."

In an interview, Damron said she has a caseload of 130 clients, including adults as well as students in high school. She also manages another 80-person "vacant" caseload with clients that are "not all active all the time."

"I've been doing this for 15 years," said Damron, whose title is vocational rehabilitation counselor sShe said she meets with her clients to "find out what their needs are as far as vocation.

"Some just need a job, some need to be retrained and go to vocational school or college. Some of them want to start their own business because they are not able to do what they did or are not able to work with people - they want to do their own thing." She helps these people create a business plan and find funding.

"Individuals with disabilities have lots of barriers to work through," she said. "They've done something all their life and now are not able to do it anymore."

They need the work for income and also sometimes for their mental health, she said.

Asked what is most important to keep in mind as a counselor, she said: "For me, it is important to maintain that contact with clients so they know you care about their future. I just think that's good."