Lisa LaConâs experience with depression led her to pursue rehabilitation counseling and psychiatric rehabilitation at Rutgers School of Health Professions (SHP). Today, she co-leads a Newark-based nonprofit with her husband, Sean, that helps marginalized populations find pathways to employment and stability.
âAs a Black woman with a mohawk, I wasnât what people expected a scholar to look like. In many ways, I related to the stigma and shame my clients experienced,â LaCon said. âWhen I left the workforce to care for my children, I battled severe depression. Returning to work was part of my recoveryâit gave me purpose. Now, I want to offer that same opportunity to my clients.â
In recognition of her impact, LaCon received the Rutgers SHP Distinguished Alumni Award in 2022. She and her husband co-founded Blessed Ministries, Inc. (BMI), a $1.4 million nonprofit that partners with businesses to hire individuals facing barriers to employment, including people with disabilities, those previously incarcerated, and individuals receiving public assistance.
âMy experiences at Rutgers shaped how I approach this work: with respect, empathy, and a nonjudgmental lens.â
âLisa LaCon, Ph.D., CRC, â08 â20, Psychiatric Rehabilitation and Counseling
The results speak for themselves: BMI clients have maintained a 70 percent or higher employment retention rate at 180 days. One man, formerly incarcerated for many years, logged 500 internship hours through BMIâs Pathways to Recovery program, became a certified peer recovery specialist, and was still steadily employed 18 months later, supporting his family.
LaCon recalls being nervous about returning to school for her masterâs degree after a decade at home with her children. âI fell in love with the rehabilitation counseling program,â she said. âThe professors were so encouraging â they understood I wasnât a traditional student.â
That support inspired her to continue on for her doctorate, which deepened her expertise in working with people living with serious mental illnesses such as schizophrenia and bipolar disorder.
âWe serve very vulnerable populations who are too often stigmatized â people with disabilities, and those on parole or probation,â she said.
