Tyler Owens

SCPP Student Engagement Coordinator
803-779-5121 ext. 168
towens@able-sc.org
Columbia Office

Tyler is a certified rehabilitation counselor with cerebral palsy. He has a background in rehabilitation research and life skills education as well as local and international community service. Through Tyler’s personal and professional disability experiences, he has dedicated his life to helping others and serving his community at all levels of society. This is especially true when it comes to increasing the community access, mobility, and independence of people with disabilities. 

Prior to becoming a certified rehabilitation counselor, Tyler earned a bachelor's degree in German with minors in Russian and French at the College of Charleston. During his studies, he focused on business communication, current events, linguistics, and translation. In 2017, he interned in Germany at an international community service non-profit that focused on sustainable development. It was during this life-changing experience that Tyler decided to use his foreign language education and international travel experience to improve the community access, mobility, and independence of people with disabilities. After returning home from Germany, Tyler began to solidify his interest in working with youth and young adults with disabilities in their post-high school transition. So, regardless of whether he is teaching academic, job, or independent living skills, or improving access to resources in these areas of life, Tyler is all in on supporting successful life transitions. 

As the student engagement coordinator for the South Carolina Pathways Project, Tyler will oversee the development of the student stakeholder workgroup as the students take this opportunity to engage in discussions that directly affect them. As a part of this role, Tyler will lead trainings on leadership, professional communication, decision-making, and understanding stakeholder perspectives. Tyler’s goal is to see each student become more confident in their abilities as they become independent and engaged adults.   

Fun Facts: Tyler’s favorite board game is chess, and he loves to travel. He has traveled to 7 states, Washington D.C., and 2 countries (Germany and Russia). Through his travels and language studies, he has established professional connections and lifelong friendships in more than a dozen countries.