Kanako Iwanaga, Ph.D., is an Associate Professor in the Rehabilitation and Mental Health Counseling program at Virginia Commonwealth University. She earned her Ph.D. in Rehabilitation Counselor Education from the University of Wisconsin–Madison and previously served as an Assistant Professor at Northern Illinois University. Dr. Iwanaga is a Certified Rehabilitation Counselor and a Licensed Professional Counselor in Wisconsin.

Her professional background includes extensive experience in both practice and research, having worked as a rehabilitation counselor for the Japanese government, a researcher at the National Institute of Vocational Rehabilitation in Japan, and a lecturer at Polytechnic University in Tokyo.

She has authored more than 130 peer-reviewed journal articles and nine book chapters. Her research focuses on evidence-based rehabilitation counseling, demand-side employment strategies, positive psychology, health promotion, and the development and validation of psychological and vocational assessment tools for individuals with disabilities from diverse backgrounds. Dr. Iwanaga currently serves as Project Director of two Rehabilitation Services Administration (RSA) Long-Term Training grants in Vocational Rehabilitation Counseling and Blindness and Low Vision. She is also the Director of the EMPOWER Lab and the CRC Exam Preparation Lab at VCU.

In addition to her research and teaching responsibilities, Dr. Iwanaga serves as Associate Editor of the Rehabilitation Counseling Bulletin, as an editorial reviewer for several leading journals in rehabilitation counseling and disability research, and as the Southern Region Representative on the American Rehabilitation Counseling Association (ARCA) Board. Her contributions to the field have been recognized through numerous national awards, including the National Council on Rehabilitation Education (NCRE) New Career in Rehabilitation Education Award, NCRE Doctoral Student of the Year Award, NCRE Best Doctoral Dissertation Award, and three American Rehabilitation Counseling Association Research Awards.