Don’t Dream It’s Over: Expedited Reinstatement – 2026 Spring National Conference – Track II (Presented by National Organization of Social Security Claimants’ Representatives)

Debora Wagner, Work Incentives Training & Technical Assistance Specialist | Cornell University Yang-Tan Institute

Debora Wagner is a nationally recognized specialist in Social Security work incentives, benefits planning, and return-to-work issues, with a career spanning 25 years in legal services and law school clinical programs. Throughout her career, she has presented on benefits issues, including post-entitlement and return-to-work matters, for attorneys, vocational rehabilitation professionals, agency staff, individuals with disabilities, and their families. From 2016 to 2022, she led the statewide network of work incentives training and technical assistance for benefits planners in Ohio. Since joining Cornell University’s Yang-Tan Institute in December 2021, she has continued that work at a national level while also designing and teaching credential courses on Work Incentive Planning for Veterans and on Leadership of Work Incentives Planning Projects. She serves on the Board of Directors of the National Association of Benefits and Work Incentives Specialists, on the SSA’s Standing Committee of Medical and Vocational Experts for Disability Programs and is a member of the National Academy of Social Insurance.

• Education & Credentials

Debora’s credentials are grounded in 25 years of practice at the intersection of legal services, clinical legal education, and disability benefits advocacy, with deep specialization in Social Security work incentives and post-entitlement issues. She has designed and teaches two credential courses at Cornell University’s Yang-Tan Institute: one on Work Incentive Planning for Veterans and one, co-taught with Aleyda Toruno, for Leaders of Work Incentives Planning Projects. Her membership on the SSA’s Standing Committee of Medical and Vocational Experts for Disability Programs and her election to the National Academy of Social Insurance further reflect the professional recognition she has earned in this specialized field.

• Recognition & Leadership

Debora serves on the Board of Directors of the National Association of Benefits and Work Incentives Specialists (NABWIS) and on the Social Security Administration’s Standing Committee of Medical and Vocational Experts for Disability Programs, two positions that place her among the leading voices shaping work incentives policy and practice at the national level. She is also a member of the National Academy of Social Insurance. Her design and instruction of credential-level courses at Cornell’s Yang-Tan Institute reflects recognition of her expertise as a curriculum developer and educator, and her six-year leadership of Ohio’s statewide work incentives planning network demonstrates the institutional trust she has earned throughout her career.

• Professional Involvement

Debora’s professional engagement spans training, technical assistance, curriculum development, board leadership, and federal advisory work. At Cornell’s Yang-Tan Institute, she provides work incentives training and technical assistance through the Work Incentive Support Center while also teaching two credential-level courses. Her board service at NABWIS and her committee role at SSA reflect sustained involvement at the national policy level, and her presentations to attorneys, vocational rehabilitation professionals, agency staff, and individuals with disabilities demonstrate an ability to communicate complex benefits law to diverse audiences across professional and community settings.

• Experience

Debora’s 25-year career in legal services and law school clinical programs has been defined by a consistent focus on Social Security benefits, work incentives, and the post-entitlement issues that affect individuals with disabilities who are navigating the intersection of benefits and employment. From 2016 to 2022, she led Ohio’s statewide work incentives training and technical assistance network for benefits planners. Since joining Cornell’s Yang-Tan Institute in December 2021, she has expanded that work to a national platform, providing training and technical assistance through the Work Incentive Support Center and designing credential courses that build capacity among benefits planners and program leaders. Her combined experience as a practitioner, trainer, educator, board member, and federal committee participant makes her one of the most comprehensively engaged professionals in the work incentives and disability benefits field.

SESSION 1 – Don’t Dream It’s Over: Expedited Reinstatement | 11:30am – 12:30pm

Attorneys will learn to identify EXR eligibility, navigate the reinstatement request process, and evaluate when filing a new application better serves a client’s path back to disability benefit.