Student Service Members/Veterans

Until then, it was unknown as to how many veterans were in need of help, who were having problems obtaining health and human services, and what resource related issues they were encountering. There were, and still are, many “problems affecting homeless veterans [which] include physical, addictive, and postmilitary psychiatric disorders; social isolation; etc.…” (Homeless Veterans: Perspectives on Social Services Use, p.20). With the number of problems needing to be addressed, it was crucial in getting the “’insider perspectives’ data from veterans…” (Homeless Veterans: Perspectives on Social Services Use, p.20). By doing this, the veterans were able to provide in their own words, the major problems and barriers they encountered while attempting to obtain social services (Homeless Veterans: Perspectives on Social Services Use). However, prior to this, homeless veterans, let alone non-homeless veterans, were getting little to no

Over the course of this past year the Veterans Success Center (VSC) has made huge strides in being more visible and more involved with other areas across campus. I wanted to concentrate on reaching the incoming student-veterans so that when they encountered the veterans program it appeared to be far more established than it was, and interaction with it being perceived as a daily opportunity. This meant that we would need to be far more involved with the early processes of becoming a student such as: Premiere Night, SOAR/TSOAR/Preview Day/ Veteran specific orientation and Veteran campus tours. We also wanted to be much more accurate in speaking to our student-veteran population, so we worked directly with the Admission Office to create an

A struggle for veterans was finding employment after completing the service so many veterans had problems with conforming to civilian from transitioning out the military. The unemployment rate for all U.S. veterans was 6.9 percent←;→ however, for those who had served since September 11 it rest at 10 percent. 13 percent of the veterans in the U.S. population were homeless, another 1.4 million veterans were at the endangered of homelessness. The source for vets that unfortunately discovery themselves in this position of being homeless lack of employment, poverty, housing shortages, low wages with adding drug abuse, alcohol, physical mental illness these problems can leave a veteran out in the streets (Hoffer, Elizabeth. F., Dekle, Judith. Ward., & Sheets, Carol., 2014).

A women named Michele A. Flournoy from the Washington Post stated that the federal government has done great assistance with transitioning veterans. In 2009 the Veterans Affair put out the new 9/11 GI bill resulting to one million veterans going to college or universities.

My problem revolves around homeless veterans and how they are at a higher risk for suicide than those who are not homeless. Several factors relate to the notable risk for veteran suicide including health factors, substance and alcohol abuse, stressful life events, social isolation and psychiatric disorders. Veterans who are homeless show higher rates for these significant factors including psychiatric disorders, alcohol and drug abuse and chronic medical conditions. There is a correlation between veteran homelessness and suicide and several disciplinary perspectives relate to it. The most notable disciplines that effect veteran homelessness include sociology and economics. There are several economic factors that influence why veterans become

Every night more than sixty-five thousand veterans are looking for a place to lay their heads, they are homeless. For over a decade these men and women of our armed forces have been returning home from the conflicts overseas; each year their presence in the homeless community has increased significantly. The reintegration from a structured military lifestyle to a lax civilian life can make adjusting difficult for service members. These men and women, who have fought for our way of life, return to the States to find themselves fighting for a place to call home. The number of homeless veterans increases every year due to the financial strains, engagement in risky behaviors and mental health disorders that soldiers are faced with while trying to reintegrate in to civilian life.

Moreover, some lack the capacity to be employed because of the psychological and mental disabilities they have acquired because of their experiences during war. In addition, their inability to access health care services because insufficient funds hinders them from obtaining medications and health services they need to stay well and healthy (Blue-Howells, J., McGuire, J., & Nakashima, J., 2008). Studying the needs of the homeless veteran population, a survey was conducted to determine the most significant need of that specific population. Forty-five percent of the respondents said they needed assistance in being employed, while 37% of them needed assistance in paying for housing costs (National Coalition for Homeless Veterans, 2010b). The benefits and services provided to the veteran population should be coming from the Department of Veteran Affairs. However, the allocation of benefits and grants are dependent upon the quality of service and personal behavior of a veteran (McMurray-Avila, 2001).

Have you ever wondered what happens to war vets when they return home from the front lines? Some of the outcomes are not as happy as most people would like them to be. War veterans that survive come home with Mental Illnesses and other issues. Many war veterans end up homeless because of Alcohol and Drug Abuse, and some are even living with the homeless men and women at shelters because they cannot receive the help they need from the government. In a study from a Research Brief in 2012, “Veteran and non-veteran participants were compared in a nationally-supported housing initiative for chronically homeless adults. Veterans were not found to be at increased risk for adverse outcomes once

I am contacting you in regards to the HIMS TCF Intern position with the Veterans Administration, advertised in the USAjobs.gov website posted July 11, 2017. I am very interested in the Medical Records Administrator program offered as an internship position. As a member of the Veteran’s Affairs team, I can contribute my passion, skill set, and unique background to help Veteran’s Administration achieve its goals.

Outside of tax incentives (Dewitte, 2013), there are many benefits to hiring veterans in your workforce. From first hand experience, I have seen the dedication to mission, unwavering focus, drive, initiative, motivation, and standards of excellence that many veterans practice. As the daughter of a 23-year, twice deployed, disabled Army veteran and now a wife to a twice-deployed, career Army husband, I can attest to these characteristics and believe they make most veterans extremely valuable assets for an organization. Other important quality veterans bring to the table is their leadership capabilities, practical on-the-job training and experience (Dewitte, 2013), the ability to collaborate and work in teams, ability to work in stressful environments, and experience with workforce diversity.

As veterans began to take advantage of their educational benefits school attendance increased substantially contrary to initial assumptions. Institutions of higher learning made accommodations for veteran students by expanding campuses and modifying living quarters to meet the needs of students with family’s.

Developing a desire to give back to our nation’s heroes led me to become involved with a Disabled American Veterans program that aids local veterans by offering them an opportunity to seek assistance for everyday tasks. Creating connections with a few of the veterans prompted an invitation to participate in their monthly chapter meetings where I discovered that our conversations left a lasting impact on me; hearing their life stories of successes and struggles is eye opening. Although a majority of group members has a disability from their service to our country, they remain the most humble individuals one will ever meet. Additionally, my time with these heroes wills me to become more intrinsically motivated in finding ways to continue to

There are over 20 million veterans who have served their country in the U.S. Fortunately, there are many helpful programs that offer a variety of services and benefits to help veterans permanently adjust to civilian life.

As demographics of college and university students in the United States evolve, so too must the policies and procedures used to assist students in their pursuit of post-secondary education (Radford, 2009). By the passage of educational acts such as the Servicemen’s Readjustment Act of 1944 (Public Law 78-346), the 1985 Montgomery GI Bill (Public Law 110-252), and now the Post 9/11 GI Bill (Public Law 100-48), institutions of higher education have committed themselves not only to educate the recently discharged and deactivated, but to address a student population with unique needs. Student development practitioners must adapt strategies to assist the transition experience of their military students.

The intended purpose of this study was to describe and understand the identity development of student veterans as they transitioned from active duty service members to students at a higher educational institution. This study was “phenomenological” in nature and focused on seven individual, veteran, full time students completing their first undergraduate degree at CU Denver. Despite the increased number of student veterans on campus, there remains a continued lack of understanding regarding this section of the student population at colleges across the United States and as I learned, here at CU Denver as well. It is important that campus administrators have a solid understanding of student veterans’ needs and experiences in order to better assist them while they are here at CU Denver. In my study I concentrated on the actual experiences of seven student veterans attending college full time. This method was chosen because of its in-depth interview nature and the focus on participants’ lived experiences and worldviews. Veterans have detailed life experiences that are often not understood by non-veterans so in explaining some of my findings we civilians could have problems relating or understanding. Because of the time limitations involved in this project, interviewing a larger number of participants was not feasible, especially considering the attention to detail required for personal, one-on-one discussions. Furthermore, since the study focused on student veteran identity