Issue-28

Please join us for an opportunity to better understand the needs of student veterans and how to support their successful transition to higher education and careers. California Community Colleges are the number one destination for California veterans returning to civilian life and their numbers are expected to continue growing. Hear from California Secretary of Veterans Aairs Peter Gravett and other respected leaders in veterans services. Learn from your colleagues who have established successful programs on their campuses. Hear from student veterans about their community college experience. December 1-2, 2011 in San Diego, California.

This article describes two recent events for veterans at Long Beach City College, one of which had few veterans in attendance while the other drew large numbers. The differences in these events are described and a model for veteran programs is proposed. It is argued that the celebratory model is the most effective in getting veterans to participate.

The Veterans Education and Transition Services (VETS) Program at Saddleback College provides a comprehensive selection of services to support veterans, active military and military families from application to graduation. Working closely with current and past student veterans, the VETS Program has created unique partnerships and has become a key piece of the success for thousands of veteran students at a low cost to the college.

Strategic Planning is more common now that it has been in the past few years. This article presents a study conducted in California Community College on the effectiveness of strategic planning.  The author compares perceptions of Presidents, Chief Business Officers (CBOs) and Chief Academic Officers (CAOs) on the effectiveness of strategic planning.  To continue the increase of strategic planning effectiveness one recommendation is for CBO’s to become more involved in this process.

Almost half of the military veterans who are enrolled in college have contemplated suicide at some point, and 20 percent have planned to kill themselves, according to a recent study "Student Veterans: A National Survey Exploring Psychological Symptoms and Suicide Risk." As a recipient of the American Council on Education (ACE)/Wal-Mart grant, Los Angeles City College (LACC) has developed strategies to welcome back returning veterans on campus. From innovative partnerships with community-based organizations to engaging classified staff, faculty, and administrators by raising campus awareness, Los Angeles City College would like to share the outcome of its effort to be a “veteran-friendly” campus. This article explores the challenges faced by student veterans as they transition from military service back to the community colleges.

With increasing numbers of service members, veterans and their families, colleges and universities are searching for ways to better serve this population. Becoming a veterans friendly campus requires the development of direct services and the development of policies that support this service. In Minnesota, these services and this policy infrastructure have been built through statewide partnerships. The outcome has been improved direct services on campuses, an infrastructure of supportive policies and the development of new and innovative electronic tools specialized for use by service members, veterans and their families.

Michael Goltermann is an attorney and dean of student services at West Los Angeles College. In addition to supervising the veterans benefits office, Mr. Goltermann teaches an “Introduction to Law” course every spring and is the administrator in charge of Admissions and Records, Outreach & School Relations, Financial Aid and International Student Services.

Increasing national and statewide focus on student athlete success, increased complexity in student athlete advising due to ever-changing NCAA rules and regulations, shrinking resources to and greater demands on student services and counseling within California community colleges (Luan, 2011), all have led Diablo Valley College to develop educational planning templates for student athletes.

These templates 1) engage student athletes in the development of their own educational plans; 2) provide student athletes with a clear, efficient road map (i.e., specific courses and planned semesters for each course) which leads to their associates' degrees; 3) allow for easy printing and emailing of the completed educational plans to the student athletes; 4) allow the athletic counselors to save the completed educational plan into a college network drive easily accessed by the admissions eligibility staff and athletic director; and 5) are easily accessed by any athletic counselor from their computers, so that the plans can be updated from semester to semester, without having to start again from "scratch."

Returning veterans are a growing underserved population at college campuses around the nation. Expanded educational benefits in the new GI Bill, are increasing enrollment at campuses around the country, and this is challenging colleges to meet the educational and support needs of this traditionally at-risk group. At Cerritos College, veteran students are currently provided with a number of programs and services through an established Veterans Resource Center (VRC). The VRC is an initiative to nurture a welcoming campus culture for veteran students. It is founded on the premise that the challenges faced by veterans may be addressed through a combination of services stressing academics, camaraderie, and wellness. Veterans need to have the opportunity to experience these essentials in a one-site stop staffed by those who empathize with the issues with which they struggle, and which they must address to help themselves thrive as no college student should ever state “I would rather go to war than college” (statement by a returning veteran).

Iraq and Afghanistan veterans are returning to college campus in large numbers. These are the largest numbers that colleges have experienced since after the Vietnam War. The articles in this edition identify the ways colleges are helping our veterans address mental health issues, personal issues, and find career paths in a jobless marketplace.