Reaching Out to Student Veterans Blanca Sanchez-Navarro, LPC-S, LCDC Assistant Director of Educational Outreach Texas State Counseling Center

Overview Today’s Student Veteran Demographics Military experience Student Veteran Experiences Student Veterans Needs Assessment General Transitions Connecting to the Mission Challenging Assumptions Defining the Mission Supporting the Mission

What do you picture when you think of a student veteran?

Who are student veterans? From 2001-2014 - 2.6 million troops have deployed to Afghanistan and Iraq (Department of Defense, 2014) 2,709,918 Americans served in Vietnam, this number represents 9.7% of their generation. http://www.nationalvietnamveteransfoundation.org/statistics.ht m Around 25% are Guard & Reserve (Rand, 2013) In Texas, over 80,000 have returned in recent years Texas has major military installations

Other Cultural Identities First generation college status Sexual orientation Gender identity FACES (foster care alumni creating educational success)

Needs Assessment Methodology Katherine Selber, PhD, LMSW, AP Military and Family Support Initiative 2010, 2011 (freshmen only), 2013, 2015 Plus Other Data Sets Electronic Anonymous Voluntary Surveys Domains: Demographics, Education, Career, Military Background, Transitional Process, Financial, Health, & Mental Health 80 Plus Questions Total - Closed and Open Ended Questions Response rates for Data Sets across years 25%- 28% Sample Sizes- over 1000 cases, over 85 variables These are Preliminary Results- still working on data analysis

At Texas State University 1154 veterans (Fall 2015) (from Texas State VA Office) Student veteran profile 2015: 20% Graduate / 80% Undergraduate Gender: 76% male / 24% female Ethnicity: 55.6% Anglo 27.6% Hispanic, .3% Am. Indian 10% African-American, 1.6% Multi-racial 2.4% Asian-American 2.4% unknown 90% of student veterans are full time students 60% First Generation College Students (needs assessment data 2015)

Separation from military A process – not an event Varies from person to person Some may experience the following: Military debriefing does not address full range of adjustment Often encouraged to deny issues Avoid seeking help before separating Anxiety from separation or (re)deployment Not having a plan for “the next step” Emotional void Engage in numbing behaviors like heavy drinking or drugs Family relationships may be strained or damaged Relating to other others, civilian and veterans alike

Classroom and Campus Transitional Experiences Years since high school Concentration and memory Sitting in large/crowded classrooms Difficulty relating to traditional students Class discussions about war May feel marginalized May not want to “represent” all military Service member may not want to talk about experiences Accessing Benefits VA, G.I. Bill, etc. Possible anxiety in crowded areas Health concerns Family responsibilities Lack of structure

Understanding Military Culture “Battlemind” The following 3 slides adapted from presentation by Craig J. Bryan, PsyD, ABPP Associate Director National Center for Veterans Studies The University of Utah Understanding Military Culture “Battlemind” Warrior Culture Mental Health Culture •Strength, resilience, courage, personal sacrifice •Elitism, superiority •Mental toughness •Collectivism, group identity •Inner strength, self-reliance •Illness, clinical, deficiency-oriented •Injury, problems, disorders •Emotional vulnerability •Individualized, one-on-one •Seek help from others

Assumptions that are barriers to the mission First assumption All veterans served in combat zones or saw combat.

Assumptions that are barriers to the mission It’s not possible to be in combat without acquiring some level of PTSD Combat exposure causes PTSD Combat is a significant predictor of PTSD across numerous studies (Grieger et al., 2006; Hoge, Auchterlonie, & Milliken, 2006; Hoge et al., 2004; Hotopf et al., 2006; Kolkow et al., 2007; U.S. Department of the Army, 2006b) As combat intensity increases, so does the likelihood of PTSD (Castro & McGurk, 2007) Feelings of guilt may be a top factor in PTSD (study of active duty Marines) •Reintegration/adjustment difficulties are not the same as PTSD •Contextual adaptability of “subthreshold PTSD symptoms” •Daily hassles contribute to psychological distress above and beyond trauma exposure (Heron & Bryan, 2012)

Assumptions Continued PTSD is common among combat veterans PTSD is a chronic condition Estimated rates of PTSD among combat veterans vary across studies from 5-15% (Tanielien & Jaycox, 2008) 85-95% of OEF/OIF combat veterans without PTSD 42-66% recovery rate from PTSD among those who start Cognitive Processing Therapy 64-74% recovery rate from PTSD from those who complete CPT Moving from Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder to Post-Traumatic Growth

Break the Barriers and Connect to the Mission back to Texas State data 60% experience lasting physical effects due to service-related injury 69% experience some degree of pain as a result of service-related injury 6%: Severe 35%: Moderate 28%: Minimal 30% responded that their pain effects their focus and concentration in class 36% have high levels of stress 73% have experienced changes in their sleep patterns since leaving military service 53% - affects school work 7.5% feel continued impacts of concussive event

Defining a New Mission Translating military skills into civilian skills Building and maintaining Strength Resilience Mental toughness Self-reliance Becoming part of a new collective Other veterans Other cultural identity groups Identity in major University identity(Bobcat!)

Supporting the Mission – collaboration with other offices because the truth is that “counseling” is not the most likely starting point. Since 2009, Texas State University has been recognized as a Military Friendly School by G.I. Jobs and in 2011, Texas State ranked 13th nationally in the Best For Vets college survey conducted by Military Times EDGE. Veterans Advisory Council – “Veteran Friendly” training for departments (like Allies and DREAMERS) “Veteran Friendly Office” designation Student Diversity and Inclusion Veterans Alliance of Texas State Tutor Corps Counseling Center Readjustment Counseling therapist from the Austin Vet center

Training Staff & Faculty Training faculty & staff since 2009 Looking for funding for “Veterans on Campus” At-Risk Training through Kognito

Accessing Support Increases Mission Success Persistence/Retention after 1 year 2013 cohort Overall Student Population Combined freshman and transfers 77.9% Veterans Combined freshman and transfers 80.8% Graduation Rates after 6 years (as of 2015) Overall Student Population Combined freshman and transfers 60.4% Veteran Combined freshman and transfers 64.4% This Data was obtained from Institutional Effectiveness Office, fall 2015. All these are significant correlations, the first two rows are positive meaning they increase together success in college for student veterans. The row on the top shows how vet services, vats, the initiative all help happiness, connection,. The third and fourth rows show how if there are unmet needs, vets go to tutoring and your interns. If thinking they may leave because of problems, they go to the va office on campus

What’s Your Mission?