VA NY Harbor Healthcare System

The VITAL Initiative, a program funded as part of the VA Secretary's T21 Initiatives, seeks to provide a link between local colleges and universities and the VA Health Care System to support student Veterans' academic pursuits. Evidence indicates that Veterans are successfully enrolling in colleges and universities across the nation, but unfortunately are not enrolling in the VA programs and services they have earned through their service to their country. As a result, many student Veterans are missing out on a variety of opportunities that could support their educational and career pursuits. While there are a variety of barriers student Veterans face, the VA VITAL Initiative aims to remove some of those barriers and to emphasize the unique leadership abilities that student Veterans bring to their campus communities.

The VITAL Initiative has initially been established in 20 Medical Centers nationwide: Ann Arbor, MI; Austin, TX; Baltimore, MD; Bedford, MA; Biloxi, MS; Canandaigua, NY; Chicago, IL; Cincinnati, OH; Madison, WI; Marion, IL; Minneapolis, MN; Muskogee, OK; Orlando, FL; Palo Alto, CA; Reno, NV Salt Lake City, UT; San Francisco, CA; Tuscaloosa, AL; Walla Walla, WA and West Haven, CT. Services are offered in three important areas:

• Outreach: VITAL facilitates a number of campus events to identify student Veterans and increase access to and enrollment in VA Health Care and provides full-time VA staffing to partner schools.
• Education: VITAL provides consultation and liaison services to the campus community with the purpose of educating faculty, staff and students about the unique strengths and challenges facing student Veterans. These events also streamline services in a manner that enhances student Veterans' academic pursuits.
• Direct Services: VITAL staff are available on campus to assist student Veterans with:
  
  • Training faculty on military culture;
  • Assisting campuses in creation of student Veteran support programs;
• Providing onsite mental health services including:
  • intake assessments, evidence-based psychotherapy, family and couples counseling, medication management;
  • case management and enrollment into VA programs;
  • connecting Veterans with campus-, community- and state-based resources;
  • advising and supporting student Veteran organizations on campuses.