The Best of a Generation

The following speech, "The State of SVA", was delivered at the 12th annual Student Veterans of America national conference, held in Los Angeles, CA from January 3rd - 5th.

President Franklin Delano Roosevelt transformed America into the modern nation we know today. His administration launched massive programs and agencies like Social Security, the SEC, and more. Then in 1944, he signed into law a program being called “the Servicemen’s Readjustment Act,” better known as the GI Bill. But this ‘GI Bill idea’ almost never made it out of congress; there were some who said this new program would be the ruin of our returning GI’s.

The President of Harvard famously penned, “We may find the least capable among the war generation, instead of the most capable, flooding the facilities for advanced education in the United States.” And the President of the University of Chicago—a World War I veteran himself, —argued, “Colleges and universities will find themselves converted into educational hobo jungles.” But, student veterans proved their value back then, and are doing so again today. Throughout this speech, I’ll be sharing several stories highlighting the remarkable work of student veterans, chapters, and chapter advisors. While each of these stories are powerful, they are not unique.

Like me, many of you have probably heard organizations seeking to support veterans say, “I have this great program, but just ‘can’t seem to find the vets’,” as if we’re some kind of elusive unicorn; as if we all look the same, care about the same thing, and hold homogenous views, and are tucked away just “waiting to be found.” At SVA we try to take a different approach, one informed by the needs of veterans. One such opportunity we’re developing is aptly called, “How to College.” This will be a program on the life hacks of being a more effective student and will introduce newly enrolled students at your campus to the concept of an SVA chapter.

When a new student veteran arrives on campus, what’s the one thing we often hear them say? “The veteran thing isn’t for me.” You see, we often treat school like a job. We put blinders on: we go to class, do the reading, take our tests, and we head home as quickly as possible. The only problem is you miss out on growing your professional network. Addressing this challenge, Anette Nance from the University of Pittsburgh developed opportunities for students to become engaged in professional, social and volunteer programs. This community engagement has taken off under her leadership, and gives student veterans a chance to broaden their networks with student veterans and traditional students alike.

Another approach is to show value early on, building relationships with employers, then sharing those relationships with student veterans. This is exactly what The City University of New York Medgar Evers College did, by coordinating with on-campus resources to provide regular career development opportunities. And when a strong chapter has a supportive chapter advisor like Adam McManamy at Los Angeles Harbor College, who made student veteran engagement a more manageable challenge. Adam supported a complete transformation of the LAHC veterans center and helped to grow the veteran enrollment on campus by nearly 10 times since 2015.

Taking a full course-load, maintaining involvement on campus, and working a full or part-time job can be a lot. Add to that, over 50 percent of student veterans have children when they go back to school and it’s easy to understand where an inclusive community can make a big difference. This is the true strength of an SVA chapter. At Old Dominion University, they are focused on creating an inclusive community for all student veterans, families, and allies. This fall, they hosted a veterans ball that showcased the breadth of their on-campus programs both within their chapter and alongside other on-campus organizations.

Through our Regional Summits, we’ve refined training to help chapter leaders learn all about the leading practices we’ve developed over the past decade. In 2020, chapter leaders will gather for 10 regional summits, and we’re encouraging as many chapter leaders to attend as possible, but remember to register early, as spots do fill up fast. Alex Picciano from Lakeland Community College attended one of the regional summits this past fall. Over the next few months, he incorporated this training into his chapter’s strategy for success, and now they are thriving.

At Colorado State University, student veterans were told the only way they would be able to build a new on-campus veterans center would be to increase the student activities fee. Working with other student leaders, student veterans successfully passed the measure in the student senate, and we’re looking forward to when they cut the ribbon soon. At the University of California Los Angeles, Dr. Ives exudes the core values of resources, support, and advocacy as the go-to support staff regardless of the challenge. Working hand-in-hand with student veterans at UCLA, she is a great example of the potential contributions of chapter advisors.

We pride ourselves on being an inclusive organization—where all veterans and allies are welcomed. It’s actually really tough to misunderstand someone you know, and even tougher to hate someone you know. This is part of the reason why respecting identity is so important. We strive to build chapters that allow everybody to bring their whole self to the table. In higher education, a lot of schools will advertise as being military or veteran “friendly.” But the term “military/veteran friendly” is actually kind of meaningless in academia, if you can’t define it and measure it. So listen, if you’re happy with the outcomes of being military and veteran friendly and you can both define and measure it, I encourage you to keep using it, But, if you’re dissatisfied with your campus’ approach to our community, I would encourage you to seek ways to drive towards a strategy to be more veteran inclusive.

No matter what we do, we can all be more successful together; Bonita Rodriguez, the former chapter president at Pace University built a diverse and inclusive chapter, that continues to deliver meaningful experiences to student veterans today. Embodying the drive and purpose so many student veterans demonstrate, she is proof that the definition of “purpose” is to use your strengths to unite others. Each fall, top chapter leaders from across the country travel to Washington, DC to participate in the SVA Leadership Institute. While Regional Summits focus on the mechanics of running a strong chapter, the Leadership Institute focuses on honing individual leadership skills through a facilitated curriculum and exposure to top leaders throughout the United States.

During this past year’s Leadership Institute, the Speaker of the House met with chapter leaders on the anniversary of September 11th to share what it was like to be serving in Congress on that tragic day. She poignantly shared, “leaders unify, not divide.” SVA takes this unified approach in all of our advocacy work. On March 3rd, SVA will testify in a joint hearing in-front of the U.S. House of Representatives and Senate Veterans Affairs Committees. We invite all of you to join us and welcome your feedback on what Congress needs to know as the top policy priorities of student veterans.

This year, 2020 marks the 12th anniversary of the founding of Student Veterans of America. In the coming months, we’ll be launching a brand-new website featuring our new online Career Center, putting all of the relationships we’ve developed over the past decade, right in your pocket. More importantly, the site will function as your go-to for chapter resources including a chapter handbook, a totally rebuilt chapter directory, and a live map connecting you to chapters at a local, regional, and national level. Our goal is to put the power of this national network at your fingertips.

Back in 2010, I was a chapter leader at Florida State University; we called our group, “The Collegiate Veterans Association at FSU, a Student Veterans of America Chapter.” Many chapters have similar local names on their campuses developed over time. To truly build the strength of this national network, we’ll be encouraging chapters to voluntarily adopt a naming convention that demonstrates the unified national footprint. For example, CVA at Florida State would transition to Student Veterans of America at Florida State University. We are all Student Veterans of America. As “One SVA,” your ability to have a long-term impact is greatly bolstered by this national platform.

You now have access to consistent branding through an online toolkit. We encourage all chapters to use these logos and branding in all new materials; over time, this will help demonstrate the unity of the national network. Our team works for you, and we always welcome you to visit your national headquarters anytime you’re in Washington, DC. Your national headquarters is located just a few blocks from the White House. As a national network of over 1,500 chapters, with the support of a national headquarters, representing more than 1 million student veterans in higher education. We are: One SVA.

To some, NatCon may seem like the perfect way to end an impactful year. We start our year acclimating new student veterans to campus, then we attend a regional summit to develop strategies for running a more effective chapter; next is the Leadership Institute to hone individual leadership skills, and finally, NatCon. This continuum represents the experience over several years while in school. NatCon a great way to celebrate a productive year and to check-in before spring semester, but it’s really just the beginning.

Remember the Presidents of Harvard, the University of Chicago, and others who said veterans weren’t a fit for the classroom back in 1944? Well in 1948, just four years after their original opposition, there was widespread retraction, with Harvard’s president stating, “for seriousness, perceptiveness, steadiness, and all other undergraduate virtues," the veterans of World War II were "the best in Harvard's history.” You’ve heard me use the term, “the best of a generation.” In our nation’s history, educated veterans have always been the key to solving whatever problems our nation faces, and this is the legacy you carry.

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