Under a Memorandum of Understanding with the US Army, NOD is helping severely injured veterans to move forward on career paths—and documenting the approaches that work.
Watch the following video to hear these veterans' stories and learn what NOD is doing to help.
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Background:
The US Army Wounded Warrior (AW2) Program assists over 7,500 of the most severely injured soldiers and veterans of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan to adjust to their injuries and move on with their lives. Some AW2 soldiers return to active duty, but many more resume or enter civilian careers as veterans. Because civilian career development is a specialized activity, the Army asked NOD to demonstrate in three pilot sites how to help wounded warriors transition into careers.
Working in Texas, North Carolina, and Colorado, NOD Career Specialists are now helping hundreds of wounded warriors, and their families, explore career options, access education and training opportunities, and find jobs. In addition to helping veterans progress toward careers, a key objective is to make lessons learned more broadly known to the Army, the rest of the military, and service agencies.
Strategy:
The following are the key elements of the Wounded Warrior Careers demonstration program:
•Intensive Career Supports: NOD Career Specialists help veterans and their family members explore career options, including education and training, to ensure that veterans have every chance to become a successful member of society.
•Proactive and Prolonged Personal Engagement: NOD does what it takes to connect with veterans and families. We know every soldier on our caseload and reach out to them to help plan and attain economic self-sufficiency and career fulfillment.
•Evaluation and Best Practices: The demonstration collects data to learn what works best to ensure career progress for veterans and their families, and to make those lessons more broadly known.
•Family is the Unit Served: The AW2 program was designed by the Army to serve the family. NOD’s Career Specialists help veterans and their families meet their career goals so that the family unit can be strong and effective.
News:
# NC Funder Applauds NOD’s Wounded Warrior Careers Program on Memorial Day
CHARLOTTE, NC, May 30, 2011 — Mary Piepenbring, Vice President of The Duke Endowment, applauds NOD's program as "providing hope for hundreds of [veteran] families." Her comments appeared in the Memorial Day edition of the Charlotte Observer, as well as in the Department of Defense blog.
# Hiring America’s Best: Welcoming Returning Veterans
NEW YORK, NY, April 12, 2011 — America's Best is a newly released series of materials written to address the growing need for information and ideas that can help our nation's schools, training organizations, and workplaces make a welcoming, productive, and satisfying place for returning veterans and transitioning service members. These materials were created through a reconnaissance of employers and returning service members, performed in partnership with Give an Hour, a nonprofit organization that asks mental health professionals nationwide to donate an hour of their time each week to serve military personnel and their families.
# Disabled Veterans Carve a New Path
FAYETTEVILLE, NC, Feb 14, 2011 – Following an injury during deployment training, Army reservist Charmetri Wrice Bulluck gave up her dream of becoming a registered nurse. But with the support of NOD Career Specialist Dwayne Beason, Ms. Bullock is now completing coursework at Fayetteville State University, where she will graduate with honors this spring with a Master's in Social Work. Bulluck is one of over 200 veterans and their families who are benefitting from NOD’s Wounded Warrior Career program. "A lot of our veterans really don't know the system," said Beason, a retired Sergeant Major. "We help them cut through the red tape."
# For More News from NOD click headline or go to: http://nod.org/what_we_do/innovation_pilot_projects/wounded_warrior_careers_demonstration/
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