Note: The article content below is from our newsletter archives.
Beyond Transition Assistance Program (TAP): The Need for Centers for Military & Veteran Reintegration (CMVR).
Every year 200,000 military service members embark upon the transition from active military duty to civilian life.
For many this is a difficult process—not just a vocational change, but a multi-faceted and monumental life change. Many of our veteran heroes return home requiring unique support to ensure they successfully adapt to civilian life. However, veterans report the widespread prevalence of problems in social functioning, including participating in community activities, relating to spouses, and keeping a job. Symptoms of the reintegration problem are veteran incarceration, and homelessness and suicide rates twice as high as those among the public.
The process for a service member to reintegrate as a civilian is complex, and riddled with potential difficulties. These difficulties traditionally occur upon separation from military life and during a veteran’s initial transition into the civilian population. There are numerous reintegration challenges veteran service members face when they return home that are unresolved with the current system. Most communities across America lack a formal reintegration process which complicates the veteran’s return home.
In a November 2015 study, more than 8,500 Veterans, active-duty Servicemembers, National Guard and Reserve members, and military dependents identified their most significant transition challenges:
• 60% Navigating VA programs, benefits, and services.
• 55% Finding a job.
• 41% Adjusting to civilian culture.
• 40% Addressing financial challenges.
• 39% Applying military-learned skills to civilian life.
Source: The Military to Civilian Transition 2018 - A Review of Historical, Current, and Future Trends – US Department of Veterans Affairs
The transition from military to civilian life can be hard.
A Pew Research Center study states that 26% of veteran respondents found shifting to civilian life to be very difficult or somewhat difficult; that percentage jumped to 48% for veterans who served after 9/11.
And even though veterans have access to plenty of resources to help them navigate their post-military careers, most of the local resources work in silos and rarely integrate their services to provide 360-degree support. The result is a mismanaged reintegration fretted with countless missteps.
Although the military’s Transition Assistance Program (TAP) is mandatory, it does not address reintegration. Thus, the need exists for an off-base, community-led, reintegration center to formally address reintegration issues at their root cause and prepare transitioning and former military members for community reentry as called for in the Navy SEAL Chief Petty Officer William "Bill" Mulder (Ret.) Transition Improvement Act of 2021 (H.R. 2326).
The CMVR initiative headed by National Veterans Transition Services, Inc.(NVTSI) aka REBOOT, seeks to integrate local resources by working with existing organizations in the community to reintegrate veterans back into the local civilian population starting with an evidence-based reverse-boot camp -the REBOOT Workshop.
This will enable local communities to orchestrate resources, coordinate training with local educational institutions, engage employers, and build viable local economies through small business development. Most importantly, it will help veterans and their families successfully reintegrate into a new life of their choosing by addressing reintegration issues versus reacting to them.
Former Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Chairman’s Office of Reintegration: Veterans / Families / Communities, Vice Admiral Mike Mullens(Ret) said it best in September 2015:
“As a nation, we cannot meet our full potential in reintegrating veterans and their families back into civilian society unless the military, government, non-profits, veteran-serving organizations, and private partners collaborate around a mutual agenda and partner to address the challenges veterans face in reintegration.”
The point of contact for more information is Mr. Maurice D. Wilson, MCPO, USN(Ret) President/Executive Director, who can be reached at 619-822-2604, or via email at maurice@nvtsi.org.
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