Andy Hibel 0:03
Welcome to the HigherEdJobs podcast. I'm Andy Hibel, the chief operating officer and one of the co-founders of HigherEdJobs.

Kelly Cherwin 0:09
And I'm Kelly Cherwin, the director of editorial strategy.

Andy Hibel 0:12
HigherEdMilitary is HigherEdJobs's way of connecting with the military-connected community here in academia. Today, what we're doing is a little bit different this is actually the one time of year that we get podcast out of the studio for HigherEdJobs. So this will go out to about 300,000 people in our newsletter, and we're going to be recording it. You all are blessed with the opportunity every day to have real conversations with these student veterans. Your entire campus may interact with these students, but have they really had a conversation with a student veteran, not just how's your day or thank you for your service, but sat down, heard their stories. So what we're hoping to do here is hear their stories from their perspectives, their experiences, and encourage folks who work at colleges and universities to do the same on their campus. I think they will be better for having that conversation.

Kelly Cherwin 1:05
Today, we're going to be talking about that theme. Have you talked to a student veteran on campus? So typically when we do our podcast, I introduce the guests, but today I'm going to go around and have each of our panelists introduce themselves. So, Justin, I'm going to start with you. Can you explain a little bit about your military background and your educational background and kind of what brought you to today?

Justin Harms 1:24
Hi, my name is Justin Harms. I was in the U.S. Navy from 2005 to 2009. I served in three overseas deployments. I was a ABF flight deck fuelie so I fueled airplanes and pretty much took care of all the fuel. And pretty much it doesn't come on clean. You have to clean it when it comes on in the below deck. So I started off in below decks for about a year, got hazed enough to where -- I mean, I like seeing the sun. So I went up to the flight deck and I was there for three years and loved every minute of it. It was a fast-paced environment and that's what I thrive on, you know, It was really good. I still kind of have that fast-paced environment and me the training. So yeah, it was a really great experience. I met a lot of great people, just like my colleagues here, and it's really great to talk to you guys about higher education jobs because a lot of veterans, they don't know about this. But anyways, I'll give it over to you.

Kelly Cherwin 2:15
Tell a bit about your student status.

Justin Harms 2:17
Right now, I'm in my last year at UNLV for business marketing. I decided to go into marketing because I just I can't get my thoughts out fast enough. So you guys probably tell I'm a little nervous. So, you know, I've never spoken with this many people before or been on a podcast. But yeah, I mean, business marketing right now, you know, this is my last semester. I'm doing great. When I started this journey in 2018, I didn't think I would ever do this. I'm 38 years old, so I started when I was 34, but then I got my associate's in 2020 and then COVID hit and I went over to, you know, the because I was at Sears and went over to know and I couldn't find anything with COVID. I mean, I couldn't call nobody or talk. So I finally got back in in June 2021. And now I'm almost at the last stretch, I guess you could say. So it's awesome. I'm super excited for the journey that's coming ahead.

Teresa Masters 3:17
Good morning. My name is Teresa Masters. I've lived here in Henderson for about 25 years. My husband and I came here in 2000 with our four kids. I am a military widow. I lost my husband about 13 years ago. So I've basically been you know, my kids were already older by then, except for my youngest. And so I've just been for the last 13 years trying to get them all through school and through college and everything. And so this last fall, I decided to go ahead and try for my second degree because I'd got mine back in 1986. So I'm enjoying going to UNLV VA office has been really helpful there to me, and so now I am pursuing an interdisciplinary degree in anthropology and sociology, which are two things that I was always interested in, but I was never able to pursue because I have a business degree and a marketing degree and I work full time. I manage an interior design firm, so it's a busy life, but I'm really enjoying being back at UNLV. It's nice.

Franklin La Rosa Diaz 4:23
Hi, my name is Franklin. I'm originally from Peru. I'm a U.S. Army veteran. I was a truck driver for about four years, stationed in Fort Hood, Texas, deployed to Kuwait, and I'm currently working for Mr. Ross Bryant. I'm one of the certification team leaders there, and pretty much my transition over from the military life to civilian life. It's been like very, very great. I didn't expect to just be that smooth because basically when I got out of the military, I really didn't know what to do. I didn't know what program to choose. So I always thought of myself like playing games and like computers and stuff like that. So I went that route. I'm studying computer science. This is my last semester. I got a job secure for after I graduate, which is great, and pretty much going to, you know, V was the best decision I ever taken, landed into the military and Veteran Service Center office was basically, I want to say probably destiny, because the moment I got there, Ross introduced himself, introduced me to the office, to the team. Being able to be around veterans was great for me because veterans, we have military bearing and when we separate from the military, we want to be around veterans. And it's true, sometimes it's hard to talk to other people, but you get used to it. You get to know other students what the civilian life is like. And it's been three years that I've been there in this office, working, mentoring veterans, helping them with their benefits, understanding how it's different for every veteran. There is transition. And I'm now like so excited that finally I'm almost done with my education career. Probably I'm going to go for a master's degree at some point before now. Just getting my bachelor's is my mission. Once I'm done with that, I'm going to start a new life basically, like getting the job I have secured just starting all over. But with the experience that I had, definitely it's going to be something really cool. I'm so excited. Again, I'm from Peru. I basically came to the United States in 2016. It's been like ten years I've been in the United States. It's been a hard transition coming from a different country as well. Education is way different than what I thought I was going to be. Definitely understanding that those words that are used in the education system, it's something that I wasn't used to. I had to ask so many questions, especially if you never been to school and you are from a different country trying to get people to talk to not just being military but also being an immigrant. It's way harder than anybody would think. However, I managed to join the military because I didn't know where to go. I didn't know what direction to go to. Now I'm out now. I'm basically going to UNLV, and it's been a great experience again.

LeRoy James Hudson III 7:18
Hello, everybody. My name is LeRoy James Hudson the third. I'm from Ohio, born and raised. There we go. I see big ten over here. So, I just want to say my journey is kind of long, lengthy. But 2008, I joined the military right out of high school. Three days after I graduated and I didn't know what I wanted to do. So I joined the Air Force and became came a security forces officer. I enjoyed it. I like being a cop. It was a good time. But life takes a turn. Things happen and I was asked to medically retire. And then 2018 was kind of tough. Didn't know what to do with my life. I was very off. My family were young. I have four kids at the time and I just didn't know what to do with life. So try working different jobs. Dead end jobs didn't see progression. And one thing I always knew, I always want to get back to my veteran community. That's my big goal in life. So when I went to UNLV or I went to the Rooney Training online trying to get my Chapter 31, I was accepted, thank God, after I took that test, it was amazing. They said, Hey, you should be a social worker. And I said, Well, what's a social worker? What can I do? How does that help empower the people in my community? And after taking the class, talking out, sitting down, meeting up with social workers at the VA, they guided me to UNLV. At the time when I joined, it was 2020. COVID kicked off and life was just again, barely having a job, trying to do school, trying to raise the kids, trying to coach the kids. It was a lot. So it's like, Oh, I don't know how to make this. I actually ended up meeting a guy named Andrew Ho who I got this crazy email from says, Hey, as a veteran, come out and come support this event. We're handing out food. People are less fortunate. And at the time I probably could have been one of those people getting that food. But I brought my family out and we just started volunteering and I've always looked back on it so from there, take my class at social work and got to Greenspun passed the classes. I hate math, by the way, so please, nobody asked no math questions out there. I barely made it through, but I passed. It was really cool. So I got a chance. From there I met a man named Dwayne Gordon who was in charge of the PAVE team, which I was like, Man, I know nothing about PAVE. I don't know what this mission is. I got an email three years ago, but then volunteered a few times and that was it. But he talked to me, actually got to know me and like with Ross, Dwayne, anybody in that office at UNLV, they want to know you, They want to help you, they want to guide you. And sometimes some of the stuff they're doing out there might be a little left field. You may be like, Hey, I don't know if I can do this or I don't know if I can even have the bandwidth to achieve it. But they're always backing you. So that was a cool thing. And then when I joined the PAVE team, I was given the position for a practicum site, So I was able to get my volunteer hours and my school hours in at the campus. I met a team leader named Jace and this woman, man, she saw something in me. I didn't see it myself. She definitely put me in the right positions to be on the community because she saw I was very involved, very caring, charismatic, and she kind of helped to guide me and put me in places. And through that time, through that trivia of going to school, learning how to do this, learning how to pass the classes, have a family, work on the paved team. And after that, last spring, I graduated my three five GPA from UNLV in social work. I was actually given a chance to go to the master's program for I was offered the master's. I offered this pretty cool job, which is helping out veterans in the community, which is basically paved just the civilian side of it through all that. That's kind of where, you know, be is to me. So I always try to get back and I love to answer all your questions and thank you very much for having the time.

Andy Hibel 11:03
What does PAVE stand for?

Leroy James Hudson III 11:06
Oh, PAVE stands for Peer Advisors for Veteran Education. It was founded actually in Michigan. I really don't like saying the word, but hey, I'm going to represent because you know what, you know what? I give you all grace because y'all are all good people, man.

Andy Hibel 11:20
Thank you all. That was fantastic hearing the stories. Theresa, we're going to start with you. Can you share how important institutional support has been for you as you pursue your degree, working full time and taking courses and how important the scholarship has been for you and your family? Maybe just share a little bit about what the Fry Scholarship is.

Theresa Masters 11:39
So the Fry Scholarship is available to survivors, you know, spouses, children of active duty service members that have died while on duty. And it could be, you know, while they were away at war, or it can also be a service-connected death. My husband, he was in Desert Storm, and they think that he got what was called a double hit lymphoma. He was a C-130 pilot and one of the first crew out there living like near the flight lines and exposed to a lot of the stuff out there. So that's where they think that he got this double hit lymphoma from. So it can be a service-connected disability as well. So we were eligible for the my children and I for the Fry Scholarship and I had when my husband passed away, my oldest had already graduated from UNLV, but my second son was a senior at USC and my daughter was a sophomore at Duke. And then I had a 12 year old. And so the Fry Scholarship was so beneficial to us because Stan was only 50 and he had retired at 20 years. He had gone to the Air Force Academy and then he had given 20 years as a pilot and he had retired and he missed the military so much that he went back in and he became a drone pilot here at Creech. So he was only 50 and it was a very fast disease. And obviously we had saved and everything, but we had two kids in college and, you know, we just never anticipated that I was going to have to do it alone. So the scholarship was so beneficial and that it helped my second son, Ty, get through college. And unfortunately, the week Stan passed away, my son was diagnosed with a brain tumor. And so after he passed away, we had to go to UCLA and do chemo and surgery and all of that. But I'm still proud of Ty because after he got through all of that, he went on and took his LSAT and he graduated from Boyd Law School with the help of this Fry scholarship. This is what paid for.

And so now he is an attorney here in Las Vegas and he's doing really well. My daughter Drew, who was at Duke, this helped her finish her degree. She's a biomedical engineer. And then she was able to go to Europe. She worked at NASA for a year, and then she was able to go to Europe and finish her master's degree there in aeronautical engineering. So, you know, it helped her complete that getting to her professional life. She's in San Francisco working for Abbott Laboratories and doing really well. And then my youngest, who was 12, he went to UNLV graduated and now Ross is is helping us guide us. He's going to go and try to get his master's in family therapy. So the Fry Scholarship has helped us with of that. And then now it is helping me return to school because I wouldn't be able to without that. It's been so helpful. I would not have been able to get the kids to where they are without it. So it's really, really been beneficial to our family.

Kelly Cherwin 15:10
Thank you, Theresa, for sharing your story and what a difference the Fry Scholarship has made. I'm going to turn it over to LeRoy now. I know you mentioned the PAVE program, so can you explain a bit more what the peer to peer mentorship program, what a difference has made? And and for those people in the room here and listening on the podcast, do you have suggestions on how institutions can implement a program like this?

LeRoy James Hudson III 15:32
Yes, I would love to answer that. So PAVE again is Peer Advisors for Veterans in Education. And it's for those first term students who it could be a family, it could be a veteran coming to school. It's that first semester. They just don't know what's going on because like it's a big change, the big transition from someone who's never been to college or some they're going back to college with that support system, that buddy system that helps that person empower them to get where they need to be. It can be like, for instance, I'm really bad at math. There's free tutoring on campus at this location and building three. I'll meet you there. I'll take you there. Hey, do you mind if we grab some coffee and I can kind of find out what makes things good for you, what's feasible for you. And then it could be something as little as housing assistance. Like this past week, we had a veteran who had an issue arise. And, you know, I'm very thankful we were able to handle that. So that veteran didn't end up homeless. You know, we have the resources, Ross and Dwayne, to reach out to help these individuals and not just that food insecurity. Food insecurity is a huge thing. Like I know we have food banks, at UNLV, but at the same time it's just not enough. And a lot of these, I'll say younger or young minded, maybe the first time being away, your first time not being the military, having that little bit of cushion, they just don't know. So my job and along with my team is to make sure that person has that net and to make it better for the other schools. I would say if you guys could get a PAVE team, reach out to Michigan, reach out to UNLV we'd be more than welcome to kind of help guide you in starting this. Because I know, like logistics wise, it might cost money, but at the very end of the day, I would say it helps those people because it's just you just never know. And the peer to peer support, it's just a good thing to have. My first year, like I said in college, I was lost in the sauce and I just didn't know what to do So I think that hits everything.

Kelly Cherwin 17:34
Thank you. Looking for more conversations in higher ed? We invite you to join the HigherEdMilitary community as we discuss issues, best practices, news and general, trends affecting our institutions and the HigherEdMilitary affiliated community inspired by the deep commitment to service that veterans and military-connected faculty, staff and leaders have towards the academic community. We at HigherEdJobs established HigherEdMilitary as a resource for both original and curated news and information, as well as job opportunities from colleges and universities actively recruiting military-connected professionals. Visit us at HigherEdMilitary.com, on Facebook and LinkedIn.

Andy Hibel 18:07
Justin, what's the one thing you would encourage encourage institutions to change about the military-affiliated student process?

Justin Harms 18:16
I would say integration and support, just like PAVE just talked about. When I got out of the military, I did not go on to college right away. I waited and waited and waited and all of a sudden it just kind of flew over my head until one day I woke up and I said, I'm going to do this. And we're try it out. I'm currently have disabilities through the military, so I am on chapter 31, which is VOC Rehab. You guys are familiar with that. It's basically if you have over ten or 20% disability, you can get approved for more college and you can get your master's and stuff like that. However, integration and support is what we do at UNLV. And I don't I mean, I went to CSN starting off for my two years associate and it was just three people that really didn't have time for me to ask questions at all. I mean, I would call in and speak to them and I would have to come up with these questions on my own. And it was one step in front of the other. And sometimes that step I couldn't even see it. So it's it's really hard knowing now what I know now. Being at UNLV, it was really hard back then to find a path for myself because a lot of veterans, they they just quit, they give up. And it's a it's kind of emotional. I mean, now that I'm at this moment, I look back and it was a very, really good journey that I can share having the support of my family. I have two kids right now, a five year old, a ten year old and my wife. We've been together for 15 years, so a lot of people don't have that support that everybody needs. I mean, not just military people may go back to the question. I'm getting off topic. So, you know, the I just started in the office about four months ago and he's been with us for around or with him for about three years. I would say. So he taught me what to do, which is really cool having him up here. But we answer phone calls every day and any veteran that comes in the office, all of us, all four of us that are in there, we turn our head and we say, Hello, how you doing? Like right away. So they feel integrated to us. I mean, we're working on our computer, we're talking on the phone, and we still say hi and we'll be with you and you know, in a second. And I've never really been to any of schools. I know I don't know anything but what I've experienced. And I got to say, like when PAVE comes over, we're right next to them. They they have the support system that they always bring us over and they invite to everybody they introduce we introduce students to PAVE, they students to us and we we take care of everything. And our big Ross, the boss here, he he's great. He talks to you forever and he makes sure that you have what you need to have. It's just really it's about for a human nature. It's about support and the integration of having a way to step forward. Because a lot of veterans, they'll call in and they'll talk to me and it's the next step. What's the next step? That's all they want to know. What do I need to do next? What I need next after that? And then all of a sudden I can pass my classes because now I have the steps that got me there. So having the support that we give our students is very good because, you know, college is not easy for most people. I mean, I'm not good at math either, but I first math class and I was great at it. So yeah, but anyways, college is not for everyone and it takes time and devotion, especially with family and kids. But I always tell people, we're here for you. Anything you need, you can call us back any time. And some people call back right away. But taking the first steps you need to get there is what I would probably say is the most important for me in my college career, because I did it myself at first. And then I got integrated at the college when I first went to UNLV in 2021. And I they had an office so I could just go to the office and talk to these guys. But I think I've talked to him before. I'm not going to lie. And he was great. They they asked me. I stayed on the phone with me for at least 20 minutes discussing what I needed and how to do it. And there's ten steps right there. Like, you know, it's kind of weird to me how we don't know what other people like you think you know everything, but then all of a sudden you talk to somebody else, Oh, well, that's a great idea. And that propels you forward. So but also back to the question. We I believe, Ross, those are we were paper driven, I think about five years ago. They was all files and going through VA 1800 students a semester, having that many files, you'd have to take it out. And now it's all in the computer, which I do not want to do files, that is for sure. Yeah, but it the integration, they're starting to integrate with that at UNLV, with the computers and certain systems that actually help veterans faster and get them the information they need quicker.

However, having a support system like UNLV does is I would and PAVE I would definitely take something from that. And I didn't know Michigan started PAVE, but I really appreciate it because it's helped me out a lot.

Kelly Cherwin 23:19
Thanks, Justin.

I see a theme of how necessary integration and support is, so I want to turn it over to Franklin now and ask. I know you said you had an easy transition, which is fantastic. So can you give some examples of what staff and faculty have done for you to make the transition easier?

Franklin 23:36
Yeah. So basically when I first separated again, I got to the office, talked to Mr. Ross Bryant. All I knew was about post-9-11 benefits, which is basically what you usually get once you finish one contract at least three years. And I was going for it. I was like, You know what? I'm going to use this benefits. This is what I have. And Mr. Ross Bryant was like, you know, you know, this is very famous because we process a lot of the students benefits here. But also basically when I get to meet the team and I see the diversity, basically there's chapter 35 benefits for dependents, Fry scholarship, chapter 31 students, and basically this whole family of veterans, family and dependents using benefits. So getting to know that was something that I didn't even care of. All I knew was post-9-11. I have some service connected disabilities, so I started going to school using my post-9-11 benefits, not knowing that I could have use more when I found out about Chapter 31 benefits. The same with Justin. Probably he heard of when he got first to you know UNLV it was the same. I use my post-9-11 benefits get to know the chapter benefits and yes it was basically much better for me because now not only I can get my bachelor's, but also my master's, because once I'm done with my Chapter 31 benefits, I can use my post-9-11 for my master's degree and I've been working in the office for three years getting to see veterans that they've been in my position where they're like, I don't know what to do. I have these benefits, but what's next? What do I do? How can I get my my major? Like, what should I do? Where should I start? And us taking the time explaining to them, you know, what first, you know, like Justin was saying, we definitely are like always trying to get this veterans to to not just, Yes, you come for this question, but let me tell you what we do. Let me tell you what we can do for you to help you and to be like basically your buddy buddy, like in the military. And that's why we have the PAVE office as well. And for students who probably they haven't been in school for a long time, but their military as well, we have this our veterans program that basically they help our students with getting their foot in to school because maybe it's been five, six, ten years. They haven't seen math. So they provide the services and we try to spread the word for the veterans to help them pursue their career. Also communicating, basically, let's say I've been going to classes, I'm a computer science student and I've met a lot of veterans in classes, maybe National Guard like National Guard members. They have they have a lot of like things going on over the weekend. So I remember they asked me, you're a veteran, right? I'm like, yes. And they were like, Do you know if I can talk to the professor and tell them that I have something going on? I'm like, of course, 100% because professors are there to help students out. And yes, sometimes there are deadlines and stuff like that. But if you talk to the professors, you talk to the faculty, they will do their best to help you out. And the same with our office. We will try to get you where you want to be and we'll try to give you as much information we can so you can succeed in your career.

Kelly Cherwin 26:58
Thank you, Franklin. That kind of goes well into my next question. I know for those of us...

Mike Walker 27:04
Thanks for joining us for the first half of our conversation from NASPA. Join us next time for the conclusion of our program. If you have any questions or comments, please email us at podcast at HigherEdJobs.com or message us on X @higheredcareers. We look forward to talking soon.