When women veterans return: The role of postsecondary education in transition in their civilian lives

Modeling Education Deserts for Veterans and Military Families in the Southern United States

“…Some scholars have explored the role of community colleges to meet needs of post-9/11 veterans, recommending streamlining programs to create veteran-friendly campuses (Persky and Oliver 2010). Other scholars bridge the learning environments of the military and the academy (Blaauw-Hara 2017) and the transition for women veterans (Albright et al 2019). Landscape patterns, however, for lack of access to where such opportunities exist have received little systematic attention, and there is a dearth of methodologies to shed light on systematic gaps in offerings at regional, state, or multistate scales, an important consideration for the mobility that characterizes veteran communities at certain life stages (Mortimer and Shanahan 2003;MacLean and Elder 2007).…”

Adult Learning and Development Goals for Female Veterans’ Career Transitions Amid Cultural Adaptation and Identity Formation

“…Female veterans are at an increased risk for homelessness and underemployment after experiencing military sexual trauma and associated mental health illnesses (Szelwach et al., 2011). Furthermore, the suicide rate among female veterans is growing significantly faster than the rate of suicide among civilian women (Albright et al., 2019). Female veterans who have mental health conditions and those who feel like their military service is misunderstood by others are more likely to be unemployed (Williams, Pavlish, Maliski, & Washington, 2018).…”

“…The researchers concluded education and vocational attainment is positively related to well‐being among veterans and their families. Postsecondary educational experiences can also improve job security for female veterans, which contributes to a successful transition to the civilian workforce (Albright et al., 2019). Additionally, higher levels of educational attainment positively affect veterans’ income (Szelwach et al., 2011).…”

“…Barring extenuating circumstances, including mental health issues and trauma, it takes about a year for veterans to adjust to civilian culture (Ahern et al., 2015). To facilitate successful transitions, adult education programs for female veterans should include certain characteristics to accommodate the unique needs of women who are separating from the military, including targeted gender‐specific programming in all‐female environments with considerations for child care options (Albright et al., 2019; Szelwach et al., 2011; Thomas, Haring, McDaniel, Fletcher, & Albright, 2017; Williams et al., 2018). To date, development of female‐specific veterans’ policies and programs has been slow and inadequate (Bulmer & Eichler, 2017).…”

Writing of Moral Injury and Mental Wellness: A Book Review of Fidelis, by Teresa Fazio

“…Of this time, Fazio writes about the work as something she loved and felt purpose doing. The complications of her deployment were not professional, rather they were a result of the myriad competing pressures she combatted serving as a woman in the Marine Corps, where only 4% of officers are women (Albright et al, 2019;Hoge & Castro, 2012). Working to command the respect of subordinates, colleagues, and supervisors, Fazio was hard on herself.…”