Federal Agencies Learn Best Hiring Practices for Wounded Warriors

Posted on February 23, 2011 by chad.holmes

Army Warrior Transition Command logo“Hire Wounded Warriors!”  That is the message federal employers are hearing today from The Army Wounded Warrior Program (AW2) and the other Services Wounded Warrior programs. AW2 is hosting the 2011 Wounded Warrior Federal Employment Conference  February 23 and 24. 

 This conference is educating agency human resource managers, Equal Employment Opportunity disability program managers, and Veterans employment program managers about the resources available to place qualified wounded warriors and Veterans in open positions.  

Attendees also learn about the variety of injuries facing today’s military personnel and the resources available to support and accommodate Veterans once they begin working, and explore emerging trends in disability employment from organizations such as the National Organization on Disability. 

Among the scheduled speakers for the event are: 

Dr. Clifford Stanley, Under Secretary of Defense for Personnel and Readiness; 

 Juan M. Garcia, III, Assistant Secretary of the Navy for Manpower and Reserve Affairs; 

Retired Army Capt. Alvin Shell, a wounded veteran who is now a federal employee; 

Patrick Brick from the Office of Wounded Warrior Care and Transition Policy will explain Operation Warfighter during the second day of the conference. 

“Wounded, ill and injured Service members across the Armed Forces are highly-trained, skilled professionals and want to continue contributing to our society as productive citizens after they separate from the military,” said Brig. Gen. Darryl Williams, commander of the Warrior Transition Command, which oversees the Army’s Warrior Care and Transition Program. 

“The leadership, discipline, teamwork and technical skills they developed during their service translate well to positions throughout the federal workforce, and we hope this conference will be a catalyst to increase employment of wounded veterans by federal agencies,” said BG Williams. 

Attendees are learning about special federal hiring authorities for Veterans and people with disabilities, programs to give Veterans practical work experience, and resources to provide physical accommodations to their work site.  Presenters will also discuss how hiring wounded warriors supports President Obama’s Executive Orders (EOs) related to the federal employment of wounded warriors, including: 

§  EO 13518: Employment of Veterans in the Federal Government 

§  EO 13548: Increasing Federal Employment of Individuals with Disabilities  

According to Department of Labor statistics, the cost to Department of Defense for unemployment compensation for wounded warriors was $87M last year.  

Retired Army Captain Alvin Shell now brings his leadership, discipline and skills to the federal workforce.

“I received a 100% disability rating from the VA (Department of Veterans Affairs),” said Capt. Shell, who now serves in a management position at the Department of Homeland Security.  Capt. Shell sustained severe burns during his service in Iraq, and he battles chronic pain and limited range of motion in his right hand.  “I could sit home and draw my pension, but that isn’t how I was built — I have a lot more to offer my country.”  Capt. Shell will speak at the event to share his experience transitioning from the military to the federal workforce. 

“These men and women have given more than any nation should ever ask of her sons and daughters and their families,” said John R. Campbell, Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for Wounded Warrior Care and Transition Policy, “but we have made that ask, and we now have a solemn obligation to remind America that some deficits don’t have zeros on the end of them, and others can never be fully repaid … but our federal workforce should be the first in line to try.” 

Wounded warriors located in the National Capital Region who are looking for employment will participate in a networking session with federal officials on Thursday, February 24.

Posted in Community Support, Operation Warfighter, Transition Assistance, Veteran Employment, WWCTP, Wounded Warrior Employment, Wounded Warriors | Leave a comment

Conference helps DoD and VA close disability benefits gap

Posted on February 22, 2011 by chad.holmes
Robert Gains, president of the Navy Physical Evaluation Board (left) and Bill Wilson, from the Veterans Benefits Administration Office of Disability Benefits, introduce attendees to the Integrated Disability Evaluation System.

Robert Gains, president of the Navy Physical Evaluation Board (left) and Bill Wilson, from the Veterans Benefits Administration Office of Disability Benefits, introduce attendees to the Integrated Disability Evaluation System.

Military and Veterans Affairs representatives from 36 locations gathered in Washington D.C. recently to learn how to work together to eliminate delays in Veteran’s disability benefits for medically-discharged Service members.

The attendees came from 33 locations that will be implementing a new Integrated Disability Evaluation System, or IDES, this spring and from three sites that will switch this summer.

The Military Services use the IDES to decide if Service members who are wounded, ill, or injured are still able to serve. If they are not, the IDES gives them disability ratings accepted by the Defense and Veterans Affairs Departments before they leave the Service. The Veterans Affairs disability rating and counseling help Service members understand the level of disability compensation and benefits that will be available to them after separation.

In this way, the IDES closes the benefits gap that transitioning Service members face under the existing disability evaluation process which requires them to complete the Military disability evaluation process and be scheduled for discharge before beginning the process with Veterans Affairs.  It can take as long as eight months after discharge for Service members to find out what veteran’s disability benefits they will qualify for under the existing system. Under IDES, the Service member’s liaison officer refers the case to Veterans Affairs as soon as the Service member enters the IDES, so a coordinator from Veterans Affairs can help the Service member file a Veteran’s disability claim at the start of the Military disability evaluation process and counsel the Service member throughout the process. This makes Veteran’s benefits available one month after discharge, the shortest time allowable under law.

The new process was tested in a pilot program at 27 locations nationwide. In thousands of surveys, participants of the integrated system consistently reported higher satisfaction with fairness, customer service, and the overall experience than did participants in the old system.

Nearly 300 Military and Veterans Affairs staff members from 36 IDES expansion locations learn how to work together to close the benefits gap for Service members discharged due to injuries or serious illnesses. Congressional staffers joined the audience as well. The IDES has received close oversight from a variety of committees.

Nearly 300 Military and Veterans Affairs staff members from 36 IDES expansion locations learn how to work together to close the benefits gap for Service members discharged due to injuries or serious illnesses. Congressional staffers joined the audience as well. The IDES has received close oversight from a variety of committees.

Based on the success of the pilot program, Defense and Veterans Affairs leaders ordered the integrated system be available to all Service members by October 2011. 

In December 2010 and January 2011, 28 locations made the transition to the IDES. Another 24 are scheduled to adopt the new system by March.  Military and Veterans Affairs staff from each site attended expansion conferences like the one held last week for the 33 locations that will transition this spring and the three that will transition this summer

At the expansion conferences, the Military and Veterans Affairs staff who will implement the IDES on the ground at an expansion location form into a team and begin establishing a working relationship. They work together, with the help of experts from both departments, to complete a comprehensive site assessment checklist. The checklist was developed and fine-tuned through two expansions of the pilot program, and subsequent implementations of the IDES. Experts provide training, and help the teams find solutions to any gaps or deficiencies they identify during the conference.  Throughout the process, senior officials from the departments of Defense and Veterans Affairs track the progress of every expansion location. No location gets the go-ahead to make the switch until everything is in place.

Posted in Disability Evaluation System, WWCTP | Leave a comment

African American History Month Highlights Wounded Warrior Pt. II

Posted on February 17, 2011 by kobylangley

This month, we bring you stories of African-American Wounded Warriors captured by the Department of Defense in honor of African American History Month. These are inspirational stories of overcoming adversity and challenges.

This week, we highlight former Specialist Danielle Green-Byrd(U.S. Army), who was originally profiled by Defense Media Activities as a part of their Wounded Warrior Diaries Series by Lt. Jennifer Cragg in January of 2009. 

Specialist Danielle Green-Byrd was a Women’s Basketball  star at the University of Notre Dame before joining the Army, and deploying to Iraq in 2004.  In May of 2004, shortly after returning from her wedding in the United States,  Specialist Greene-Byrd was manning a station in Baghdad, when her post was attacked by insurgents armed with rocket-propelled grenades. 

“I looked over at my left leg and saw my uniform busted open,” she said. “The initial hit, when I first went down, I thought that I was about to die in Iraq, on the rooftop, in the sand, in Iraq. To me, that was the hardest moment — to think that at 27 years old, I was about to die.” She said that at that moment she was “waiting to die.”

Specialist Danielle Greene-Byrd did not die, she was medevaced back to the United States, and recovered at Walter-Reed Army Medical Center.    It would be a long road to recovery, as she lost she arms in the attack, but never lost her faith. 

Her video diary story of triumph was captured by Lt. Cragg in her Wounded Warrior Diary series.

If there was any doubt that nothing could hold back Danielle Greene-Byrd, last year, she participated in the Adaptive Sports Foundation Skiing Clinic after finding them through the Disabled Sports USA and the Wounded Warrior Project.   

 Editors note:  Both Disabled Sports USA and Wounded Warrior Project, as well as other national, local and community based resources for recovering wounded warriors and their families are featured on the National Resource Directory for Wounded Warriors and their families. The National Resource Directory for wounded warriors and their families is a resource brought to you by the Office of Wounded Warrior Care and Transition Policy, in collaboration with the Department of Veterans Affairs.
Posted in Community Support, Military Families, National Resource Directory, Uncategorized, WWCTP, Warrior Transition Unit, Wounded Warriors | Leave a comment

Wife of wounded warrior now helps others as a Recovery Care Coordinator

Posted on February 16, 2011 by chad.holmes

Editor’s Note: This post is one in a series spotlighting Recovery Care Coordinators. Recovery Care Coordinators are trained to support the Recovery Coordination Program, which is overseen by the Office of Wounded Warrior Care and Transition Policy. 

Recovery Care Coordinator Annette Slaydon works with recovering Service members, their families and other members of the Recovery Team to develop and execute plans and goals that lead Service members and families through a smooth recovery, rehabilitation and reintegration.

Recovery Care Coordinator Annette Slaydon (left) works with recovering Service members, their families and other members of the Recovery Team to develop and execute plans and goals that lead Service members and families through a smooth recovery, rehabilitation and reintegration.

Annette Slaydon was working as a paralegal, helping victims of medical malpractice and clients with other personal injury claims while her husband, Christopher, was on his third deployment to Iraq as an Air Force Explosives Ordnance Disposal (EOD) technician—a member of the bomb squad.  On October 24, 2007, Christopher lost all his vision and his left arm when a bomb he was investigating exploded two feet from his face.  

“I suddenly had the feeling that what I was doing before was not going to suffice anymore,” Annette said. “It was actually more like a calling for me. Having been through the process, the ins and outs of being with someone who has been wounded in the Military, the benefits and all of that, I knew I wanted to do something to help our wounded, ill and injured.”   

A year-and-a-half later, in July of 2009, Annette completed a standardized training course overseen by the Office of Wounded Warrior Care and Transition Policy and became part of the first group of Recovery Care Coordinators. She and her husband, who medically retired from the Air Force in August 2009, returned to Luke Air Force Base in Glendale, Arizona, where Annette now manages the non-medical care of Active Duty, Guard and Reserve Service members throughout Arizona and New Mexico, including helping those Service members identify needs, set goals and access the resources required to heal.   

The Recovery Coordination Program (RCP) was established as a solution to the gaps in care management identified at Walter Reed Army Medical Center and other facilities in early 2007. Because Service members are often hospitalized far from home without traditional support networks, the Military Services offer a wide range of non-medical support services for their members and families. However, without someone to coordinate these support services, wounded warriors and their families were struggling to navigate a very complex bureaucracy. RCCs like Annette become experts on the support available and work with the medical staff to coordinate the programs and services each individual Service member requires for successful recovery, rehabilitation and reintegration.   

Having been through that process herself as the spouse of a wounded warrior, Annette feels she brings a unique personal perspective to her work.   

“They’re able to say, ‘You truly understand what we’re going through,’” she said. “I don’t know how many people I’ve called who have said, ‘Thank you. Thank you so much. Thank God you’re here.’ We’re here to take the burden off of them so they can focus on getting better.”   

Take the case of a Michigan National Guard member who was referred to Annette after he came to the Mayo Clinic in Scottsdale for treatment. Suffering from a degenerative condition that left him with physical and cognitive deficits, he had been living off credit cards for more than two years.   

“The first day I met with him he hung his head and cried. He said, ‘Where were you before? But I am so glad you are here now,’” Annette recounted.   

Now, since meeting with an RCC, this Service member’s debt is paid off and he has the funding and support he needs to continue his treatment and his recovery.   

Thanks to successes such as these, Annette said she has seen the program improve and earn the confidence of installation commanders and others.   

“There were some people who were hesitant at the beginning, but as soon as you help one of their Airmen, they really see the value of the program,” she said. “I think all of us wish we didn’t have any clients, but the simple fact is there are people who need us, and I think the sheer number of people we are servicing at one time speaks volumes about the value of the program.”  

Posted in Military Families, Recovery Care Coordinator, Recovery Coordination Program, Uncategorized, WWCTP, Wounded Warriors | Leave a comment

Wounded Warrior Gets Back in the Fight Thanks to Operation Warfighter

Posted on February 10, 2011 by kobylangley

In 2005, Captain Wes Knight’s life and career was forever changed by an explosively formed penetrator (EFP).  The explosion destroyed his right hand, and severed his right thumb.  After being medically evacuated to Walter Reed Army Medical Center from Iraq, he was assigned to the Army Warrior Transition Unit (WTU).  Although the WTU was not his beloved ”Dogfaced Soldier” command at 3rd Infantry Division after graduating from West Point, he knew it was his new home with a new mission – get better and get back in the fight. 

CPT Wes Knight, US Army, Iraq War Veteran and Operation Warfighter Success Story

But the new mission was harder than expected for Wes, and while recovering at Walter Reed, Wes’ spirits were challenged by surgery after surgery.  Ultimately, he began to believe that the life he once knew was gone forever, and that his new mission to get well was all he had to hold onto.  Another command seemed more and more unlikely.

As recovery progressed and the reality of his injury set in, fear and uncertainty became the controlling emotions “I was very scared,” Knight said.  His injury was not severe enough to force his retirement, but it was too severe for him to stay in the armor branch work for which he had trained.  So what was next?

 “My plan had always been to do five years’ service as an armor officer, then get out and do what people are supposed to do: get a job somewhere,” Knight said. The unexpected injury changed the timing of his plans and left him feeling lost. 

“I had no clue what my future held. I had been used to the Army telling me ‘This is your job, this is what you’re gonna do,’” he said. “Suddenly it’s ‘Now what do you want to do?’ and ‘What can you do?’ It’s very overwhelming.”

Captain Knight had been pondering these decisions through 18 months of recovery at Walter Reed when he was introduced to Patrick Brick from Operation Warfighter.

 In a short phone conversation, Brick explained the program and asked Knight what kind of work he thought he might enjoy. “I had absolutely no idea,” Knight said, “but I mentioned I had always wondered about military intelligence.”

 Within a few days, Brick had arranged for Captain Knight to interview with the intelligence team at Army G-2, the U.S. Army Office of the Deputy Chief of Staff for Intelligence. A few days after that, Knight was informed that Army G-2 had specially requested him as a branch-transfer to their office. The internship came as a sudden surprise, but Knight was honored and excited by the opportunity.

Captain Knight was given tasks that helped him develop new skills such as mastering computer programs and preparing reports. There were also assignments where he could provide valuable insight based on his combat experience in Iraq.  Most importantly, he felt a lot of encouragement and mentorship from the staff at G-2.

“People were always willing to break out the crayons and coloring books to explain what military intelligence was to a first lieutenant who really had no business to be at that level,” he said.  “I still can’t believe how many high-level people took the time to explain why a task was important and how it would impact the work there at Army G-2.”

 “Now, a few years later, I look back and I can feel proud that I helped make a difference, and I can see how much effort they made to help me learn,” he said.

 After six months, Captain Knight knew he wanted to stay in the Army and pursue a career in military intelligence.  Fear and uncertainty gave way to inspiration and a renewed commitment to accomplish his original mission – get better, and get back in the fight.

Captain Knight completed the Military Intelligence Captain’s Career course and received an assignment at Fort Meade, where he has been stationed for almost three years. He was recently promoted to company commander. He credits Operation Warfighter with his successful transition back to duty while assigned to the Army’s Warrior Transition Unit.

 “If you’d have told me one little phone call or email would change my life like this, I wouldn’t have believed it,” he said. “Operation Warfighter put me in touch with the right people and got me the right training for me to begin on the right path.”

This was one Dogface Soldier that would not lie down.  Commander Knight is back in the fight – mission accomplished.

 

 

Operation Warfighter is sponsored by the Office of Wounded Warrior Care and Transition Policy for recovering Service members.

Mr. Patrick Brick, of the Office of Wounded Warrior Care and Transition Policy has assisted in the administration of the program for the past two years, and has earned the distinction of becoming a critical component of the department’s goal to reduce the unemployment rate for transitioning wounded, ill, and injured service members.

To learn more about Operation Warfighter, please send an email to warriorcare@osd.mil, and ask for Patrick.  To learn how this, and other programs can fit into your comprehensive recovery care plan, contact your Service’s wounded warrior command, or to just share your own story.

Follow other stories of sucessful Army WTU transitions at http://www.army.mil/warriorcarenews/

Posted in Operation Warfighter, Veteran Employment, WWCTP, Warrior Transition Unit, Wounded Warrior Employment, Wounded Warriors | 1 Comment