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bell boeing v-22 osprey (aircraft model)

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V 22 Osprey - Half Plane Half Helicopter

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The V-22 Osprey is a joint service multirole combat aircraft utilizing tiltrotor technology to combine the vertical performance of a helicopter with the speed and range of a fixed-wing aircraft. With its rotors in vertical position, it can take off, land and hover like a helicopter.

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The literature shows that a gap exists in research regarding veterans who transition from the military into higher education.  The federal government has provided our current veterans with the ability to obtain a college degree at no cost through use of the G.I. Bill ©.  This opportunity has enticed thousands of veterans to transition directly from the military into the college environment.  Transitioning from the military culture into the culture of higher education can create a culture clash for student veterans.  In addition to the challenge of dealing with cultural differences, the current literature documents the high likelihood of recent combat veterans to suffer from psychosocial disorders. Adding cultural challenges to psychosocial challenges creates a need of veteran-specific support from colleges and universities.  The literature shows that there is little veteran-specific support provided on campus and what supports do exist are not standardized.  Literature in business and education suggest that mentorship can play a role in supporting this transition and in responding to mental health challenges. This research is aimed at expanding the existing research on student veteran mentorship programs.  The research will identify the positive and negative impacts of mentorship on the transition of veterans into higher education and will support Veteran Services at colleges and universities.

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-    Very little literature exists which discusses the student veteran in Higher Education. Of the literature that exists, the majority focuses on resources which should be provided to these veterans.
-    The most significant gap is in research of the transition from the military to the college environment.
- The only literature which discusses mentorship with respect to the veteran transition is currently in doctoral dissertations.

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1. How does mentorship affect the transition of student veterans from the military environment into college?

2. How does the academic performance of student veterans participating in mentorship programs compare to student veterans not participating in mentorship programs?

3. Which form of student veteran mentorship is most effective (peer-to peer or faculty/staff-to-student)?

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01 March 2018
EDUC 815

Biography.
Daniel Smith is the Director of Veteran Services at Clarion University of Pennsylvania (CUP).  Mr. Smith serves as the advocate and a mentor for student veterans on campus. Mr. Smith is a retired Marine Corps Officer and has a passion to serve the military and veteran communities.  In addition to pursuing a doctorate in education from Drexel University, Mr. Smith earned a master’s degree in education from Saint Joseph University, a master’s degree in management from the United States Naval Postgraduate School, and a bachelor’s degree in history from the United States Naval Academy.

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Transitions in an of themselves are very difficult.  The transition from military to civilian life is more difficult. The transition from military to college takes it to another level. Not only are these non-traditional students, but they also come with a lot of baggage (physical and psychological disabilities).  These challenges make the transition more difficult.

One thing that I believe will help with the transition is mentorship.  Mentorship will help these Student Veterans to realize that they are not alone, and will give them a safe person to go to.

I think that by looking at the affect of mentorship on the transition from military to higher education, I can identify a key piece to Student Veteran Success. I will also inform my own work as the Director of Veteran Services at a University.

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Student Veteran is someone who is currently serving or has served in the Armed Forces (Army, Navy, Air Force, Marine Corps, or Coast Guard) on either Active Duty, Reserve, or National Guard.
A Student Veteran has served and is no enrolled, either full- or part-time, in a college or university.

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The next steps for this research are:
1. Conduct complete Literature Review to understand what information on, and around, this topic exists.
2. After the Literature Review is complete, my research topic will be refined.
3. Next, I will conduct research leveraging willing Universities and Student Veterans. I will be looking for Universities with existing Mentorship Programs for Veterans. And I will focus the Student Veterans on recent combat veterans (since 9/11/2001).
Upon completion of my research, I will compile the data and communicate my results via the dissertation process.

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This information will be useful to colleges and universities to enable them to better support student veterans.  This study will show them the value in expanding Veteran Student Services, specifically in establishing mentorship programs for them.  This research can then be further expanded to evaluate the impact of growing mentorship programs for all under-served student populations.

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Higher education is facing a steady decline in enrollment.  Colleges and universities also have a high turnover rate, meaning low retention of students.  In order to offset declining enrollments, colleges and universities must do more to retain the students that they already have enrolled.  Veterans have a lower retention rate than traditional students, but have many of the tools necessary to succeed.  By focusing on retaining these students, colleges and universities can have a positive impact on their bottom line and can develop a model which may be transferred to improve the retention of other Non-Traditional students.

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Affect of Mentorship on Veteran Transition from Military Environment to College

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Affect of Mentorship on Veteran Transition from Military Environment to College