Department of Special Ops: Service Members, Veterans, and their Families (SMVF)

Overview 

This 6-8 course, 18-24 credit online Special Ops: Service Members, Veterans, and Their Families (SMVF) program provides training for individuals in the human services field, arming them with knowledge of relevant issues facing Service Members, Veterans, and their Families. With over 1.9 million U.S. Service members deployed since 2001 and an increased role for service providers in the civilian sector, there is a growing need for human services professionals who are well versed in SMVF issues and rehabilitation techniques. Providers should have competence in military culture and the physical and psychological effects of war with an emphasis on prevention, assessment, and intervention. This program employs a culturally responsive and strengths-based framework to build relationships and effectively engage and empower SMVF to find effective solutions to the specific issues they face.

Students will gain knowledge about service-related injuries, disabilities, and treatment including specialized knowledge about polytrauma, blast injury and other service related issues. Above all, you will gain an increased sensitivity to the barriers and special considerations for SMVF in the navigation process and understand how to employ a comprehensive roadmap to assist SMVF clients with enrollment in various care systems, as well as access to care and benefits. With all of the faculty having professional experience working with Veterans, this program provides students with real-world knowledge and skills to help them navigate the SMVF system. We also recognize the diverse needs for access to this learning and have designed the program to be effectively delivered online.

*Approved for funding through the GI Bill®

SMVF Faculty 

Nicholas Cioe, Ph.D.
Coordinator of SMVF Program 
Associate Professor of Rehabilitation Counseling 
Director of Rehabilitation Counseling 

Susan Scully-Hill, Ph.D. 
Associate Professor of School Counseling 
Director of School Counseling 

Lea Christo, MSW, LICSW, BCPA 
Professor of Practice in School Counseling

Lecturers 

Jennifer Baublitz, MA 
Mearlene Filkins, LICSW 
Nicole Robert, MA, CRC 
Gary Senecal, Ph.D. 
Justin Somers, MA, CAGS, CRC

Expected Program Outcomes

Although graduate coursework, it is accessible to individuals with and without previous graduate education. Those who have not served will distinguish themselves from other applicants applying to work with SMVF. Those who have served will gain important knowledge, skills, and attitudes to help SMVF. Many Veterans who already work with the SMVF population have expressed excitement about how the coursework will help them to be more effective with their SMVF clients.

Students completing the Special Ops: SMVF program will:

• Understand military culture to enable successful engagement with SMVF
• Understand the physical and psychological effects of war on SMVF and employ a developmental framework to understanding the experience of SMVF
• Have knowledge about service-related injuries, disabilities, and treatment including specialized knowledge about polytrauma
• Have a current understanding about blast injury
• Understand the functional limitations associated with service-related injuries, disabilities, and chronic illnesses and possess knowledge about health, wellness and prevention strategies aimed at minimizing residual health impairments, functional limitations and secondary disabilities (including the unique health care needs of women service members and Veterans)
• Gain an increased sensitivity in understanding barriers and special considerations for SMVF in the Navigation process and employ a comprehensive understanding of a roadmap to assist Veteran clients with enrollment in various care systems, as well as access to care and benefits.
• Understand important factors to consider and techniques to use when establishing a counseling relationship with SMVF
• Comprehend the Integrative Healthcare philosophy and be able to utilize this approach when involved in treatment planning
• Understand and apply the applicable theories and models of stress, trauma, and resilience.
• Consider the ongoing interplay of individual, family, community, sociocultural, and spiritual influences on risk and resilience.
• Understand the family life cycle and the research-informed family resilience framework for intervention and prevention to strengthen key family processes in overcoming adversity.
• Strengthen students’ inner abilities and practice strategies for overcoming life’s difficulties as self-reflective helping professionals.

Program Rationale

Since the United States military initiated its response to the September 11th, 2001 attack, over 1.9 million US military personnel have been deployed in 3 million tours of duty lasting more than 30 days (Institute of Medicine, 2010). These service members who have served in Operation Enduring Freedom (OEF) and Operation Freedom’s Sentinel (OFS) in Afghanistan, Operation Iraqi Freedom (OIF), Operation New Dawn (OND), and Operation Inherent Resolve (OIR) in Iraq constitute a new generation of veterans. The Veterans’ Administration reports that between 2002 and 2015, 1.9 million veterans who served in these wars became eligible for VA services but the total estimated number of Veteran’s leaving the military from 2003 – 2019 is an estimated 4.3 million (the difference based on those who qualify for VA services having been discharged from the military in good standing) (Zogas, 2017).

The service members for the post-9/11 wars involve a different type of member than military combats of the past. The current conflicts involve a larger number of reservists than past combats have seen. It is estimated that, at any one point in time, 30-50% of military personnel deployed are reservists (Tanielian & Jaycox, 2008). Compared to active personnel, reservists are more likely to be older, married with children, and have been employed prior to deployment. In addition, compared to past wars, more females are serving in combat areas; approximately 14% of the total military force in 2007 was women (Office of the Under Secretary of Defense for Personnel and Readiness, 2007).

U.S. Military personnel return with complex physical, psychological and emotional trauma. Partly because of advances in medical treatment and protective equipment, the survival rate for military personnel injured in OIF/OEF is over 90% (Hyer, 2006). However, many military personnel who are injured experience serious and severe injuries that result in complex challenges when transitioning to veteran status after military service is completed. The “signature injury” for these post-9/11 wars has been Polytrauma – injuries that occur to the brain as well as other body parts or systems resulting in physical, cognitive, psychological, or psychosocial impairments and functional disability (Veterans Health Administration, 2005). The resulting “polytraumatic” injuries require significant coordination of care in the areas of physical, occupational, psycho-social and psychiatric rehabilitation (Veterans Health Administration, 2005).

Frain, Bishop and Bethel (2010) indicate that the number of military personnel experiencing disabilities in the present military conflicts is the largest in 30 years and that these numbers will continue to increase even after military action has ended. The most common and prevalent injuries of military personnel are Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI), Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), Major Depression, and Amputations (Veterans Health Administration, 2005; Hyer, 2006; Fischer, 2008; Tanielian & Jaycox, 2008; Seal, Bertenthal, Miner, Sen, & Marmer, 2007). In the general population, the unemployment rate for people with disabilities is higher than for people without disabilities. This is also true of military personnel with disabilities who tend to experience higher rates of unemployment compared to military personnel without disabilities. The presence of a disability is an additional challenge for veterans and service providers assisting veterans in their transition from military service (Bureau of Labor Statistics, 2006). Furthermore, homelessness is a significant problem for veterans with estimates citing 76,000 veterans were homeless on any given night in 2009 with about 136,000 veterans having spent at least one night in a shelter during that same year (Tiron, 2011).

Veterans of the post-9/11 wars reported adjustment difficulties at rates between 61% - 68% (Kintzle, Rasheed & Castro, 2016). The rates are much higher than the 30% estimate of OEF/OIF/OND Veterans diagnosed with PTSD (Cifu et al., 2013). The VA made policy changes in 2008 to streamline the process for new Veterans to enroll in the system (Public Law 110-181). The law establishes that Veterans can enroll in the VA and immediately begin receiving care in the first five years after leaving the military without first completing the bureaucratic process of getting a combat-related disability officially recognized. This policy change made it possible for “transitioning” veterans to receive supportive services (including group and individual counseling, and educational support) without the need for these services to be straightforwardly linked to medical diagnoses (Zogas, 2017).

In recent years, the VA has faced increasing concerns about Veterans' access to care and the quality of care delivered. In response to these concerns, the Veterans Access, Choice, and Accountability Act of 2014 (“Veterans Choice Act”) was enacted in August 2014. The law attempted to address access issues by expanding the criteria through which Veterans can seek care from civilian providers (Farmer, Hosek, & Adamson, 2016). Many Veterans find private providers and non-profits that offer confidential, bureaucracy-free access to timely mental health services a positive and desirable alternative to VA processes (VA Center for Innovation and the Public Policy Lab, 2016).

Assumption University, Rehabilitation Counseling, and Veterans

Assumption University, rooted in the Catholic intellectual tradition, strives to form graduates known for critical intelligence, thoughtful citizenship, and compassionate service. In addition to its New England Association of Schools and Colleges (NEASC) accreditation, it regularly receives recognition and accolades for value and academic quality. In addition to its undergraduate liberal arts degree programs, Assumption University also offers 11 graduate programs including several in the Human Services and Rehabilitation Studies (HSRS) department.

The Rehabilitation Counseling program, housed within the HSRS Department, is a nationally ranked, CACREP accredited master’s degree program. It offers both a campus and online program preparing individuals for the national Certified Rehabilitation Counselor (CRC) credential. The HSRS department takes an interdisciplinary and collaborative approach when evaluating service delivery needs and developing culturally responsive programs to meet those needs. Working with personnel from the Health Advocacy program, scholars developed the Resiliency in the Helping Professions certificate program to support career longevity in the rehabilitation and school counseling, education and mental health fields. Working with personnel from the Special Education department, scholars developed a Transition Specialist certificate program to provide training to individuals interested in helping students with disabilities explore and develop career identities as well as develop the skills needed to successfully transition into post-secondary education, training, and employment after completing high school.

Rehabilitation Counseling professionals are uniquely prepared, trained, and qualified to provide services aimed at mitigating and accommodating limitations associated with disability. Rehabilitation Services and Rehabilitation Counseling as professions stemmed from the 1918 Soldier’s Rehabilitation Act where breakthrough legislation was designed to mandate programs to rehabilitate Veterans with disabilities. Rehabilitation professions are inherently linked to the service of Veterans again substantiating the appropriateness of rehabilitation training programs to continue this significant work. A review of the literature in the area of veterans issues and a national search of educational programs providing education and training to students interested in serving veterans and military personnel revealed the existence of relatively few programs. While there are opportunities for self-paced training about military culture or specific clinical interventions to consider when addressing military trauma, there is a lack of programs that take a coordinated approach to meeting the needs of Service Members, Veterans, and their families (SMVF).

Recognizing the significant challenges of drawing meaningful boundaries between mental health concerns, physical health concerns, and social concerns that manifest in Veterans’ lives, the Rehabilitation Counseling, School Counseling, and Health Advocacy program directors, with support from an Assumption University Faculty Development Grant, initiated a training and program development process to develop the knowledge, skills, and contacts needed to create a specialized certificate program dedicated to improving human service delivery for SMVF. This process included participation in Operation Immersion – an innovative four-day “Mobilization Training” experience that engages behavioral health and other healthcare providers in their respective areas of study to learn how to address some of the challenges faced by today’s SMVF. This experience, along with significant research, has informed the creation of the “Special Ops” Certificate Program.