Overview of iJournal Issue 28

Veterans Returning to College

Iraq and Afghanistan veterans are returning to college campuses in large numbers. These are the largest numbers that colleges have experienced since after the Vietnam War. At the time I was a Veterans-Cost-of-Instruction (VCIP) director at Grossmont College. We had some guidelines and had one month in order to set up a program for the large numbers of veterans returning in the mid seventies. I remember on the first day of registration in August we had a line that stretched for it seemed a half a mile. We struggled to get students into classes and get the VA to provide their checks. We were not prepared for the array of other issues these returning veterans had to face upon reentering the civilian life. Retention was not in our plans. The articles in this edition show how far colleges and the federal government have come since then to help our veterans address mental health issues and find career paths in a jobless marketplace.

While you still read about political leaders who wish to ignore the problems of our returning vets, the leaders at these colleges and others demonstrate that we will not make the same mistakes in serving our veterans as we did in the 70s. These writers identify key ways to address the issues that veterans are bringing to the campus and suggest that one of the major changes that need to occur is in the approach by faculty and staff to these war hardened individuals in the classroom. I also urge you to attend the California Community College Veterans Summit: "Learning to Serve tThose Who have Served" to be held in San Diego, California on December 2nd, 2011. For more details, please see the information provided on the summit.

Our sponsor for this important 28th edition of the iJournal is Keenan & Associates, a long time supporter.

In the general interest section, there are articles on athletic advising, perceptions on the effectiveness of strategic planning and are book on meaningful learning assessment. The issue provides many pragmatic approaches to problems colleges are addressing today. I urge you to learn from the articles presented in the fall 2011 iJournal.

Service to Veterans

In Establishing Partnerships to Provide College Health Care Support for Returning Veterans, Michael Goltermann states that as US public colleges face increasing constraints on resources, dedicated mental health care support for returning veterans may be difficult to maintain or establish.  He explores partnerships with nonprofits which offer unique advantages that are not necessarily available through referrals to local Veterans Affairs mental health care services. Jeremy Villar writes in Collaborative Partnerships: A Path to a Veteran-Friendly Campus that almost half of the military veterans who are enrolled in college have contemplated suicide at some point, and 20 percent have planned to kill themselves, according to a recent study "Student Veterans: A National Survey Exploring Psychological Symptoms and Suicide Risk."  This article explores the challenges faced by student veterans at Los Angeles City College as they transition from military service back to the community colleges.

Many of writers shared ideas on Veteran Resource Centers. Nancy L. Montgomery states in her article, Veteran Resource Center: The One Stop Welcome for Returning Veterans, that returning veterans are a growing underserved population at college campuses around the nation. Expanded educational benefits in the new GI bill are increasing enrollment at campuses around the country, and this is challenging colleges to meet the educational and support needs of this traditionally at-risk group. At Cerritos College, veteran students are currently provided with a number of programs and services through an established Veterans Resource Center (VRC) in order to nurture a welcoming campus culture for veteran students so that no college student should ever state “I would rather go to war than college” , a statement by a returning veteran. Ted Burnett shares in his article, Saddleback College Veterans Education and Transition Services, the comprehensive selections of services to support veterans, active military and military families from application to graduation provided by the Saddleback College Veterans Education and Transition Services (VETS) Program and has become a key piece of the success for thousands of veteran students at a low cost to the college. In Developing a Comprehensive State-wide Veterans Re-Entry Education Program, co-authors Steven Frantz, Gina Sobania and Donald Pfeffer outline ways that a college campus can become a veteran’s friendly campus. In Minnesota, the key services and this policy infrastructure have been built through statewide partnerships.  The outcome has been improved direct services on campuses, an infrastructure of supportive policies and the development of new and innovative electronic tools specialized for use by service members, veterans and their families.

Lastly, in Celebrating our Veterans by Mike MacCallum, he describes two recent events for veterans at Long Beach City College, one of which had few veterans in attendance while the other drew large numbers. The differences in these events are described and a model for veteran programs is proposed.

General Interest

Terry Armstrong in DVC's Focus on Athletic Success indicates that there is an increasing national and statewide focus on student athlete success, increased complexity in student athlete advising due to ever-changing NCAA rules and regulations, shrinking resources to and greater demands on student services and counseling within California community colleges (Luan, 2011. These factors have led Diablo Valley College to develop educational planning templates for student athletes.  He shares the value of these templates in his article. In a switch to strategic planning from academic planning, Monica  Nolasco shares research on the Presidents’, Chief Financial Officers’ And Chief Instructional Officers’ Perceptions On The Effectiveness Of Strategic Planning. The author presents a study conducted in California community colleges, which compares the perceptions of the identified administrative leaders on the effectiveness of strategic planning and shares some key insights.

Book Review

Our Fall Edition book review is a look at Capacity for Meaningful Learning Assessment in Community Colleges by Jerry A. Somerville. Dr. Somerville notes in his overview of Capacity for Meaningful Learning Assessment in Community Colleges that it is a result of an investigation of community colleges by a community college researcher/practitioner with the focus of understanding student learning assessment at a fundamental level—identifying the institutional characteristics that are critical for a meaningful and sustainable learning assessment process. There is a surprise from the author for those who read the review. Dr. Somerville and the iJournal editor were colleagues at Napa Valley College for over 30 years.

Changes in iJournal

The iJournal's editorial board is in the process of making the iJournal more accessible and interactive. The newly upgraded iJournal system (courtesy of Talino Design) brings with it very powerful features. 

Over the next 3-6 months new features will be introduced to our audience. First, the look and layout has been changed, and will continue to evolve as demands on the design increase. Second, we will introduce the iJournal Newsletter (containing synopses of the latest issue and fast-breaking topics) that will be sent directly to our eMail subscribers. Third, the upgraded iJournal system will allow for more utilization by the field. Issues forums, hot topic discussions, and private forum groups will enable the freer flow of information within the California Community College system. (Niceties like being able to register as an iJournal member using your Facebook account will also be included.)

The iJournal will continue to seek articles that are focused on student services, collaboration with academic services, and other issues affecting community college education in California and throughout the nation. We will enhance these articles with an interactive discussion forums capability, where iJournal readers will be able to provide direct comments on articles and issues. Book reviews will continue to be welcomed, as will any staff development activities. 

Here at http://.ijournal.us you can view the 28th issue of the iJournal to check out the updated format and style. As you do, you will join many unique visitors who viewed the last issue, #27. During August, 2011, the site had 1200 quality viewers from around the country. These viewers  came primarily from five states: California, New Jersey, Texas, New York and Illinois.  We are being read and we thank you.

Seeking Articles for the Winter Edition, Issue #29

In our next edition, we would like your insight on what college campuses can do to affect statewide unemployment and how the services are coping and identifying new ways to help our unemployed students. We will also explore ways to make community college students more successful in completing the courses needed for an AA or AS Degree. If you want to submit an article, the text should be 500-2000 words in Word/HTML format using Times New Roman, 12pt font. The submission must also include an abstract of the article, a short bio and a picture of the author in .jpg format (ideally, a file no larger than 100 KBs).  

Please consult with the editor before including charts and/or tables in your article. Articles can be submitted to editor@ijournal.us or eshenk@alliant.edu . The submission deadline for the winter edition is January 15, 2012.