Ernst to look into loss of support for University of Iowa veteran program

IOWA CITY — In response to news this week that a federally-backed University of Iowa program for veterans is losing its support, Sen. Joni Ernst said she plans to dig into the issue, investigate why resources are being pulled, and — if necessary — push for reconsideration.

'What we need to do first is find out exactly why (support was pulled),' Ernst told reporters during a weekly conference call Wednesday. 'If it does warrant pushing back on the VA to make sure that funding is restored, then (we'll) move forward at that time.'

UI just one year ago began offering new services to its more than 700 veterans and dependents on campus through a first-of-its-kind Iowa Consortium of Veteran Excellence. The program's rollout was funded by a two-year grant of more than $2 million, but the plan after implementation was to institutionalize the program on the UI campus and then disseminate it to other schools across the state and nation — with the help of federal resources.

The university's ICOVE office was operated by four staff members, who provided peer mentoring, career development, employment networking, a veterans' transition course, family counseling and other services. But the Vocational Rehabilitation and Employment Services branch of the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs decided not to continue offering support, meaning ICOVE staffers and text materials are being pulled at the end of this month.

Michael J. Hall, a neuropsychologist for the Iowa City VA Health Care System and ICOVE director, said he hasn't received a good explanation for the reversal in support.

Terry Jemison, spokesman for the Veterans Benefits Administration, told The Gazette his understanding was that ICOVE was a two-year pilot that ran its course.

'As a pilot, the idea was to try something new,' Jemison said. 'It was an innovative program that would be evaluated to see how lessons learned could be applied.'

The assumption, he said, was the program was winding down.

But UI officials dispute that assumption. Hall said the concept was for a long-term project, and — as it stands — the program hasn't even been fully rolled out. The staff hasn't been given time to show its success, which Hall said is evident and widespread among the UI's veteran population.

Sen. Ernst said it was 'concerning' to see that the funding was removed.

'What we need to do first is find out exactly why (support was pulled),' Ernst said.

'There are a number of wonderful efforts out there to help our veterans transition,' she said, 'whether it is from active duty military service, whether they are returning veterans coming home from an overseas deployment, or whether it is a veteran who is simply living in the community who needs assistance going back to school and completing a degree program.'

Ernst said her staff has reached out to UI and VA officials to get more information on the ICOVE program, its funding stream, and any factors that might have played a role in deciding to end it. She stressed the importance of making sure programs do what they're supposed to do and comply with any requirements that might exist — like participation levels.

Ernst also said she intends to look at whether other campus services might be overlapping with the ICOVE program.

'We really need to understand the issues before we simply say we need more funding for something,' Ernst said. 'We'll dive in, figure out what those issues are, and then move forward.'

Meanwhile, UI Chief Diversity Office and Associate Vice President Georgina Dodge said her staff is evaluating ways to sustain as much of the ICOVE program as possible without federal support.

'It is difficult because sustaining programming takes staffing, and that's what ICOVE provided,' she said.

But the university plans to retain the peer mentoring program for veterans through existing staff members and other veterans willing to help out, Dodge said.

'All the evidence has shown how important that is,' she said.

The university also is going to maintain the veterans' transition course, which Dodge had been teaching. The text books and materials are being pulled back to Washington D.C., Dodge said, but she and her staff plan to revise the curriculum and produce alternate materials — like a guidebook.

'The most important aspect of the course will be connecting students to resources on campus,' she said.

The university likely won't be able to sustain the family counseling aspect of ICOVE, although Dodge said some staff members with the UI's Center for Diversity and Enrichment have counseling experience and might be able to offer some level of services.

The UI's Military and Veteran Student Services Office also has a good relationship with the UI Pomerantz Career Center, which Dodge said could be one avenue for sustaining the job and employment attributes of ICOVE.

'We are going to think about ways we might develop veteran specific courses along those lines,' she said. 'There are staff at the Pomerantz center who do have experience with veteran placement. But they don't have the connections the person with ICOVE has.'

Dodge said she doesn't know what went into the decision not to continue supporting the UI program, but she was disappointed.

'And if there is any ability for reconsideration, I would be more than happy to have additional conversations with them,' she said.