Marshall offers workshops on veterans issues

 Marshall University has more than 600 students who are veterans, and the Office of Student Development is offering workshops to increase awareness of the specific issues faced by veterans who attend the university after returning from active duty.

 "The goal is to help people understand their perception of veterans and how that perception may lead to behavior that may not be considered veteran-friendly," said Kim White, a counselor with the university's Counseling Center. "We're trying to help people have a better understanding of the adjustment challenges that veterans face when they enter a college campus."

One of the topics the workshops will address is the "battle mind" condition. "It's not necessarily PTSD; it's the mindset that allows one to survive in a very threatening environment such as Iraq or Afghanistan," White said. "It takes a while for it to shut off. There's an adjustment period, and one of the goals of the workshop is to help people be patient with the process.

"We hope people come out of (the workshop) with a mindfulness of what it's like to be in the military and what it means to adjust," she added. 

The workshops also address military stereotypes, according to White. "We have a very narrow view of what it means to be a veteran," White said. 

White said she hopes to see Marshall grow as a veteran-friendly university "I think as an instution, there's room for improvement," White said. "But I think Marshall is very open to exploring what's needed for veterans."

The one-hour workshops are scheduled for 9-10 a.m. and 10-11 a.m. on Wednesday, July 21 and Friday, July 23. All workshops will be in Drinko Library Room 402. The workshops are free and open to the public.

Sam Turley can be contacted at turley60@marshall.edu.