On Nov. 8, Cabrillo College announced a $150,000 grant to implement the Veterans Mental Health Demonstration Project, starting this month.
The two-year grant is one of 10 awarded by the California Community Colleges Chancellor’s Office.
The grant funding will help to establish and increase local, regional, and statewide partnerships to expand campus support, resources, and enrollment for transitioning military service members, prioritizing mental health services.
The grant funding will also help facilitate professional development opportunities to educate campus faculty and staff on the needs of student military service members, providing trauma-informed approaches and regional resources to foster a campus of visible allies that supports and promotes the overall success of veterans and service members.
Juan Diego Alvarez
At Cabrillo, this would be a VET NET Ally training program, offered at Cabrillo’s Veterans Information Center as a faculty and staff awareness program to expand campus-wide allyship around the needs and concerns of military veterans.
The grant will enable the development of peer-to-peer student veteran networks and programs.
It would provide funding for student wellness ambassadors through Cabrillo’s Student Health Services department and would aid in the creation of external partnerships with local veteran agencies, to extend the veterans mental health resources and support off campus and in the local community.
Among others, these local partnerships would include the Santa Cruz Veterans Center, as well as Veterans Centers at CSU Monterey Bay and UC Santa Cruz to provide a clear transfer pathway for transitioning military service members.
Funding from the grant would also help expand mental health counseling at Cabrillo for veterans and would provide more organic opportunities for Cabrillo student veterans to engage in holistic health and well-being practices such as art therapy, stress management, and mental health first aid training.
“Cabrillo’s Veterans Information Center has been recognized statewide as a model for providing wraparound services and resources to student veterans,” said Matt Wetstein, Cabrillo College president and superintendent.
“With this grant, we’re able to expand the Cabrillo College Veterans Information Center’s commitment to veterans’ mental health and overall well-being, ensuring they have access to essential support and resources, said Dr. Devin Walker, Cabrillo College director of student success and equity.
“We are thrilled and extremely grateful to receive this grant to support our veterans,” said Juan Diego (J.D.) Alvarez, Cabrillo College veteran programs coordinator. “This grant is a game-changer.”
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Learn more at www.cabrillo.edu/veteran-information-center/