Brentwood, NY - April 8th, 2015 -The more than 500 student veterans at Suffolk County Community College will soon benefit from a more than $51,500 grant from the Island Outreach Foundation.
“This generous grant from Island Outreach Foundation will enable Suffolk County Community College to provide the support that veterans want; a single point of contact with trained staff to guide their transition as they pursue their educational goals,” said Thomas Tyson College Coordinator of Veterans Affairs.
The grant will enable the College to provide services for veterans during their academic careers, including post-graduation employment help. A Veterans’ Career Conference Empowering the Defenders of Our Freedom on Friday, April 10 at the College’s Michael J. Grant Campus in Brentwood is also being funded by the grant.
Suffolk County Community College is currently searching for a College-wide Director of Veterans Services and is establishing a Veterans Resource Center on Ammerman Campus. The Island Outreach Foundation Grant will help fund the establishment of the resource center.
The Veterans Resource Center will provide student veterans with a primary place and point of contact to access needed resources. The funding also supports student veteran services that promote academic success including:
- Academic support/availability of free tutoring across all disciplines
- Customization of admissions and orientation activities
- Counseling services for educational planning, academic advisement, career assistance and mental health
- College navigation with secure support for the various departments across all three campuses
- Computer access and study stations with assistive technology software
- A veteran mentoring program
- Veteran career services, including assistance with resume building and employment opportunities
- Specialized programs including career fairs (featuring a military personnel speaker), and career programs geared toward women student veterans
- College-wide training programs for all College Faculty and Staff to gain understanding on how to support student veterans inside and outside of the classroom
The Island Outreach Foundation Inc. is a private philanthropic organization dedicated to assisting other organizations accomplish their stated mission with a focus on education, healthcare, environmental, quality of life issues, and general community needs. The organization focuses the majority of its efforts in Suffolk County.
A daylong career conference - Empowering Defenders of our Freedom -- will help veterans transition from being warriors to joining the civilian workforce and feature nationally recognized veteran speakers, representatives from industry and government as well as career advice and assistance from human resources professionals it was announced today by Suffolk County Community College, the event’s organizer and sponsor.
The April 10 Veterans Career Conference at the college’s Michael J. Grant Campus in Brentwood will explore with veterans how to convert the skills learned in the military to the workforce and how to navigate the job market.
Decorated Marine Justin Constantine who survived a sniper’s bullet to the head is the conference’s featured keynote speaker. Constantine was awarded the Purple Heart, Combat Action Ribbon, and Navy-Marine Corps Commendation Medal for his service in Iraq.
Also addressing the gathered veterans will be Don Cohen, a veteran of the U.S. Army, who served as an artillery officer stationed in Germany with the 1st Armored Division and served two tours in Iraq as a foreign military advisor, platoon leader, executive officer, civil-military affairs officer and training officer. Cohen is currently Director of Distance Education Programs for the Institute of Veterans and Military Families at Syracuse University. Cohen received his bachelor’s degree from the Rochester Institute of Technology, where he participated in ROTC. Conference attendance is limited and advance registration is required.
Reserve a place at the conference by visiting: http://tinyurl.com/ksdk9df