Virginia Commonwealth University-William & Mary Collaboration Helps Veterans

By Mike Porter

A collaboration of Virginia Commonwealth University’s Center for Psychological Services and Development and William & Mary’s Law School has been successfully responding to the legal and mental health needs of veterans since it was formed on Veterans Day in 2008.

Through the collaboration, more than 20 veterans who received legal help from William and Mary Law School’s Puller Veterans Benefits Clinic on matters such as filing and appealing disability claims have also been referred to the Center for Psychological Services and Development for assessments, counseling and referrals on mental health issues.

Leticia Flores, Ph.D., director of the Center for Psychological Services and Development, said many of the veterans have seen significant improvements in their lives and their family's lives as a result.

“Through psychological and neuropsychological assessments, our graduate students and their licensed supervisors have helped the Puller clinic to secure over $80,000 in back pay for veterans for service-connected injuries,” Flores said. “We have also helped them to significantly increase veterans' disability ratings with the Department of Veterans Affairs, which results in increased services at the VA.”

Flores said students and faculty from both universities have participated in several outreach events across the state, providing outreach and information to veterans and their families about applying for compensation and pension with the VA system.

“Our collaboration has been generously funded by the Jesse DuPont Ball Foundation, for approximately $200,000,” Flores said. “The funding has helped to pay for the assessment services, which usually go for $2,000 to $3,000, but for which we only charge $300, outreach, travel for some veterans who seek services from out of state and for developing our consortium, Helping Military Veterans through Higher Education.”

The consortium is working on bringing together higher education institutions across the state to replicate the success of William & Mary and VCU in helping veterans, as well as to disseminate information on veterans' needs throughout the state.

For more information about the center’s programs for veterans or other services, call 804-828-8069 or visit http://www.has.vcu.edu/psy/cpsd/.