amanda kraus, ph. d. ahead 2011 dynamics of disability identity within the student veteran community
TRANSCRIPT
Amanda Kraus, Ph. D.AHEAD 2011
DYNAMICS OF DISABILITY IDENTITY WITHIN THE
STUDENT VETERAN COMMUNITY
DISABLED VETERANS REINTEGRATION AND EDUCATION PROJECT
Goal to more authentically understand how disabled veterans experience higher education
Produce a model with recommendations on strategies that contribute to the success of veterans on campus
DISABLED VETERANS REINTEGRATION AND EDUCATION PROJECT
Research Participatory-action research and mixed qualitative
methodology 35 individual, semi-structured interviews
Outreach Professionals’ Roundtable Sports and Wellness Camp Liaise with Student Vets Center and campus and community
Academic initiatives SERV Online faculty resources
Direct Services DRC accommodations Healing Touch
IMPACT OF DVRE
Initiative 2008-2009 2009-2010 2010-2011 Initiative Total
Sports and Wellness Camp
20 22 20 62
Individual interviews n/a 23 12 35
Healing Touch n/a 47 51 98
DRC Accommodations
6 15 26 47
SERV classes 8 24 27 59
Student Veterans Center
125 225 250 600
Student Veterans of America club
100 200 200 500
Annual Total 259 553 586 1401
UNIVERSITY OF ARIZONA TRENDS
Conceptualizing disability identity
Military
Media
Disability
Studies
• DOD casualty statistics• VA disability rating system• A disability (“disease or injury determined to have occurred in or to have been aggravated by military service”) is evaluated according to the VA Schedule for Rating Disabilities in Title 38, CFR, and Part 4. Extent of disability is expressed as a percentage from 0% (for conditions that exist but are not disabling to a compensable degree) to 100%, in increments of 10%.
• Language• Catastrophically Ill and Injured, or “CII”
• Caregiver model of rehabilitation
MILITARY CONCEPTS
“Congratulations! You have completed your Vocational Rehabilitation and Employment program. Therefore, I am declaring that you are rehabilitated.”
•Medical • Palatable• Inspirational• “Super-crip”• Tragic• Villain• Pitiful• Charity and Telethons
MEDIA CONCEPTS
• Disability:is a sociopolitical constructis a key aspect of the human experience, with social, political and economic implications for society as a whole
is perpetuated by exclusive design, and environmental, attitudinal, and economic barriers, whether intentional or inadvertent
DISABILITY STUDIES CONCEPTS
• How are disabled veterans framed in the media?
• What are the messages veterans receive about disability in the military and through the VA?
• How might this lens impact the identity of a disabled veteran? • Consider the process of service member to veteran to disabled veteran to disabled student veteran•What are the differences in how they see themselves and how they are perceived on campus
DISCUSS
As of June 2012, the number of American troops who have been injured in OIF, OEF, OND is 48,597
Nearly 20 percent of the 1.6 million service members deployed to Iraq and Afghanistan report symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder or major depression, yet only slightly more than half have sought treatment (RAND, 2008)
Nineteen percent report a probable TBI, seven percent report TBI, PTSD and depression
Costs associated with mental health care for service members in the fi rst two years after deployment is an estimated $6.2 billion over two years (RAND, 2008)
DISABILITY TRENDS
PRELIMINARY FINDINGS – CHARACTERISTICS
Non-traditionalAccess issues
Bias, climate, financialSome identify first as vets, some will not identifyReinscribe military values
Language – vet-speak Cohort, team Friendlies
Use dedicated space to cultivate identity as student veteransDisability
Reluctant to identify personally, but acknowledge disability as important aspect of community DOD statistics, VA VR rating
Language Wounded Warrior Injured
Hierarchy Combat-related injury Service-related injury Non-service-related injury
Service provision Cohort mentality
Divide between invisible and visible
PRELIMINARY FINDINGS - DISABILITY
Deceased
Combat-related
Official recognition (i.e. Purple Heart)
Service-connected
Combat Theatre
Visible injuries or disabilities
LivingNon-combat-related
Unrecognized Non-Service-related (e.g. skiing
accident)Stateside or other non-combat
locationInvisible (including physical,
learning disabilities, psychological, TBIs )
“Well, I got PTSD. They gave me that last year or so. Back and knees and just basic joint stuff. Well, I got actually—not too long ago I got diagnosed with a mild TBI just from getting tossed around the back of a truck, hit with a couple explosions, but that’s about it. No puncture wounds or gun shots or anything like that.”
Disability depends on context
The VA says that if it’s not documented, it never really happened. Part of the problem with my job field is that most of the corpsman never got documented. The few things that I did have problems with kind of got overlooked and it wasn’t until the end that they wanted it. I went to physical therapy for my elbow, which the VA has rated me at zero percent for as well as my ankles. I’m rated at zero percent. It can increase. I just have to find more documentation to support it. I’m working on that.Fighting to get a VA Rating
It’s like, they were trying to keep me in the Service. as long as possible... Because like when I was in, if you, if you had any type of disability or any king of, anything wrong with you like if you were missing your arm or your hand or something like that, you were as good as gone… disability did not equal the military. And now it’s like they realize that having a disability doesn’t prevent you from using your brain. You don’t necessarily have to be doing pull-ups and pushups and stuff to be worth something.
Military models of disability
Yeah it’s like a whole process. They look through your medical records, and they evaluate how disabled you are. And it sounds bizarre, but you are like hoping for a good disability rating. But it’s, you know, I don’t feel like 60 percent disabled.
Measuring self with VA ratings
"I guess in a way I don’t consider myself disabled. I don’t know. Maybe that’s what they’re thinking. In another sense I do consider myself disabled. I want to represent disabled community and it’s not so general and not so broad. There are hidden disabilities that you don’t see. I’m invested in that term because I want to represent it positively and promote that there is a way to do it with grace and values and just to kind of build awareness. I imagine that there are some that are fighting to kind of normalize themselves.”
Normalizing disability relevant to identity
DISCUSS
How do the DOD disability/casualty statistics and the VA disability rating system frame disability?
What are the implications for developing disability identity?
What are the implications for service provision?
Reframe disability “Universally” designed physical and
curricular environments – remove barriers
Integrate disability into community
Focus on access, justice
Language in outreach
IMPLICATIONS
Strong relationship with VA re: mental health and benefits
Adaptive/wheelchair athletics Open gym to vets
P90XPrivate hours
Healing Touch
IMPLICATIONS
Incorporate student feedback Committee to discuss veterans on campus, including students, administrators, staff and faculty
Check assumptions about student identity. Do not assume most salient identity and do not assume common understanding/language
IMPLICATIONS
Disabled Veterans Reintegration and Education Project
drc.arizona.edu/veterans/
UA V.E.T.S. vets.arizona.edu
RESOURCES