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The purpose of this two phase policy alignment analysis is to evaluate the degree to which the Interstate Compact on Educational Opportunity for Military Dependent Children has been aligned in the Virginia Compact statute and the degree to which three school divisions heavily populated by military dependent students have aligned local school policy to the statute. The Interstate Compact was intended to mitigate the transitional challenges military dependent students experienced as they navigated a patchwork of local policies through the establishment of aligned state statute in all states to add a layer of uniform policy in each school system. School personnel rely on local school policy to provide uniform guidance for student records and enrollment, placement and attendance, eligibility, and graduation. This qualitative approach used document analysis to first compare the content of the Interstate Compact to the Virginia statute, then second, analyzed local school division policy documents using priori codes derived from the Virginia statute to determine the degree of alignment to the Virginia statute. The findings reveal a loose coupling of state statute to local policy impacting military dependent students. The Compact was developed collaboratively at the national level, however gaps in policy alignment at the local level may continue to hinder school personnel from providing uniform guidance according the data from this policy analysis.

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This project reports on the results of a study that investigated the social networking use of student and non-student veterans, with a particular focus on the narrative building and identity presentation practices involved in this use. In this dissertation, I argue that stereotypical and exclusionary tropes of the veteran, such as the veteran as war hero and the veteran as wounded warrior, are damaging to our veterans and to others, in both the society and the classroom. However, through the detailed analysis of survey data and data collected from an interview and social networking profile tour with one student veteran participant, I highlight the exclusionary nature of these tropes and argue that the complex digital narratives crafted in social networking spaces can offer resistance to popular tropes of the veteran. The complexity of my participants' digital narratives also offers support for the argument that elements of one's social networking profiles, when viewed independently and decontextualized, can lead to invalid and unfair assumptions about the users' identity. Additionally, I argue that, for my participants, many of whom demonstrated a nuanced and critical understanding of audience, decisions to self-identify as military personnel in social networking spaces are intertwined with perceptions of privacy. Finally, this project culminates in the identification of a number of digital literacy practices present in my participants' social networking use, as well as a set of pedagogical and programmatic recommendations for writing teachers and writing program administrators interested in aiding student veterans in the process of transition and reintegration.

The negative effects of traumatic combat experiences on combatants' psychological functioning is well documented in the literature. The Global War on Terrorism (GWOT) has resulted in many veterans returning from deployments with mental health conditions related to trauma exposure, such as posttraumatic stress disorder, depression, general anxiety, and suicidality. Past researchers found significant ethnic differences in psychological functioning, with Latino-American veterans reporting more symptoms of PTSD. Furthermore, Latino-American cultural values place importance on collective orientation and secrecy of mental health concerns which may affect treatment. Thus, this study built on limited research about Latino-American male combat veterans by focusing on the effects of social support and working therapeutic alliance during mental health treatment. Using a cross-sectional design, a sample of 42 GWOT Latino-American Veterans undergoing mental health treatment at a VA Medical Center in the Southeastern U.S. was recruited and surveyed. Participants completed a set of nine questionnaires (Beck Scale for Suicidal Ideation, PTSD Checklist – Military Version, Beck Depression Inventory – 2nd Edition, Beck Anxiety Inventory, Postdeployment Social Support Scale, Combat Exposure Scale, Working Alliance Inventory – Short Form. Network Orientation Scale, and Multidimensional Scale of Perceived Social Support). Descriptive and bivariate statistics were calculated, and regression models were tested. The results indicate that social support improved overall PTSD and intrusive symptoms, separately, but working therapeutic alliance had a marginal effect on avoidance symptoms. Working alliance was found to exert a negative effect on depressive symptoms. The study did not yield evidence to support significant effects of social support or working alliance on suicidality and generalized anxiety. These results have implications for mental health service systems and for future research. Therapists serving veterans with PTSD should work with the patient/client to increase perceived social support. When serving veterans with depressive symptoms, therapists should place special effort on developing a strong working alliance.

This dissertation examined the relationship between meaningful employment and self-esteem in male veterans. Meaningful employment is an important element of reintegration, the process all veterans go through to transition from active duty military service back into society. Reintegration involves three major areas: physical and mental health, employment, and family and friend relationships. A sample of 30 male veterans were interviewed. After the interviews, two instruments were used to further examine the variables (meaningful employment and self-esteem). The instruments were administered to measure the individual's perception regarding meaningful employment and level of self-esteem. The interviews were the primary focus, with the instruments providing additional evidence to support the information gathered in the interviews. This mixed-methods study involved analyzing the interviews for consistent themes related to answering the research questions and, through systematic coding, identifying and categorizing the connectivity of concepts and trends. The two instruments were analyzed using cross-tabulations to triangulate information gathered in the interviews. A significant correlation was found between meaningful employment and self-esteem in male veterans. The study also identifies traits male veterans consider necessary for employment to be meaningful. Future studies should examine the relationship between meaningful employment and veteran suicides.

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