Veterans creative strength: An innovative response to student veterans' special needs

With the war in Afghanistan in its 11th year, more veterans are attempting to assimilate into society. A growing number are entering our schools and colleges of nursing. These students can require special accommodations and adaptations based on their combat related experiences and/or disabilities. They face challenges rarely acknowledged by faculty and administrators. Among these are: avoidance that arises from feeling detached and different from traditional college students; hyper-arousal after having experienced a traumatic event; difficulty with focus and concentration. With a small seed grant from our university, we designed a support workshop for the student veterans in the College of Nursing. Using an interdisciplinary approach which included facilitators from Disability Studies, the Department of Psychiatry, the Art Institute and the College of Nursing, we conducted weekly group sessions with our student vet participants utilizing the visual arts, writing and performance to foster both coping skills and community. The workshop was entitled Veterans Creative Strengths, and the artistic works of our students were featured in an exhibition curated by the Art Institute entitled The Art of Connection. In this session we will describe lessons learned from this creative venture and the applications for student vets in general and for those within colleges of nursing in particular. Issues related to our veterans pose a major challenge to public health. Utilizing the arts as a means of self-expression holds great potential for reducing stress and isolation and for fostering a healing community within a larger educational institution.