Community Engagement Veteran Experience Office Community Veterans Engagement

Community Engagement Veteran Experience Office Community Veterans Engagement Boards (CVEBs) Overview Brief 1 1/7/2022

VEO Organization Dr. Lynda Davis, Ph. D Chief Veterans Experience Officer Barbara Morton Deputy, Veterans Experience Officer Lee Becker Chief of Staff Directors: Jim Wartski, Community Engagement Joy White, PMO Curtis Carie, Insight and Analytics Jennifer Purdy, PX Portfolio Denise Kitts, Multi-Channel Tech Mike Galloucis, Benefits Portfolio 2 1/7/2022

MISSION To enable VA to be the leading customer service organization in government so Veterans, their families, caregivers and survivors choose VA. 3 1/7/2022

OBJECTIVE VEO implements forward engagement strategies to align VA services with the Secretary’s 5 priorities 4 1/7/2022

HUMAN CENTERED DESIGN: WHAT WE LEARNED 5 1/7/2022

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COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT: To address VA’s priorities and initiatives, VEO is partnering with local communities and CVEBs for outreach, navigation support, brainstorming local solutions, and enabling two-way communication to improve outcomes for transitioning Service members, Veterans, families, caregivers, and survivors. CVEBs are VA’s “ground game” partner to foster the creation of Veteran-friendly Communities. Challenge Approach Anticipated Outcomes Some Veterans, families, caregivers, and • Coordinate with key partners at the state/county VA level and VSOs/MSOs to build momentum and show appreciation for local communities and CVEBs in fostering ‘Veteran-friendly Communities’. • survivors may not have access to a coordinated support system of local Veteran service providers, advocates, and community leaders. VA must partner with local communities to foster community-based partnerships to bridge gaps in services and improve access to resources to better meet the needs of Veterans locally. • Increase community engagement opportunities and enable outreach, navigation, communication, info sharing on VA priorities, and networking across 132+ CVEBs reaching more than 12. 5 M Veterans and over 50 M families, caregivers, and survivors who reside in their catchment areas. where Veterans live, work, and raise their families. • Encourage 2 -way communication and hear the voice of the Veteran. • Conduct forward engagement strategies to improve outreach and navigational support for local communities. • Share best practices and lessons learned across CVEBs and local communities on successful methods for building community-based partnerships to address gaps in service. • Re-build trust in local communities by VA showing local communities that we • Establish strategic partnerships to collaborate on best practices, success metrics, community engagement strategies, family/caregiver support, transition, outreach, and share support tools/resources. • Support Federal Advisory Committees to meet legal requirements in providing advice to SECVA on policy improvements. 7 1/7/2022 Foster a coordinated support system support and appreciate their work in partnership with us.

Communities without a localized coordinated support system 8 1/7/2022 CVEB Model ‘Veteran-friendly Community’

Community Engagement In new VEO organizational structure, the VEO Community Engagement Directorate aligned support staff to State DVA Offices with a point of contact assigned to each jurisdiction. Contact Mailbox: Vet-friendly. Communities@va. gov Website with Toolkits and CVEB Contact info: https: //www. va. gov/ve/community. Engagement. asp 9 1/7/2022

Community Veterans Engagement Board If you know of an existing group or wish to spark a new CVEB in a local community that will follow the framework outlined in the basic principles of a CVEB and adhere to the success factors of collective impact, please let me know so we can start recognizing those efforts and the great work local communities are doing! v CE Team Member’s Name Contact Information VA’s intent is not to create redundant or duplicate efforts, but rather complement existing efforts or where one does not exist, foster the creation of a community collaborative effort to support the local community. 10 1/7/2022

Thank you! Q&A 11 1/7/2022