This past June Vets for Vets had the honor of hosting the first SVA National
Leadership Summit. Among the hundreds of student veterans from across the country who descended on the UW campus were some distinguished guests such as Secretary of the Veterans Administration, the Honorable Eric Shinseki, and our former
chancellor Biddy Martin. Hopefully, you were able to attend, but if not, I want to share some of what you missed.
The focus of the summit was to encourage and enable student veterans to fulfill their potential to be leaders as students on their campuses and as professionals in the
workplace. The weekend was full of breakout sessions and workshops geared toward making the transition into academia and employment smoother whether that meant taking care of one’s self through utilization of services available to veterans, or
engaging or creating student groups on campus, and a subject that is important to all of us – getting hired. But probably the most important benefit of the summit was the opportunity to connect with student veterans just like you from across the country. There was that instant camaraderie and a chance to share experiences and gain from the experiences of others.
The sessions were awesome and the summit as a whole was a great success. If you were able to attend thank you for helping make the National Leadership Summit an awesome experience and thanks to the Vets for Vets officers and staff for hosting the event. And special thanks to WACVO and VFW Post 8216 whose generous donations allowed us to sponsor local meet and greet at some of downtown Madison’s favorite watering holes.
