Joining Forces Blog

  • Maintaining the Momentum - Helping Military Spouses Find Good Jobs in 2012

    Posted by Brad Cooper on January 20, 2012 at 4:32 PM EDT

    Addressing military spouse employment is an important priority for Joining Forces in 2012. Military spouses are resilient, flexible, loyal and highly educated. Yet they also have one of the highest unemployment rates in the country – 26 percent of military spouses who want to work can’t find employment.

    On the heels of a tremendous hiring fair last week in Washington, DC, Joining Forces is pleased to support the Military Spouse Symposium & Career Fair on Thursday January 26 at the San Diego Convention Center in San Diego, CA. 

    Co-produced by the Military Officers Association and Blue Star Families, this is a can’t-miss event for military spouses looking for meaningful employment.  Whether you’re looking for a job now or preparing for a future career, you can take advantage of workshops and talk to experts and employers who can help. Held in conjunction with West 2012 (the largest military expo on the West Coast covering communications, electronics, intelligence, and more), the Military Spouse Symposium & Career Fair is free and open to all military spouses - all ranks, active duty, retired, Reserve and National Guard. Service members and veterans are also welcome.

    There will be more than 50 employers at the event and they are there for one reason: to hire military spouse and veterans. Importantly, half of the employers are Military Spouse Employment Partners, which means they’ve made a public commitment to hire military spouses. 

    Register for the 2012 Military Spouse Symposium & Career Fair today.

    Brad Cooper is Executive Director of Joining Forces in the Office of the First Lady.

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  • Thousands of Jobs for Our Nation’s Veterans

    Posted by Brad Cooper on January 19, 2012 at 12:53 PM EDT

    Veterans Career Fair Line

    Veterans and Servicemembers line up to apply for thousands of public and private sector job opportunities at a major career fair hosted by VA January 19, 2012.

    Earlier today, I had the great privilege of joining Secretary Shinseki, the Secretary of Veterans Affairs, hundreds of members of his team, along with public and private sector employers -- all committed to do one thing: HIRE OUR NATION’s VETERANS.

    Answering the President’s call to expand employment opportunities for America’s Veterans, the Department of Veterans Affairs hosted a major Veteran-focused career fair and exposition in Washington, D.C. This was an enormous event – government agencies and more than 25 companies from the private sector came to the expo with thousands of jobs available to our nation’s veterans. The majority of the jobs were generated from First Lady Michelle Obama and Dr Jill Biden’s “Joining Forces” initiative, an effort aimed to energize the private sector, including businesses and non-profits, to support our nation’s veterans, service members and military families.

    Participating federal agencies included the departments of Homeland Security, Defense, Interior, Agriculture, Labor, and EPA. Over 25 private-sector partners participated, including Microsoft, Lockheed Martin, Citigroup, Safeway, Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority, Philadelphia Police Department, Johns Hopkins Hospital, JPMorgan and many others.

    In addition to the employment component of the expo, the VA also offered support for veterans to better understand and use the post-9/11 GI Bill. The VA also provided on-site assistance with resume writing and counseling services, while showcasing its VA for Vets program, which provides first-in-class online “high-tech” and “high touch” approach to recruiting, hiring, and reintegrating Veterans into civilian careers. 

    Department of Veterans Affairs at Career Fair

    The Department of Veterans Affairs hosts a major career fair designed to expand employment opportunities for Veterans. January 19, 2012.

    It was an incredible event – high energy and high impact. I lost track of the number of interviews that employers were already offering…and veterans were being hired on the spot.

    Reducing veteran unemployment will be a team effort that requires us all to “join forces” – it will take a continued push from the federal government and engagement from the private sector. But with more events like today – a great public-private teaming effort lead by the VA – complemented by broader efforts with companies big and small throughout this nation committing to hire our nation's heroes, we will surely have a positive impact on the lives of tens of thousands of our veterans in 2012.

    Brad Cooper is Executive Director of Joining Forces in the Office of the First Lady.

     
     
     
     
     
     

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  • 2012: Focusing on Military Spouse Employment

    Posted by Brad Cooper on January 17, 2012 at 9:34 AM EDT

    Last Friday, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce kicked off a first-of-its-kind hiring fair focused exclusively on military spouses. The Hiring Our Heroes Military Spouse Career Forum, held in Washington, D.C., was the first of 10 planned hiring fairs for military spouses sponsored by the Chamber around the country in 2012.

    This was a huge event and, walking around, I could not help but notice the incredible energy among employers and spouses alike. There was good reason for it -- more than 100 employers came to the forum with hundred of employment opportunities for the 1,000+ spouses in attendance.

    With military spouse employment well above the national unemployment rate, this forum was a great start to a 2012 focus on military spouse employment by the Chamber of Commerce. Joining the effort is the Department of Defense's Military Spouse Employment Partnership (MSEP).  MSEP was rolled out by Dr Jill Biden at the U.S. Chamber of Commerce in June 2011. To date, the 96 organizations and companies in the partnership have hired more than 13,000 military spouses around the world.

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  • Watch: First Lady Michelle Obama Previews her "iCarly" Special

    Posted by Colleen Curtis on January 16, 2012 at 5:49 PM EDT

    Watch Joining Forces with Nickelodeon and iCarly, here.

    First Lady Michelle Obama was at the Hayfield Secondary School in Alexandria, Virginia on Friday to preview her special appearance on the hit TV show "iCarly". The White House joined forces with the Nickelodeon team to teach kids how important friendship and support are to military kids whose parents are deployed for long periods. The show's lead character, Carly Shay (played by Miranda Cosgrove), is the daughter of an Air Force Colonel currently serving overseas in the military, and two of the cast members grew up in military families.  

    The debut of "iMeet the First Lady" on Monday January 16 was preceded by a special dedication from the iCarly cast and Mrs. Obama to military families. Immediately following the premiere, Nickelodeon debuted a PSA that features ways kids can show their thanks and support. For more information, visit www.thebighelp.com.
     

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  • New Commitments Will Improve Health Care for our Heroes

    Posted by Brad Cooper on January 11, 2012 at 7:49 PM EDT

    Michelle Obama at Virginia Commonwealth University AAMC-Medical Center

    First Lady Michelle Obama shakes hands with veterans and medical personnel during a Joining Forces event at Virginia Commonwealth University AAMC-Medical Center in Richmond, Va., January 11, 2012. Mrs. Obama announced a major commitment by the country’s top medical colleges and universities to create a new generation of doctors, medical schools, and research facilities to ensure that veterans, service men and women receive the medical care that they deserve. (Official White House Photo by Chuck Kennedy)

    After more than 10 years of war, nearly 50,000 of our military members have been wounded, many of them severely. These are the visible wounds of war.  But the invisible wounds which are the signature injuries of our wars in Iraq and Afghanistan -- Post-traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) and Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI)  -- have impacted roughly 1 in 6 of our veterans. 

    Though the Department of Defense and the Veterans Administration continue their strong efforts to address PTSD and TBI, we know that more than half of today's Iraq and Afghanistan veterans seek care from health care providers that are outside of the VA system. We have veterans in every corner of this country and if we are going to fully understand the issues these heroes face, we've got to meet our veterans where they live. And that means that health care providers throughout this country need to have some fundamental understanding about PTSD and TBI so they can recognize the conditions and then positively impact the health care outcome for our veterans. 

    We can’t wait to help our heroes. We must act now to ensure the nation's current and future health care providers are familiar with issues impacting our veterans and families. Because those impacted are young -- almost all in their 20's and 30's -- this is a long term issue for this nation.  

    Today, First Lady Michelle Obama announced the largest coordinated commitment from America's medical colleges to support our veterans and military families. Led by the Association of American Medical Colleges (AAMC) and the American Association of Colleges of Osteopathic Medicine (AACOM),   130 of the nation's medical and osteopathic colleges -- 105 medical colleges and 25 osteopathic colleges – have committed to train students in treating brain injuries, PTSD and other mental-health issues affecting returning service members. 

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  • AmeriCorps Recruiting Our Nation’s Heroes

    Posted by John Gomperts on January 10, 2012 at 1:10 PM EDT

    As America’s heroes return from war zones and transition back into civilian life, many are facing challenges finding work.  Last month, more than over 857,000 veterans were unemployed, and the jobless rate for post-9/11 veterans is 13.1 percent. 

    As President Obama said, “We ask these men and women to leave their careers, leave their families, risk their lives to fight for our country.  The last thing they should have to do is fight for a job when they come home.”

    Recognizing the unique skills and leadership abilities of America’s veterans, the Corporation for National and Community Service is joining forces to recruit more veterans to serve in AmeriCorps. Using the skills they honed overseas, veterans are continuing to serve on the home front through AmeriCorps - responding to disasters, building homes, mentoring at-risk youth, and supporting other veterans and their families.

    As part of that commitment, we are excited to kick off our participation in 100 Hiring Our Heroes job fairs over the next five years. The first fair, focused on military and veteran spouses, will take place this Friday, January 13 in Washington D.C.  We will have information about opportunities to serve in AmeriCorps and other CNCS programs. We are pleased to work with Joining Forces, the Chamber Foundation, DOL Vets, and other organizations in supporting these career fairs and look forward to sharing our message that AmeriCorps is recruiting our nation’s heroes now.

    More than 16,000 veterans have served in AmeriCorps since its inception  AmeriCorps helps put veterans on a pathway to economic opportunity as they assist others in the military community—and, in doing so, find strength in making an impact on problems here at home.

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