Abstract
Following the enactment of the Post-9/11 GI Bill, the number of student veterans
pursuing higher education increased exponentially. The influx demanded institutions
establish new policies, procedures, and programming to meet the needs of this student
demographic. Best practice recommendations are now well-established and have been
implemented on many campuses, yet research examining the effectiveness of these
interventions has been limited. Scholars have therefore been called to action to address
this research gap and advance our supportive practices for student veterans in higher
education. One of the veteran-focused programs that has received little attention from
scholars but has been initiated at over 100 academic institutions is Green Zone. First
pioneered at Virginia Commonwealth University, the Green Zone program was designed
to educate campus staff, faculty, and students on issues relevant to understanding and
addressing the needs of student veterans. The overarching goal of the program was to
facilitate campus community members’ development of cultural competencies in military
and veteran issues and thereby foster inclusive and supportive campus environments for
student veterans. Although other institutions have followed recommendations to develop
similar programming, a systematic evaluation of the effectiveness of the Green Zone
program has not yet been conducted. Colleges and universities have also been tasked with
developing distinct programs given the absence of a gold standard Green Zone protocol
to reference. To enhance the viability of our practices, it is imperative that institutions
develop and rigorously evaluate veteran-focused programming that is initiated on their
campuses. Such efforts would shed light on whether our interventions are achieving their
intended purposes and safeguard against the misallocation of resources to ineffective
efforts. The current study represents an attempt to fill this research gap by providing the
first systematic evaluation of a Green Zone training program. Specifically, a community-based
intervention research design was utilized to guide the development and
administration of a Green Zone program at a Southeastern University. Mixed methods
were utilized to collect data from diverse university staff, faculty, and student participants
to (a) identify strengths and limitations of the program as well as potential modifications
to enhance its viability, and (b) examine the effectiveness of the program for increasing
participants’ knowledge of the military and student veterans. Findings from the study
demonstrated the program was effective for enhancing participants’ knowledge and
perceived competence to support student veterans. Additionally, results revealed
important insights on modifications to the Green Zone content, organization, and delivery
that would enhance future administrations and support the sustainment of the program. The
study offers important considerations for future program development efforts at the
university as well as other institutions making decisions about initiating Green Zone on
their campuses. The Green Zone manual and training materials designed for the study
purposes will be made available by request to promote the development and enhancement
of the program at other colleges and universities.