Homeless Veteran Service Providers > Veterans Benefits Clearinghouse
Veterans Benefits Clearinghouse
HVRP Provides Training to Fill Manpower Shortages
Located in Boston, MA, Veterans Benefit Clearinghouse Inc. (VBC) began its veteran assistance program in 1992. Formed to focus on the homeless veteran, the organization was originally called Vets Path, but the name was later changed to reflect the expansion of its services to meet an ever-increasing need for public assistance programs to help the poor and otherwise underserved communities in a large metropolitan area. The organization as a whole operates with a total budget of $1.2 million annually.
The VBC Homeless Veterans Reintegration Program (HVRP) receives funding from several sources, including the Department of Veterans Affairs Grant and Per Diem program, the State of Massachusetts Department of Veteran Services, a Community Block Grant from the City of Boston, and private foundations and individuals. VBC will spend $331,684 on its employment services programs in FY 2004. For the first three years of HVRP funding, VBC received $100,000 per year, and did not receive a grant in 1996. From 1998-1999, the VBC HVRP program was funded at $150,000; in 2000, VBC was awarded $300,000; and since then the program has received $250,000 per year.
The VBC program specifically targets the homeless veteran population in the Boston area. Participant demographics are: 85% African American, 10% Caucasian, and 5% Hispanic; 15% are women, and 85% are men. The overall population is about 50% veterans, and the other half are family members and dependents of veterans.
Veterans Benefits Clearinghouse feels that it is necessary to provide a wide range of services to its clients. Services available to HVRP program participants include case management and counseling, employment training and placement, pre-vocational training, emergency services – food pantry, rental assistance, utilities assistance, housing (SRO) and housing placement (section 8) – and health education. These services cover the entire continuum of care, and enables homeless veterans to return to society as productive, independent citizens at a much quicker rate
When VBC first received HVRP funding, it was basically a homeless program aimed at providing shelter. Since then the organization has been able to focus on employment readiness services and job placement. VBC has added additional services such as computer training and emergency supportive services to its assistance programs. With the increasing value of technology in the workplace, VBC feels that computer skills are vital to its clients' success in searching for and gaining employment. By working with and maintaining in communication with area employers, staff have discovered where the region's manpower shortages are, and VBC has been able to prepare its clients for those targeted employment opportunities.
In addition to providing employment counseling, job readiness courses, job referrals and placement services, VBC provides employment-specific training for program participants. A unique aspect of VBC's program is its internal employment training programs specializing in the medical and computer technology fields. Allied Health Training prepares people to become medical assistants, phlebotomists, laboratory assistants and medical receptionists. Graduates who complete this short-term classroom and hands-on training program are given assistance to find jobs paying up to $15.00 per hour. The Computer Training Laboratory provides residents of Greater Roxbury with affordable computer training and access to the type of computers they need to master to successfully compete for office and communications jobs. Both programs include pre-vocational skills training to prepare homeless veterans for their successful return to the work place.
One of the organization's great successes is its collaboration with more than 100 government agencies and community-based service providers. These partners help to provide employment services, assistance in applying for and obtaining veteran benefits, substance abuse treatment and counseling services, medical and mental health services, emergency and transitional housing, halfway houses, and HIV and AIDS resources. This collaboration has resulted in an increase in the number of veterans who receive assistance because of the cooperation among agencies providing specialized services.
Although VBC does not maintain formal memorandums of understanding (MOUs) with many of its collaborative agencies, its strategy is to belong to many of the state's collaborative service provider groups. These include the Human Service Providers, Massachusetts Housing and Shelter Alliance, Boston Workforce Development Collaborative, Timothy Smith Network, and the Metropolitan Boston Housing Partnership, to mention a few. VBC staff serve on the boards of directors of all those coalitions. Working relationships are maintained through monthly meetings. This network of service providers is the link to the success of the VBC program, promoting the reputation and visibility of its services and success within the service provider community.
The foundation of VBC's employment services program is effective case management. Staff are experienced working with veterans who have experienced long-term homelessness and frequent substance abuse. Many of the program clients are struggling with one or more serious barriers to re-entering the workforce.
VBC's Counseling, Information and Referral Services links individuals and families in crisis to VBC programs and other needed services. Staff provide individual and group counseling designed to help veterans find employment, housing programs, resolve personal and family crises, and deal with other stress issues they may face.
Specialty counseling is also provided to help veterans work through Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), depression and emotional problems. This one-on-one focus allows the case manager to get to know the client and better understand what support he or she may need. A relationship of trust develops gradually, which results in an individual plan that enhances the veteran's prospects for gainful employment.
During the last year of HVRP funding, the VOC program was within 15% of all its goals, exceeding the target in several categories. The average range was 92-108%. During the immediate future, VBC hopes to expand its programs to help a larger percentage of the area's increasing homeless veteran population.
HVRP Program Outcomes – 2003:
Goal Actual % of Goal
Total Agency Enrollments 233 240 103%
Vocational Assessments 160 160 100%
Employment Placement 67 62 93%
Permanent housing placement 50 65 130%
Average wage at job placement $8.25 $8.25 100%
Considering the challenges its homeless veteran clients must overcome for successful re-entry into the work place – many are dealing with several – and the heavy caseload the organization tries to help, the outcomes of the Veterans Benefits Clearinghouse are commendable. The success of the VBC program depends on highly skilled and dedicated staff connecting homeless veterans to the benefits and services provided by an extensive care provider network. The employment assistance program is regarded as the critical component of the VBC continuum of care model.
Perhaps just as important is VBC's work to strengthen that network and its continuing efforts to advocate for the integration of available services into a system that provides comprehensive assistance to all of the city's homeless individuals and families.
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