Världsomspännande partners

Veteran Reentry into Civilian Life:

Fiber Optic Training for Workforce Development

 

Making a career in our armed forces is not only honorable but also very rewarding for most. Eventually the time will come to exit military service and reenter civilian life. For many, a military career and life is all that they have known since graduating high school. For some it may only be a few years, for others it can span many years or even decades. In either case the return to civilian life can bring challenges. For those that were non-traditional enlistees or commissioned officers, they may have had a life and career before military life and all that is needed is a refresher on assimilation. For those that have only known military life in their adult years, the reentry into civilian life can be more difficult. Civilian life is less regimented and requires a different mindset while also maintaining the disciplines acquired through service. Their assignments and skills acquired in the military, while important for their post, may not directly translate to a career in civilian life. Having to go about the process of being reintegrated into civilian life and adapting to a career path is not something that they have to go about on their own.

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The Role of Workforce Development Reentry Programs

Veteran workforce development reentry programs can be a big help. These programs aim to skill or reskill them to teach them a valuable skill to land employment and a path to financial means to ease the struggle and better assimilate them into civilian life. These reentry programs not only teach valuable skills, but also have other benefits such as managing PTSD, eliminating barriers to employment, providing them with a means to economic stability, and making the overall transition easier. Teaching veterans how to look for employment and create a resume or fill out a job application is only part of the process. To properly set them up for success, it is imperative to teach them the skills required to obtain gainful and meaningful employment in a high demand field.

 

There are many opportunities in trade and technical fields where those reentering civilian life can thrive. Some of these trades may closely relate to the assignments and specialties that they had in the service, while others may not. These include electrical, plumbing, HVAC, construction, and telecommunications. The latter is a high demand field spanning multiple disciplines such as telecom, datacom, data centers, utilities, co-ops, and electric providers to name a few. One highly demanded skill set within those disciplines is fiber optics.

Light Brigade is the leader in fiber optics hands-on skills training. For over 35 years we have trained the best-of-the-best fiber optic technicians around the world, with the majority being business to business and military.

 

Recently we have adapted some of our course offerings into turn-key workforce development and reentry programs. The skills learned in any of these offerings are transferable across any of the aforementioned disciplines, opening a wide array of opportunities for those transitioning from military life to civilian life and gainful careers.

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These fiber optic workforce development and reentry courses can be adopted into various reentry programs such as Veterans Employment and Training Service (VETS), Warriors to Workforce (W2W), Homeless Veterans Reintegration Program HVRP), Workforce GPS, DOD SkillBridge, Veteran Readiness and Employment (VR&E), as well as other programs related to the Veterans Opportunity to Work Act (VOW).

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