The LSU Health Sciences Center New Orleans School of Nursing’s Student Veterans of America chapter provides students who are active members of the military, veterans, and military spouses and family members opportunities to access hidden resources, get involved in a community of students with shared experiences, and take on leadership roles.

“The SVA has many opportunities for leadership development via our annual convention, the SVA National Conference, known as NatCon, and through service in various board positions,” says SVA Chapter President Stephen Douglass. “We provide awareness and education through our involvement with community resources that students otherwise wouldn’t have exposure to. We also organize events that foster camaraderie and help engage veterans with the community and school.”

Douglass is a 25B Information Technology Specialist in the Louisiana Army National Guard. He was approached by former SVA President Marshay Stevenson (BSN ’23), who served as a 68W Health Care Specialist in the Army National Guard, to get involved and help grow the organization.

A Junior I at the School of Nursing who works as a nurse technician in the trauma intensive care unit at University Medical Center New Orleans, Douglass says he was originally in charge of community outreach for the SVA before stepping into the president role in the fall 2024 semester.

“I fell in love with the process of growing and improving our organization and look forward to seeing what my team and I can make happen,” he says.

Chapter Vice President Renee Harper-Ebert, a student in the accelerated BSN program and aspiring advanced psychiatric nurse practitioner specializing in veterans with PTSD, got involved with the SVA after attending the school’s family day with her father, a U.S. Army veteran.

“My dad met [SVA advisor] Dr. Carter, and they immediately bonded over the Army. I was not sure what I was going to have time for, as far as student organizations, as I am married, work a full-time job, commute over an hour, and am in the accelerated BSN program, but Dr. Carter told me she needed me. After becoming an active member, I realized how important this organization is to the school and its members. It helps bring recognition to our student veterans and gives us a catalyst with which to support them. The military and its members will always be near and dear to my heart. I felt, what better way to show my support than to join SVA.”

Harper-Ebert says growing up as a military child gave her a different outlook because veterans’ families also have to sacrifice during their enlistment. She says that moving every three years was not always easy, but she knows her dad did it to provide for their family, and she has always respected what he accomplished.

Empowering Military-Connected Students With Community

The national SVA exposes members to service, research, programs, network support, and collaboration opportunities for veterans in higher education. It has a network of more than 1,600 on-campus chapters and more than 750,000 student veteran members. Its goal is to “ensure that student veterans and military-connected students achieve their greatest potential” by connecting student veterans with a community of dedicated chapter leaders.

SVA conceived and helped unanimously pass in Congress the first major update to the GI Bill in a decade, commonly known as the Forever GI Bill. This bipartisan legislation impacts the lives of approximately 1 million students, distributing more than $12 billion in benefits annually. SVA’s NatCon is the largest annual gathering of post-9/11 veterans in the world. Additionally, SVA analyzed the first 1.8 million Post-9/11 GI Bill graduates and leverages this original research to inform programming and shape national policy.

“LSU Health Sciences Center New Orleans was in dire need of a central point for military members and military-affiliated students to acquire resources to help enhance their educational experience,” says SVA Advisor and Retired U.S. Army Reserve Col. Nurse Corps Celestine Carter, APRN, DNS, Assistant Professor of Clinical Nursing. “We needed to bring together the military community and allow these students to help, depend on and motivate one another.

As stated in its chapter bylaws, the mission of the SVA at the School of Nursing is to “serve as a catalyst for LSUHSC-NO SON military-affiliated students by providing resources, network, support and advocacy for educational, professional, social opportunities and continued selfless service beyond graduation.”

“Our vision is to empower military-affiliated students to lead and live their best lives while adapting to and overcoming transitions in nursing higher education,” Dr. Carter says. “The majority of our SVA members are National Guard, Reserve, active duty and veteran students. There are a few who are military-affiliated, such as students with parents who are veterans.”

SVA board members meet once per month during the spring and fall semesters and call additional meetings when necessary. The meetings are chaired by the SVA president or the vice president if the president is absent. At these meetings, fundraisers and charitable events are planned, and information is discussed concerning the GI Bill, tuition reimbursement, Chapter 35 Survivors and Dependents Educational Assistance, military education opportunities, and other issues.

In August 2024, with the support and encouragement of Dean Demetrius Porche, DNS, PhD, ANEF, FACHE, FAANP, FAAN, the SVA chapter received a visit from the Honorable Denis McDonough, Secretary of the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs. Suggestions from Secretary McDonough will be part of fall SVA meeting discussions.

The School of Nursing’s SVA chapter has sponsored Veterans Day 1-mile, 5K and 10K races, events for Disabled American Veterans, Breast Cancer Awareness Month, and the Komen Race for the Cure. Members have made care packages for service members overseas, organized Easter egg hunts, and participated in the Shuck Cancer volleyball tournament and the Ruck March at Audubon Park to benefit DoggoneExpress.

“Having knowledge of military protocol and regulations, witnessing the growth and camaraderie that has occurred with the chapter membership, education, military and civilian opportunities, and fundraising has been rewarding,” Dr. Carter says. “Our chapter is fairly new, but it is making strides in the right direction. I am very grateful for the faculty and staff that helped the SVA during its initial stages, including my co-advisor Dr. Lucretia James, Dr. Todd Tartavoulle, Dr. Kendra Barrier, Dr. Benita Chatmon, Dr. Jennifer Manning, Dr. Kryshonda Alleyne, Dr. William Barras, Norris Johnson, Geremie Loupe and Nathan Fontaine. We encourage every military-affiliated student at LSUHSC and our alumni students to join and help grow our organization into a huge community.”