Veteran Reconnect Conference

Tuesday, May 13, 2025 8:00 AM-Wednesday, May 14, 2025 4:00 PM

George Shinn Center

Logo of the Veteran Reconnect Conference

Mark your calendars and make plans to join us

May 13-14, 2025!

Lipscomb University is honored to host the TN VET Reconnect Conference: A Decade of Growth, a two-day event made possible by a $100,000 grant from the Tennessee Higher Education Commission (THEC). The conference will bring together academic professionals and military-connected student leaders from across Tennessee to collaborate, share best practices and explore new opportunities for supporting military-connected students.

This event marks ten years since the passage of the Veterans Education Transition Support (VETS) Act, which ensures veterans using educational benefits receive in-state tuition and a supportive learning environment. Tennessee is home to more than 140,000 veterans without college credit and 144,000 veterans with some college credit or an associate degree. However, only 9,500 veterans are currently enrolled in higher education across the state. The TN VET Reconnect Conference will provide a platform to address these challenges and foster continued growth in veteran services.

Conference highlights

  • Green Zone Training: Learn how to better understand the challenges of student veterans and how to support their unique needs.
  • Veteran Education Policy Updates: Stay up-to-date on veterans' education policies and explore financial aid challenges and solutions.
  • Roundtable Discussions & Keynotes: Engage with experts and peers in discussions on how to improve and expand support for military-connected students.
  • Another special highlight of the conference is the Operation Song Workshop, a unique program that empowers veterans, active-duty military members, and their families to tell their stories through the creative process of songwriting. Eight military-connected students from across Tennessee will be selected to participate, creating an emotional and artistic experience that will run concurrently with other conference sessions. The closing session on Day 1 of the conference is a performance of the songs developed during the Operation Song Workshop. This will be a time of reflection as each songwriter performs the song that was written during the day.

Schedule

Tuesday, May 13, 2025

  • 8:30-9:30 a.m.: Registration and Continental Breakfast, George Shinn Center lobby
  • 9 a.m.- 4 p.m.: Operation Song (by invitation only and runs concurrently with the day's main sessions)
  • 9:30-10 a.m.: Welcome Session, George Shinn Center
  • 10-10:45 a.m.: Panel Session, George Shinn Center
  • 10:45-10:55 a.m.: Break
  • 11-11:50 a.m.: Keynote Session, George Shinn Center
  • Noon-1 p.m.: Lunch and Roundtable Discussions
  • 1-4 p.m.: Breakout Sessions, Locations TBD
  • 4-4:30 p.m.: Networking Reception, Shamblin Theatre Lobby, Bennett Campus Center
  • 4:30-5:30 p.m.: Operation Song performances, Shamblin Theatre, Bennett Campus Center

Wednesday, May 14, 2025

  • 8-9 a.m.: "The Connection" and Breakfast, George Shinn Center
  • 9-10 a.m.: Green Zone Training featuring THEC's Gregg Crawford, George Shinn Center
  • 10-10:15 a.m.: Break
  • 10:15-11:15 a.m.: Continued Green Zone Training, George Shinn Center
  • 11:15-11:45 a.m.: Panel Session, George Shinn Center
  • Noon-12:45 p.m.: Lunch, George Shinn Center
  • 12:45-2:45 p.m.: Breakout Sessions, Locations TBD
  • 3-3:45 p.m.: Closing Session, George Shinn Center

Breakout sessions 

Conference participants may choose from a variety of topics offered during breakout sessions. These sessions include (Check back often as this list will be updated as more sessions are announced.):

Tuesday, May 13, 2025

FOR FACULTY AND ADMINISTRATORS
  • How Conflict Can Inform Your Approach to Military-Connected Students. This session will offer strategies for creating a welcoming environment of learning and having a better approach and understanding of what you bring to the table versus what your students are experiencing and need. Presenter: Steve Joiner, Dean, Lipscomb University College of Leadership & Public Service
  • Understanding the Identity of a Military-Connected Student. Gain a perspective on how the student veteran population has changed over the past decade in terms of age, military experiences and life goals as well as an opportunity for discussion on how these factors impact military-connected students and services. Presenter: Sam Lynn, Director, Lipscomb University Office of Veteran Services
  • Military-Connected Student Outreach Perspectives. This session will provide strategies, successes and lessons learned and is geared to help school recruiters, admissions counselors and faculty with a focus on military-connected students in their approach to serving military-connected students. Presenter: Jimmie Handley Jr., Outreach Coordinator, Lipscomb University Office of Veteran Services
FOR STAFF
  • Importance of Interdepartmental Collaboration. Explore the topics of strategic communication between School Certifying Officials, student accounts, financial aid and the registrar — a behind-the-scenes support network that the student rarely sees but benefits from greatly. 
  • Conflict as a Resource. Learn to understand what conflict is, how it affects one's environment and how it can be addressed to enable staff to better support both faculty and students. Presenter: Steve Joiner, Dean, Lipscomb University College of Leadership & Public Service
  • Cross-Country Collaboration. This moderated Zoom session will feature three schools from across the United States who will share about their successful military-connected supportive programs and will engage in a question-and-answer session with attendees. 
  • Working Genius Assessment: Leveraging Strengths for Productivity and Fulfillment. This interactive session will focus on a learning assessment of natural talents and how they intersect with the other five groups to increase productivity and build effective teams resulting in strengthening and enhancing support staff and military-connected programming. Presenter: Hope Nordstrom, Special Counsel to the President for Strategy, Lipscomb University
  • Veteran Reconnect Research on Student Veterans Academic Success. Two research teams will present findings from their Veteran Reconnect 2022-23 grant-funded research projects.
FOR MILITARY-CONNECTED STUDENTS AND STUDENT LEADERS 
  • Why Start a Student Veterans of America Chapter? Learn more about forming a Student Veterans of America chapter on your campus and how it benefits you as a military-connected student. 
  • The 3 Parts to the Department of Veterans Affairs. Explore the three main components of the Department of Veterans Administration — healthcare, disability and education benefits — and how they work together to strengthen your educational mission. Presenter: John Paige, VA Transition Patient Advocate
  • Overcoming the Stigma of Mental Health. In this session, you will gain an understanding of when to seek help and how to overcome the stigma of mental health. 

Wednesday, May 14, 2025

  • Half-Day Session for Military-Connected Students. Students will have an opportunity to interact with SVA representatives, and share ideas and best practices. 
  • Half-Day Training Session for Veterans Education School Certifying Officials. This session will be facilitated by THEC. 
  • Overview of the population of military-connected students in higher education and how that has evolved in 10 years. Presenter: Sam Lynn, Director, Lipscomb University Office of Veteran Services
  • Updates on Veterans' Education Policies and Procedures from THEC's State Approving Agency and the VA's Education Liaison Representative.
  • How to navigate financial aid challenges related to military-connected students. 

Who should attend

Academic leaders, faculty, staff and military-connected student leaders from Tennessee’s higher education institutions. Tennessee-based institutions may send representatives with travel costs (hotel, meals, travel for one vehicle) covered by the THEC Veterans Reconnect Grant.

Registration

Conference registration will be free for employees of Tennessee’s higher education institutions and military-connected student leaders, but registration is required. Registration details will be available in January 2025.

Have Questions?

For more information on the conference, please contact the Office of Veteran Services at Lipscomb University veteranservices [at] lipscomb.edu (by email).

About Lipscomb University's Veteran Services program

Lipscomb University’s Office of Veteran Services has a long-standing commitment to serving military-connected students. Established in 2009, the office has grown from 19 students to supporting 149 student veterans and 249 dependents enrolled in the fall 2024 semester. Over the last 15 years, it has provided services to 966 veterans and 713 dependents, helping them achieve their academic and professional goals. For more information visit www.lipscomb.edu/veteran-services.