In fall of 2023, in collaboration with Humanities Texas, Dr. McGuire and Clinical Psychology PhD students organized the first Veterans’ Voices program at UT Tyler. Veterans’ Voices is a 5-week program that brings veterans and civilians together to read and discuss literature featuring war, military, or veteran/service-member themes. Five PhD students with an interest in pursuing careers in veteran healthcare were trained alongside 5 local veterans from the Tyler community to become discussion leaders for this program. Together, the 10 discussion leaders were trained on several important skills that are required to lead a group discussion. These trainings included learning how to engage with literary analysis, facilitate open and respectful discussions, manage potential group conflict, and communicate with veterans and civilians about sensitive topics (e.g., war stories, difficult experiences during the military). Then, students partnered with the trained veterans to co-lead Veterans’ Voices discussion groups for 5 weeks (1 meeting per week).
Participants were recruited by asking students and veteran discussion leaders to share information about the program in their respective communities. Students made announcements in undergraduate and graduate courses, along with posting flyers around campus. Veterans shared announcements on social media and through local veteran-based organizations. People were encouraged to come to as many meetings as possible but were not required to attend every week.
Across the 5 weeks, 21 people participated in the program, which included other veterans and civilians from the community, other graduate students, and undergraduate students from the university. Meetings were held on Wednesday evenings at the Alumni House on campus. Every meeting started by breaking into small groups where discussion leaders guided the group to read text excerpts out loud from a wide range of war/military-related literature. After readings were complete, discussion leaders facilitated a discussion about reactions and interpretations of the text. This experiential program allowed the PhD students to gain hands-on experience forming bonds with veterans in our community, engaging in serious discussions about military experiences, and gaining insight directly from veterans. Notably, participants of the weekly meetings reported experiencing several benefits including a greater awareness and understanding of military experiences. Veterans also reported positive experiences and enjoyed helping others understand unique aspects of miliary culture. Veterans’ Voices is scheduled to continue again in Fall 2024 with the hopes of expanding participation.
