NSU Horizons Fall 2017

36 NSU HORIZONS Pounds credits his military experience for preparing him for a successful academic career. “The military was definitely good for me at that time in my life,” he said. “It builds confidence. It builds self-awareness and definitely gives you a purpose. I would never have been able to graduate college [without that foundation.]” He learned how to design, install, and maintain infor- mation systems during Operation Enduring Freedom and Operation Iraqi Freedom, but putting that knowledge to work in the civilian world required a college degree. “My mindset was, I know how to do the work. I just need the credentials to do it,” he said. The couple made their way to South Florida during 2007, when Shick was offered employment with Kovack Financial Companies, where she has since advanced to treasurer and senior vice president. Pounds was hired within the IT depart- ment at the NSU Abraham S. Fischler College of Education. Both enrolled at NSU, with Shick obtaining an M.B.A. with a concentration in entrepreneurship and Pounds obtaining an M.S. in Management and Information Systems from the College of Engineering and Computing. He is now pursuing a Ph.D. in Information Systems. Pounds also serves on the board of directors for the South Florida Digital Alliance, which works to expand digital literacy and to provide access to the Internet. He is a lifetime member of the Veterans of Foreign Wars. While Pounds has successfully navigated the transition from military to civilian life, he knows the process can be difficult. “You go from being in the military and having a set of objectives. When you get out, you don’t have that structure anymore,” he said. NSU has more than 800 veterans enrolled who bring with them maturity, confidence, and invaluable experience. However, because veterans require different types of support and resources than traditional students, NSU is expanding its ways to help. The Veterans Resource Center was established in 2015 to be a central point of contact for veterans. Services available for veterans include a Veterans Law Clinic; medical, dental, and therapy services; the Trauma Resolution Integration Program; as well as academic and career advising. NSU has also partnered with the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs to offer the Yellow Ribbon scholarship program to under- graduate and graduate students. The center is on the second floor of the Rosenthal Student Center on the Fort Lauderdale/Davie Campus, staffed part- time by a student Navy veteran. It is decorated with flags from all branches of the military, and it is a gathering spot that offers computers, printers, a flat-screen TV, coffee, and snacks. “I feel we have done a pretty good job of surrounding veterans with all the resources they would need from the time they start their program to the finish,” said Kimberly Durham, Psy.D., interim dean of the NSU Abraham S. Fischler College of Education and interim director of the Veterans Resource Center. But Durham said more needs to be done. She hopes to hire a veteran as full-time center director within a year. “That will allow us to ramp up everything we are doing now,” she said. Marine veteran De Santis was a catalyst for the center. After leaving active duty in 2012, she enrolled in Pasadena continued from previous page Former Marine Anthony Droz, now majoring in environmental science at the NSU Halmos College of Natural Sciences and Oceanography, shows Leonard Pounds how he is training Adonis, an Australian blue heeler, who will work with veterans.