Veterans in rural communities face a compounded challenge: they were never taught how the civilian economy works, and the economies they’re returning to may not have traditional employment pathways. The standard model — resume, interview, placement — breaks down when there are no employers hiring.
Ritchie Thomas, Army Veteran and CEO/Founder of Military Transition University, presents a rural-adapted economic readiness framework built on six employment tracks that actually work in rural and underserved geographies:
• Federal remote employment (OPM, USDA, VA)
• Telehealth and health workforce (HRSA)
• Small business and microenterprise (SBA)
• Agricultural workforce transition
• Infrastructure and trades (DOL apprenticeships)
• Hybrid remote-to-rural career architecture
THIS SESSION COVERS
• Why placement-based metrics fail rural veteran populations — and what to measure instead
• The six rural employment tracks and the federal partners already funding each one
• How workforce boards can deliver veteran economic readiness programming without local
employer density
• A 90-day framework for rural workforce areas to launch veteran business literacy programming with zero IT integration
DESIGNED FOR
This session is designed for workforce professionals serving rural, tribal, and underserved veteran populations — and for any workforce professional who has ever been held accountable for placement metrics in an economy that doesn’t generate placements.
CWDP Competency 2: Diversity in Workforce Development