Dr. Yashika D. Neaves
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Dr. Yashika D. Neaves leads strategic plans and initiatives for the U.S. Department of Defense (DoD) Military-Civilian Transition Office under the Office of the Under Secretary of Defense for Personnel and Readiness. Her portfolio spans public and private stakeholder engagements; strategic communications; interagency policy and partnerships; and public affairs and organizational development related to military pre-separation counseling, psychosocial prevention/interventions, career transition, and reintegration for active and Reserve Components. She is responsible for maturing evidence-based programmatic strategies, operations, and organizational structures utilizing technical authority and subject-matter expertise to resolve operational gaps in the DoD Transition Assistance Program (TAP) and the Yellow Ribbon Reintegration Program (YRRP).
Dr. Neaves spearheads congressional, interservice and interagency, federal, state, and local government collaborations and initiatives. She has oversight of joint effort implementations in support of 200,000 annual transitioning service members and their families worldwide. She serves as the DoD Ex-Officio for the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) Advisory Committee on Homeless Veterans (ACHV); the Department of Labor (DOL) Advisory Committee on Veterans Employment, Training, and Employer Outreach (ACVETEO); as well as several other interagency governance bodies to leverage stakeholder initiatives, mitigate transition-related challenges for future Veterans, and maximize interagency partner collaborations.
Dr. Neaves’ prior experience crosses academia, public, and private sectors. She previously served as a community-based Independent Consultant for eight years, a Behavioral Science adjunct professor with the University of Valley Forge for three years, and a Defense contractor for four years. Her more than 10-year federal career includes contributions to the Defense Human Resources Activity, the Department of the Army Continuing Education System, the Department of the Army Installation Management Command, the DoD Education Activity, and the DOL Veterans’ Employment and Training Service (VETS).
Dr. Neaves holds a Doctorate in Counseling Education and Supervision from Regent University, a Master of Education in Counseling, and a Bachelor of Science in Psychology from Northwestern State University. Her efforts to eliminate transition-to-civilian barriers and improve Veteran community integration have been presented at a conference with the American Mental Health Counselors Association and featured in the AMHCA 2018 and 2019 Advocate Magazine. Her work on “Career Counseling and the Military” was published in 2018 by Cognella, with a second edition slated for publication. She is a disabled Veteran, spouse of a retired service member, daughter of a retired Army officer, and proud mother of two sons, with her eldest currently attending the U.S. Military Academy at West Point.
