Employee Spotlight
December 13, 2021
Michael J. Arinello, MPM, MSS; Colonel US Army (Retired)
Vocational Development /Employment Specialist
Mental Health Care Line
Housing and Urban Development-VA Supported Housing (HUD- VASH) Program
Southern Arizona VA Health Care System (SAVAHCS)
Tucson, AZ
Q: How long have you been employed by VA?
A: I’ve been employed with VA for six years.
Q: Tell us about your job at VA. Describe a few of your duties and how long you have been in this.
A: I was hired as the Vocational Development Specialist (VDS) in September 2015 to provide employment services for over 600 Veterans annually in direct support to the HUD-VASH program.
When I first started, the VDS position was just starting up in HUD/VASH. I, along with another VDS and our Community Employment Coordinator (CEC), developed our very own strategic plan that outlined the specific employment functions and services we would provide to our Veterans. In addition, we developed a partnership with the local community workforce connection agency, which has a separate Veterans center (where I work).
I provide direct employment services such as federal and nonfederal resume preparation, assistance with completion and submission of job applications and interview skills training.
Prior to my position at the VA from I was an instructor, trainer and facilitator with the Department of Labor, Soldier for Life, Transition Assistance Program (TAP) for the Ft. Huachuca, AZ and Southwest region. There, I conducted career transition workshops at multiple military bases in the Southwest region for military members and their spouses’ transition from active-duty Military into the civilian work force.
I retired in 2013 after 30 years of military service as an Intelligence Officer in the US Army. I continued to work as a defense contractor until I switched career paths, which brought me to where I am today.
Q: How do you help to prevent and end Veteran homelessness? Are these actions connected to your work at VA or independent of it? How many Veterans do you think have been impacted by your contributions?
A: I conduct employment assessments of clients with barriers to employment using appropriate counseling, job search, job development and job placement interventions. Additionally, in collaboration with the VA Compensated Work Therapy (CWT) CEC, I identify employers that can provide our Veterans with meaningful employment and help them become self-sufficient, with the goal of ultimately mitigating chronic homelessness.
We also coordinate support of the HUD-VASH peer support specialist, Lori Kiefer. Together, we assist Veterans in the program by determining eligibility and applying for Social Security and VA benefits to obtain income to maintain stable housing.
Q: How many Veterans do you think have been impacted by your contributions?
A: As the HUD-VASH VDS I directly help Veterans experiencing homelessness gain meaningful employment. The success of our program is reflected by the VA employment measure, which has a goal of 47% of employable Veterans in HUD-VASH obtaining full- or part-time employment. The national score is 43%, but locally we ended fiscal year 2021 at 70%, the second highest score in the Southwest region.
Q: Tell us about what inspired you to become involved in helping to end Veteran homelessness.
A: I previously did volunteer work for nonprofit organizations such as Mentors4Soldiers and sober living recovery agencies providing employment counseling for teenagers, adults and Veterans. Our clients had a variety of barriers to employment, including substance abuse disorders and intellectual disabilities. I helped them with job search techniques, resume writing, interview preparation and referrals to the full range of employment and training services available in the community. Additionally, my wife was working for Child Protective Services and often referred Veterans to me for employment assistance. She saw that I had a passion for helping others find meaningful careers. I ultimately changed career paths and started as an instructor for the Transition Assistance Program (TAP).
These experiences inspired me to apply for the HUD-VASH position to specifically be part of a team of professionals such as social workers, peer support specialists, CECs and Vocational Rehabilitation Specialists to assist fellow Veterans with gaining employment and sustaining permanent housing.
Q: Tell us about the greatest challenge you faced in your efforts to end Veteran homelessness and how you overcame it.
A: Initially, my greatest challenge was educating and motivating Veterans about the benefits of obtaining stable employment and the services the HUD-VASH VDS program can provide.
Another challenge was how to improve collaboration with other community agencies to enterprise our joint efforts. I established a Memorandum of Understanding with our county workforce connection center to continue HUD-VASH VDS co-location partnership. This improved HUD-VASH clients’ access to services and programs that are not available within the VA and increased employment services to veterans. I then increased collaboration between CWT VRS and HUD-VASH VDS programs, which improved client services for Veterans transitioning from CWT to sustained employment in the community. Finally, I developed a HUD-VASH VDS program overview presentation for new employees and supervisors, which increased awareness and understanding of the services provided to support clients in HUD-VASH.
In conjunction with the VA CEC, we developed a quarterly employment services forum with community agencies and partners to share what services each agency could provide, best practices and open employment opportunities in the community.
I worked with the CWT CEC to create a contact list of hiring managers to refer Veterans for employment.
I am the primary facilitator of the community employers’ weekly outreach networking group and job fair, sponsored by the county One Stop Veterans Center. This group increases HUD-VASH clients’ opportunities to engage with community employers.
I also updated the HUD-VASH VDS newsletter for case managers and new participant groups to inform HUD-VASH Veterans of employment services offered in our program.
Lastly, I developed the VDS strategic communications plan with our facility’s Public Affairs Officer and in conjunction with the AZ@Work, where I published an article highlighting the HUD-VASH VDS partnership with the county Kino Vet center and the success of employment services that Veterans receive.
Q: What advice would you give to other VA employees who are interested in helping homeless and at-risk Veterans?
A: Understand the employment resources available in the VA HUD-VASH and CWT programs and refer Veterans to the VA’s VDS and VRS programs. These professionals know the resources that are available in the community to assist Veterans with employment, education and training services. By helping Veterans gain meaningful employment and maintain stable housing, we can ultimately help lead them to an improved quality of life with positive health and social outcomes.
