MEDIA RELEASE

A new Web site designed to provide a one-stop location for veterans and veterans organizations to learn about Department of Homeland Security’s many veteran outreach initiatives and hiring and contracting opportunities has been unveiled.

“This new Web site reflects the shared commitment across the Department to hiring American veterans,” DHS Secretary Janet Napolitano said. “Veterans play a vital role in the DHS’s mission to protect the nation, and this Web site will help us build our veteran workforce to more than 50,000 department-wide by 2012.”

The announcement follows President Obama’s Executive Order on the Employment of Veterans in the Federal Government, which emphasizes recruiting and training veterans for employment at federal agencies, increasing the veteran workforce within the executive branch and assisting recently hired veterans in making the adjustment to service in a civilian capacity.

The new Web site features information for veterans about how to find employment opportunities at DHS, ways to get involved in community-based efforts like Citizen Corps, and special veteran programs such as Operation Warfighter and Wounded Warrior, which provide employment opportunities for severely wounded or recovering service members to assist their transition back to the military or civilian workforce.

The Web site also features DHS procurement opportunities for veteran and service disabled veteran business owners and information about DHS policies and news impacting the veteran community.

The site is the latest step in DHS’ active engagement and recruitment of veterans and veteran-owned businesses. DHS’ civilian workforce includes approximately 47,000 veterans, comprising 25 percent of all employees — including Deputy Secretary Jane Holl Lute — in addition to the 42,000 active duty members of the U.S. Coast Guard.

On Oct. 29, Napolitano met with leaders of several veterans service organizations to discuss DHS’ ongoing collaborations with veterans on recruitment and other key DHS initiatives, such as the Service Disabled Veteran-Owned Small Business contract program, which promotes contracting opportunities for veteran-owned businesses.

Napolitano also recently announced the DHS Veterans Outreach Steering Committee — a group of representatives from across the department who will meet regularly and advise the Secretary on efforts to improve and integrate veteran outreach.

At the committee’s first meeting, in October, she discussed plans to expand existing veterans programs and streamline DHS veterans outreach efforts to enhance openness and transparency.

— Find out more:

www.dhs.gov/veterans