WASHINGTON, DC--(Marketwired - July 10, 2014) - Defense One Executive Editor Kevin Baron today announced that the Atlantic Media defense brand will team up with Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America to produce a one-day event focusing on critical veterans issues. "The New Battleground: Veterans Care" is the first of three cornerstone events Defense One will produce this summer as part of its one-year anniversary.
To take place at the National Press Club in Washington, the event will feature a lineup of top lawmakers and experts addressing pressing veterans issues, including problems getting care at VA hospitals, the increasing number of suicides, higher than average unemployment rates and the challenge of gaining support from a war-weary public that lacks understanding of what it means to be a veteran.
In addition to high-profile keynote speakers, the event will feature four panel sessions, including:
-
Veterans Care: Reforms for a 21st Century VA
-
Hiring Veterans: Deployed then Unemployed
-
Twenty-Two a Day: Preventing Suicide Among Veterans
-
The 1 Percent: Bridging the Military-Civilian Divide
Session speakers confirmed to-date include:
-
Rep. Jeff Miller, R-Fla. Chairman of House Committee on Veterans' Affairs
-
Sen. John Walsh, D-Mont.
-
Rep. Brad Wenstrup, R-Ohio, Iraq Veteran
-
Aaron Mankin, U.S. Marine Corps
-
Phillip Carter, Senior Fellow, Counsel and Director of the Military, Veterans, and Society Program, Center for a New American Society
-
Dr. William Nash, Psychiatrist, Quantico
-
Former Rep. Patrick Murphy, Iraq Veteran, MSNBC Host of "Taking the Hill"
-
Paul Rieckhoff, Founder and CEO, Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America
-
Tom Tarantino, Chief Policy Officer, Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America
-
Joseph Kernan, Vice Admiral, U.S. Navy, Ret.; Chairman, NS2 Serves; Vice President, Business Development, SAP National Security Services
-
Mark Testoni, President, NS2 Serves; President and Chief Executive, SAP National Security Services
-
Zach Iscol, CEO, HirePurpose
-
David Wood, Senior Military Correspondent, Huffington Post
-
Leo Shane, Reporter, Military Times
Launched July 16, 2014 and led by Executive Editor Kevin Baron, Defense One is celebrating a remarkable run of success in its first year. Highlights from the past year include:
-
Secretary of Defense Chuck Hagel sitting for his first interview in office with Baron at the Defense One Summit in November 2013
-
Winning the 2014 Neal Award for Best Web Site
-
Surpassing 400,000 unique monthly visitors to DefenseOne.com and 5,000 mobile app downloads
In addition to the veterans event, other events planned as part of the one-year anniversary include: