Editor’s Note: This article mentions helping veterans who struggle with mental health, and includes the sensitive topic of suicide. Anyone struggling with depression or suicidal ideation can visit the Health Center on campus, or set up an appointment at 818-551-5189.

As the school year nears its end, GCC’s 10-week spring Team Internships have concluded. The Team Internship program is a paid initiative in which GCC students utilize design thinking to solve a challenge that a local business partner is facing. The program finishes with a final presentation to representatives from the business partner and also offers workshops in public speaking, resumé building, and conducting research. There are new internship opportunities every semester.

This spring, GCC hosted three internships, each with a separate business partner. The City of Glendale’s Department of Public Works focused on increasing participation in waste reduction initiatives. Go Baby Go, an organization that provides mobility aids for children with special needs, sought student feedback on their miniature ride-on cars. I had the privilege of working with the USC Institute for Creative Technologies to better the user experience of Battle Buddy, a mobile app that aims to improve the mental health of veterans. 

Battle Buddy was developed to address the epidemic of veteran suicides, though it also provides more comprehensive mental health support. Users are guided through the app by a virtual, AI-powered avatar. In addition to original wellness content, Battle Buddy connects users to external resources and organizations. 

Student veterans who participated in the USC internship brought a unique perspective to discussions about Battle Buddy. One such veteran, Noel B., was thrilled to see technology used as a positive means of connection. Noel recalled learning about the suicide of a fellow soldier through a Facebook group: “In the Army, we didn’t always get along. I saw him as a bit of a meathead, but it’s still hard to see.” He acknowledged the ongoing struggle faced by many veterans even after finishing their active duty: “The phrase ‘Thank you for your service’ insinuates that you’ve stopped serving, but that’s not the case.”

Noel, who is 55, enjoyed being able to converse with younger people about mental health. He feels that “as an older person, you’re either part of the problem or part of the solution,” and was glad to see a sensitive topic handled with great care. At times, he found that the project “took a lot of energy.” Noel sees tremendous potential in Battle Buddy and has already noticed that younger veterans are more open to talking about their emotions. He notes, “It’s evolved to a point where I think younger veterans understand that this is what we fought for: to be on a campus, to be able to learn and study what we want to.” The internship has also made Noel feel more connected to the broader GCC student body: “It’s changed everything. I’ve gotten to know my peers so much better. For me, it’s put the community in community college.” 

Christian Mandarino, another student veteran, credits the USC internship for “Making me question the way I thought. For the first time, I considered how other people experience mental health.” He particularly appreciated “the group meetings and connecting my experience in the service with actionable ideas from non-vets. I loved problem-solving, human-based design technology, and learning how to dive deep into the problems you’re interested in.”

Mandarino has also had Army friends who have committed suicide and found the experience to be “a wake-up call. I come from a background where you’re not considered ‘a man’ if you talk about your mental health. This attitude was even more extreme in the Army…In the infantry, the way we handled other people’s mental health was horrible.” Mandarino thinks “socially, the military is about five years behind everyone else,” but feels that Battle Buddy has “insane promise,” and is “an amazing step in the right direction, especially for the younger generation.” 

Beyond the internship, both students praised GCC for the support it shows to its veteran community.“After getting out of the Army, I got a scholarship to Chapman University,” Stated Noel. “While I was there, I didn’t really get along with people…it’s different in the military.” After Chapman, Noel enrolled in classes at community colleges across California, but “I’m all in on GCC,” in part because of the fantastic Health and Veterans Resource Centers. Mandarino also praised the Veterans Resource Center, calling it “my second home.” Around 164 veterans are currently enrolled at GCC, and Mandarino encourages more of them to participate in “the healthy environment of academic individuals that we’ve fostered.” 

Students who are interested in participating in Team Internships in the future can find more information under the Student Services section of GCC’s website. For other veterans or those who are simply curious about GCC’s veteran community, Noel insists, “you don’t have to be a veteran to hang out at the VRC.” 

Carissa C. can be reached at [email protected].