Speaker: Edmund Dunn

As of August 2020, there are over 4.7 million disabled Veterans in the United States. They are all dealing with a variety of disabilities connected to their time in the service. To say this is an under-represented group is an understatement. With the right help, these Veterans can transition into the tech industry which is chronically short of developers of all stripes.

I received help and followed a path to becoming a Drupal developer. I will outline my path to becoming a Drupal developer through the VAs Vocational Rehabilitation Program and use it as an example of what disabled Veterans can do to get started in Drupal. I will also speak to what employers can do to assist Veterans who want to become Drupal developers.

This session will cover:

- Summary of my path to becoming a Drupal developer.
- The things that disabled Veterans can do to become Drupal developers.
- The support I receive from Aten and how employers can support disabled Veterans on their staff
- Summary of assistance available from the VA, i.e. Vocational Rehabilitation, GI Bill
- The benefits for Veterans in becoming a Drupal developer.
- How to approach job applications and the hiring process

This session is for:

- Disabled Veterans just getting started as a developer
- Disabled Veterans getting started with Drupal
- Employers looking for qualified developers who are looking to diversify their staff
- Community members seeking Veteran outreach opportunities