# Assessing the effect of distance learning vocational rehabilitation on employment outcomes of Veterans with psychiatric illness and histories of legal convictions

> **NIH VA I01** · VA NORTH TEXAS HEALTH CARE SYSTEM · 2020 · —

## Abstract

64,000 veterans are released annually from jails and prisons. These Veterans have a weekly unemployment
rate of up to 40-55%. However, many are unable to access traditional vocational rehabilitation, not to mention
specialized vocational rehabilitation for those with felony histories. Distance learning may be effective in
improving access to rehabilitation as well as improving employment outcomes. The Compass system was
developed to incorporate both synchronous and asynchronous distance learning to provide effective services.
This study will evaluate 150 Veterans with histories of legal convictions and mental illness and/or a substance
use disorder. Veterans will be randomly assigned to either a basic vocational resources condition or the
Compass condition. In the basic condition, Veterans will be provided with basic information about where they
can access vocational services and a paper version of a vocational reintegration manual, specifically the About
Face Vocational Manual. Veterans assigned to the Compass condition will be given access to the online
instruction through Videos, live chat features, and tele-health practice interviews with feedback. Veterans will
be followed for 6 months. The primary outcomes are employment and interview skills.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 9922679
- **Project number:** 5I01RX002451-03
- **Recipient organization:** VA NORTH TEXAS HEALTH CARE SYSTEM
- **Principal Investigator:** James LePage
- **Activity code:** I01 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** VA
- **Fiscal year:** 2020
- **Award amount:** —
- **Award type:** 5
- **Project period:** 2018-06-01 → 2022-05-31

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/9922679

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 9922679, Assessing the effect of distance learning vocational rehabilitation on employment outcomes of Veterans with psychiatric illness and histories of legal convictions (5I01RX002451-03). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-25 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/9922679. Licensed CC0.

---

*[NIH grants dataset](/datasets/nih-grants) · CC0 1.0*