Evidence-Based Planning and Pilot Framework

UP Veteran Workforce & Economic Renewal Initiative

A decision-oriented framework for validating employer demand, veteran interest, training pathways, housing and service capacity, funding, safety, and measurable outcomes.

Purpose and decision standard

This plan will determine whether to launch a time-limited Upper Peninsula pilot linking veterans to employment, training, housing and community integration, with optional nature-based wellbeing activities. The concept is promising but remains unvalidated. It should proceed only if local research confirms concentrated employer demand, viable credential-to-job pathways, safe housing and referral capacity, committed delivery partners, participant interest, and a lawful braided-funding plan.

Scope boundary: This is a veteran-centered workforce and community-integration initiative—not a PTSD treatment program, clinical provider, or residential sanctuary campus unless those functions are separately licensed, staffed, funded, and governed.

Five propositions to test

1. Employer demand

Target employers have recurring openings offering acceptable wages, safety, stability, and advancement.

2. Veteran interest

A reachable group of veterans wants the employment, training, housing-navigation, and community model being considered.

3. Training feasibility

Local providers can deliver recognized credentials that connect directly to verified jobs.

4. Community infrastructure

Housing, transportation, broadband, healthcare, referral, family, and winter-access needs can be supported safely.

5. Retention

The combined model can support durable employment, housing stability, belonging, and long-term community integration.

Recommended pilot

Geography: one Upper Peninsula labor shed or a small cluster of accessible communities selected after capacity mapping—not the entire U.P.
Cohort: approximately 12–20 voluntarily enrolled veterans over 12 months, with a smaller readiness cohort if conditions require it.
Sector focus: one or two sectors with year-round, living-wage, advancement-oriented jobs and existing training partners.
Service package: a dedicated navigator, employment and benefits navigation, credential support, transportation and tools/PPE assistance, employer liaison, optional peer/community and outdoor activities, and formal referral pathways.
Housing approach: housing navigation and flexible stabilization first; program-controlled housing only after legal, financial, insurance, zoning, accessibility, and operating-capacity review.
Employer proposition: screened candidates, coordinated onboarding, a single contact point, retention check-ins, and help accessing eligible workforce incentives.

Participant pathway

Referral and voluntary assessment → individual employment plan → benefits and housing screening → credential bridge or paid work-based learning → placement → retention support at 30, 90, 180, and 365 days → advancement.

Phases and decision gates

Phase 0 · 8–12 weeks

Labor-market analysis, 20–30 stakeholder interviews, veteran listening sessions, housing and service mapping, funding scan, and legal/risk review.

Phase 1 · About 3 months

Execute agreements, train staff, finalize protocols and consent, secure funding, and recruit a small first cohort.

Phase 2 · 9–12 months

Enroll, train, place, and support participants with monthly reviews involving employers and participants.

Gate 1: authorize design only when employer demand, training, housing, referral capacity, and a lead operator meet thresholds. Gate 2: scale, redesign, or stop according to predefined outcomes, safety, participant experience, and budget performance.

Economic sectors to validate

Research will test opportunities across forestry and forest products; skilled trades and infrastructure; agriculture and food systems; manufacturing; mining and mineral supply chains; transportation and logistics; healthcare; telecommunications and remote work; equipment repair and maintenance; conservation, recreation, and public lands; and community housing.

Employment comes first. Priority should go to competitive wages, safe workplaces, year-round jobs where possible, recognized credentials, benefits, advancement, and a realistic match between participants and job requirements. Volunteer activity and seasonal work should not be counted as durable employment.

Funding and delivery partners

The initiative will investigate braided support through workforce, veteran, education, housing, rural-development, infrastructure, employer, and philanthropic channels. Potential sources include WIOA, Jobs for Veterans State Grants, HVRP where applicable, Registered Apprenticeship, VA VR&E and education benefits, HUD-VASH and local housing systems, USDA Rural Development, EDA, state and local programs, and employer investment. Eligibility, allowable uses, competition, timing, and match requirements must be verified before any source is treated as available.

Potential partners include Michigan Works! agencies, the Michigan Veterans Affairs Agency, County Veterans Service Offices, accredited benefits navigators, community colleges, apprenticeship sponsors, employers, workforce intermediaries, housing providers, healthcare and behavioral-health referral organizations, counties, municipalities, tribes where appropriate, regional development bodies, and community foundations.

Outcomes and safeguards

Measures

Enrollment and referral completion
Credentials and training completion
Placement, wages, benefits, and hours
90/180/365-day retention and advancement
Housing and transportation stability
Belonging and participant satisfaction
Employer repeat hiring and responsiveness
Cost per participant and budget performance

Safeguards

Voluntary participation and informed consent
No required disclosure of diagnoses or trauma history
Minimum necessary data and role-based access
De-identified public reporting
Separation of employment and clinical records
Trauma-informed practice and participant choice
Formal crisis and clinical referral protocols
No unsupported therapeutic or causal claims

Decision rules

Go: a capable lead operator, documented employer commitments, verified pathways, participant interest, housing and clinical-referral capacity, compliant funding, and evaluation safeguards are in place.

Conditional go: demand is real but one enabling condition—typically housing, transportation, or funding—requires a short planning phase or micro-pilot.

No-go or redesign: jobs are mainly seasonal or low wage, housing is not viable, veterans do not want the model, partners cannot support safety and referrals, or the plan depends on unverified therapeutic claims or speculative funding.

Prove locally before scaling.

← Return to the Executive Summary

Planning framework dated September 2026. All proposed figures, partners, funding sources, and implementation decisions remain subject to validation and approval.