Leo Reid is the director of Veteran Services at WTAMU. He is a ten year veteran of the United States Navy.

Leo is also a WTAMU alumni, earning his Masters in Psychology. He was a counselor in Career Services before joining Veteran Services. He is also the inaugural director of Veteran Services at WT.

“I did all my practicum work here at WT,” Reid said. “I like to tell people that, because it helped build my network and relationships with professors here at WT.”

Leo works individually with all the veterans at WT and helps them transition from military life to an academic life in the civilian world.

“Leo is fantastic,” said Kristen Randl, a Health Sciences major at WTAMU and former member of the United States Marine Corps. “I can come to Leo anytime I have a problem. He knows most of the veterans here on campus by name.”

“When I first left the Army, the first thing I did was come by Veteran Services,” said Micah Palmer, a Mechanical Engineering major at WTAMU and former medic in the United States Army. “Leo was great, he told me everything I needed and when I came back with it he had everything ready for me. My transition was smooth as butter.”

Leo oversees many programs for Veteran Services, including being certified for Cognitive Processing Therapy for veterans who suffer from Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder, more commonly known as PTSD.

“I am a certified provider here at WTAMU,” said Reid. “There’s only two of us here for twenty-six counties. We are able to work through some of the traumatic events some veterans have went through.”

The transitions aren’t always as smooth at other universities as they are at WT.

“I was at a school in St. Louis before coming to WT,” said Randl. “It so much different how supportive everything is here [at WT]as opposed to there. Leo has a very hands on approach to helping the veterans at WT.”

Some veterans have trouble receiving their benefits from their Veteran Services departments, which they rely on in order to go to school full time, but not at WT.

“You see and hear stories about veterans having problems with their veteran services and struggling to get their benefits,” said Palmer. “It’s not like that here at WT. Everything works like a cog in a machine and it makes my life so much easier.”

Leo treats the veterans at WT like extensions of his family, providing a stable network for veterans to turn to with any problems.

“It’s nice having other veterans to talk with and help you through some of the struggles that come in going to school full time,” said Palmer. “Leo introduces us to other veterans and encourages to build relationships to help each other.”

Leo oversees 259 veterans at WTAMU, plus an additional 31 who receive tuition assistance while they remain in the reserves or on active duty.