Our Mission
... is to build a holistic world-class support service and network where U.S. servicewomen and women veterans are fully empowered to achieve their dreams and goals.
Our Plan
Create a nationwide network of near-base and community-anchored women-centric service centers affording holistic hands-on support to frame, or reframe, and advance the civilian lives of our returning U.S. servicewomen and women veterans.
Our Goal
Ensure that every U.S. servicewoman has a female-friendly space and community forum in which to effectively move from the structure, unique culture, and personal impact of their time in military service to the differently structured, nonmilitary culture of the civilian world.
our what - plan components
Women-Centric Facilities
Community Building Events
Community Building Events
Adjacent to installations, these will be spaces for mingling, talking, studying, learning, childcare, and relaxing. Space in which to coach, teach, construct, and polish. Spaces for finding and sharing friendship and support.
Community Building Events
Community Building Events
Community Building Events
Hosting community building events including career and personal growth workshops: Where Yes and No Don't Mean It, Networking (When You Hate It), Family Dynamics Now, Cooking for Those Who Can't, and sharing simple pleasures like movie nights, and cookouts.
Coaching
Community Building Events
Education & Training
Individual one-to-one relationships, and small groups coaching where coaches listen deeply, empower and inspire, and are judgement-free confidential resources focused on helping Sheroes to discover their personal choices and their next stage.
Education & Training
Education & Training
Education & Training
Career and skills training workshops including Writing a Real Resume, Interview Planning and Rehearsals, Employer Presentations, Jobs Skills Training, Education Enrollment Support.
Partnerships
Education & Training
Referral Network
Partnering with other Veteran Service Providers, YNS will work in partnership with every available organization, service and company committed to supporting our returning military personnel.
Referral Network
Education & Training
Referral Network
YNS will be a part of a technologically-integrated service network where each provider meets specific needs. Sheroes will never walk alone, but will be guided to and through the right network to meet her needs.
our where and when
Our Request for YOUR Action
We've decided ... it's Washington, D.C.: Not an easy market in which to launch anything, but it is the nation's capital and home to powerful Federal, District, State, County, local and nonprofit resources passionately committed to America's military and veteran populations. And the region, described locally as the DMV (District, Maryland, Virginia), is home to more than 72,000 women veterans and more than a dozen military installations. It's a gamble, but we believe it's the place to start. If you are a woman who wore a U.S. military uniform or know one in the DMV, we really want to hear from you, about you, and to include you in our plans. Drop us a note below.
We continue to work with friends at the previously mentioned "major academic institution." We're gratefully hitched to the Crimson Tide; the University of Alabama's Center for Evaluation. Take a look below to learn more about our research partners. We've always said we're committed to excellence, and the only way to ensure that is to subject ourselves to ongoing assessment. While we are intellectually certain of the need for and value of our approach, we are humble enough to learn, adapt, and improve. We are confident that our research partners are honest, rigorous, and as committed to the mission as we are. Thank you, U of A.
We're not here to replicate the work of others, but to integrate the best service and support by the best providers in the veteran service world; to create a women-centric space, a community in which all women who wear or have worn a US military uniform are able to access and receive the services and support needed to transition successfully to the very different civilian world. We are going to build a village, and it's going to take a village. If you are a veteran-serving provider, we want to hear from you.
While our pilot's target market is the Washington, D.C. area, YNS is working hard to identify women-veteran serving organizations around the country. We've moved to be here, and we know you may move to be there -- wherever there is. And, we know that we can't be everywhere. We are currently working with other nonprofit partners in the world of veteran collaboratives to build a detailed and comprehensive database of possible referral partners; organizations around the US currently providing informed and culturally sensitive women veteran services and support. We want to know you and to share your information so that this safety-net, a spider-web of support services, can be made available to all servicewomen, past, present, and future. Please contact us so we can add you to this growing and increasingly beneficial women-veteran services database.
YNS believes that our approach -- holistic, community-based and integrated with other partners -- will be substantially greater than the sum of its parts. We invite all who are interested in investing in a system designed to support our women to be in touch with us; to contribute to YourNexStage. Our "when" depends upon all of you.
Learn More
We're going to be a coffee-house with kids: a holistic one-stop women-centric veteran service and support center piloted first -- and proudly -- in Washington, D.C.
our Long Term Objectives
Increase the self-identification rate of women who have served in the US military. They are American Veterans.
Increase the public perception of women as veterans at the same magnitude as their male peers.
Have a measurable positive impact on the lives of America's women warriors, as evidenced by dramatically reduced symptoms of Transition Failure:
- Reduced negative health impacts
- Improved mental health
- Reduced housing instability
- Improved "right" employment and retention levels
- Improved and sustained education placements
- Improved levels of financial wellness
Facilitate the evolution of a nationwide network of veteran-serving organizations with offerings and environments to more effectively meet the needs of women veterans.
Board of Directors
Althea Green, Ph.D., Command Sergeant Major, USA (Ret.)
Althea Green, Ph.D., Command Sergeant Major, USA (Ret.)
Althea Green, Ph.D., Command Sergeant Major, USA (Ret.)
Past Chair - Board Member
Director, Recruitment and Enlisted to Medical Degree Preparatory Program,
Uniformed Services University,
Bethesda, MD
After 35 years of active duty and retiring as a Command Sergeant Major, Dr. Green (formerly Dixon) continues to serve at the Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences. In addition to
Past Chair - Board Member
Director, Recruitment and Enlisted to Medical Degree Preparatory Program,
Uniformed Services University,
Bethesda, MD
After 35 years of active duty and retiring as a Command Sergeant Major, Dr. Green (formerly Dixon) continues to serve at the Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences. In addition to overseeing recruitment operations at the School of Medicine, she is the director of the Enlisted to Medical Degree Preparatory Program (EMDP2). The EMDP2 provides enlisted service members with science coursework, clinical experience, and mentoring so they can be competitive applicants to medical school. A passionate advocate for improved transition support for women, Dr. Green is married to a retired Army medic and is the mother of two sons, one a recently transitioned Army officer steering cybersecurity in NYC
Barton Buechner, Ph.D., Captain, USN (Ret.)
Althea Green, Ph.D., Command Sergeant Major, USA (Ret.)
Althea Green, Ph.D., Command Sergeant Major, USA (Ret.)
Interim Chair
Senior Adjunct Professor,
Military Psychology,
Adler University,
Midland, MI
A retired Naval Commander, Dr.
Buechner is an active educator, researcher, and advocate for post-service education and employment, and community-based, mentor-led approaches to transition support for returning veterans. He earned a Ph.D. in Hu
Interim Chair
Senior Adjunct Professor,
Military Psychology,
Adler University,
Midland, MI
A retired Naval Commander, Dr.
Buechner is an active educator, researcher, and advocate for post-service education and employment, and community-based, mentor-led approaches to transition support for returning veterans. He earned a Ph.D. in Human Development from Fielding Graduate University; is a graduate of the US Naval Academy; Case Western Reserve University, and the US Naval War College. Dr. Buechner is actively involved in the American Psychological Association's, Division 19. Women veterans hold a special place in Bart's world. As an advisor to and co-author of the last work of Shannon Kent, SCPO, USN, Bart was deeply impacted by this extraordinary woman and views the mission of YourNexStage as another way to honor this fallen warrior.
Kyleanne Hunter, Ph.D., Major, USMC Veteran
Althea Green, Ph.D., Command Sergeant Major, USA (Ret.)
Kelly Kaplan Veteran Spouse
Board Member
Assistant Professor, Military and Strategic Studies, United States Air Force Academy & Managing Director, Athena Leadership Project
Colorado Springs, CO
Kyleanne Hunter is a Marine Corps veteran with a doctorate in political science. She served multiple combat deployments as an AH-1W "Super Cobra" attack helicopter pilot in
Board Member
Assistant Professor, Military and Strategic Studies, United States Air Force Academy & Managing Director, Athena Leadership Project
Colorado Springs, CO
Kyleanne Hunter is a Marine Corps veteran with a doctorate in political science. She served multiple combat deployments as an AH-1W "Super Cobra" attack helicopter pilot in Iraq and Afghanistan and finished her time on active duty in the Marine Corps Legislative Liaison Office.
Kyleanne is an Assistant Professor of Military and Strategic Studies at the United States Air Force Academy and the Managing Director of the Athena Leadership Project. She is also Adjunct Professor for the Georgetown University National Security Studies program, Adjunct Senior Fellow at the Center for New American Security, Non-resident Fellow at the Brute Krulak Center for Innovation and Creativity at the Marine Corps University and is the inaugural Sarah Brady Fellow.
Kyleanne is also the co-editor of “Invisible Veterans: What Happens When Military Women Become Civilians Again” (Thomas / Hunter 2019). Her next book “Gendering Security: The Wars we Fight” will be published in early 2021.
Kelly Kaplan Veteran Spouse
Alan Allegretto Lieutenant Colonel, USAF (Ret.)
Kelly Kaplan Veteran Spouse
Board Member
President & Chief Operating Officer
Revive, PPC, St. Petersburg, FL
One of the few New Jerseyans at the University of Iowa, Kelly wore Army boots, fatigues, and full-on patriotism as a member of the ROTC. A successful entrepreneur, Kelly carried her "can do" spirit through the advertising agency community of NYC on to her own c
Board Member
President & Chief Operating Officer
Revive, PPC, St. Petersburg, FL
One of the few New Jerseyans at the University of Iowa, Kelly wore Army boots, fatigues, and full-on patriotism as a member of the ROTC. A successful entrepreneur, Kelly carried her "can do" spirit through the advertising agency community of NYC on to her own consulting company, and from there to a privately-owned product revival marketing and distribution company owning The Natural Dentist care line, Stim-U-Dent and Fresh and Bright. Kelly is married to Army veteran Kevin and mother to daughter Anya. Absent a pandemic, you will find Kelly at Arlington National Cemetery every Memorial Day from 2019 until the end of time.
Alan Allegretto Lieutenant Colonel, USAF (Ret.)
Alan Allegretto Lieutenant Colonel, USAF (Ret.)
Alan Allegretto Lieutenant Colonel, USAF (Ret.)
Board Member
Managing Partner / International Consultancy
GovScience Partners, LLC, Ponte Vedra, FL
A retired as Lieutenant Colonel, USAF (Aviator-Engineer), Alan honorably served in both active and reserve military service for 30 years. Mr. Allegretto is a C-level executive whose 40+ year career spans leadership roles in government and pri
Board Member
Managing Partner / International Consultancy
GovScience Partners, LLC, Ponte Vedra, FL
A retired as Lieutenant Colonel, USAF (Aviator-Engineer), Alan honorably served in both active and reserve military service for 30 years. Mr. Allegretto is a C-level executive whose 40+ year career spans leadership roles in government and private sectors. He has directed strategic planning, financial, business development, design, operations, and engineering activities at the executive level for a wide range of initiatives, both domestic and international. He has held numerous engineering, program management, business development, strategic leadership, and executive positions of increasing responsibility at the Executive Vice President, Chief Operating Officer, and Chief Executive Officer levels in multi-disciplined business environments.
Pamela Wall, Ph.D. Commander, USN (Ret.)
Alan Allegretto Lieutenant Colonel, USAF (Ret.)
Alan Allegretto Lieutenant Colonel, USAF (Ret.)
Board Member
Chief In Service, Office of Medical Services
Peace Corps, Washington, D.C.
A retired Navy Nurse Corps officer and psychiatric nurse practitioner, Pam is currently responsible for the management and coordination of the Peace Corps' Field Support Unit coordinating the care of over 6,000 volunteers in 21 countries. She has held a
Board Member
Chief In Service, Office of Medical Services
Peace Corps, Washington, D.C.
A retired Navy Nurse Corps officer and psychiatric nurse practitioner, Pam is currently responsible for the management and coordination of the Peace Corps' Field Support Unit coordinating the care of over 6,000 volunteers in 21 countries. She has held a variety of positions, from Program Director at Uniformed Services University of Health Sciences, where she directed the graduate psychiatric NP program and developed military-focused, accredited MSN and DNP curriculum and simulation center experiences, to Officer In Charge, Division Psychiatry, 2nd Marine Division at Camp Lejeune, to Mental Health Outpatient Department Head at Naval Health Clinic, Marine Corps Air Station Cherry Point.
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Aniela Szymanski, Esq. Lieutenant Colonel, USMC Reserves
Gary Brunette USAF Veteran
Kate Watson, Military Mom
Board Member
Senior Director for Legal Affairs and Military Policy, Veterans Education Success Washington D.C.
Aniela served on active duty as a judge advocate in the U.S. Marine Corps from 2003 to 2009. During that time she performed the duties of legal assistance attorney, deputy staff judge advocate, and staff judge advocate. She d
Board Member
Senior Director for Legal Affairs and Military Policy, Veterans Education Success Washington D.C.
Aniela served on active duty as a judge advocate in the U.S. Marine Corps from 2003 to 2009. During that time she performed the duties of legal assistance attorney, deputy staff judge advocate, and staff judge advocate. She deployed to Afghanistan for Operation Enduring Freedom in 2011 as the first deployed female Civil Affairs Team Leader in the Marine Corps. As a civilian, she has been practicing veterans law her entire career including clerking at the U.S. Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims for The Honorable Robert Davis, serving as an appellate attorney representing veterans at Bergmann & Moore LLC. She was a Visiting Professor of Practice at William & Mary Law School where she also was a supervising attorney at The Lewis B. Puller, Jr. Veterans Benefits Clinic and later as the Director of Government Relations, Veteran and National Guard/Reserve issues, at Military Officers Association of America, a non-profit military and veteran advocacy organization. Aniela is on the board of The Veterans Consortium Pro Bono Program, and a member of the ABA’s Standing Committee on Legal Assistance for Military Personnel.
Kate Watson, Military Mom
Gary Brunette USAF Veteran
Kate Watson, Military Mom
Non-Voting Board Member
Founder & CEO, YourNexStage Inc.
Silver Spring, MD
A dreamer, builder, fixer, and consummate generalist, Kate brings more than 30 years of experience in public policy and program design, development, and implementation in the private, public, and non-profit sectors. Her passion for meeting the unmet needs of
Non-Voting Board Member
Founder & CEO, YourNexStage Inc.
Silver Spring, MD
A dreamer, builder, fixer, and consummate generalist, Kate brings more than 30 years of experience in public policy and program design, development, and implementation in the private, public, and non-profit sectors. Her passion for meeting the unmet needs of U.S. Servicewomen and women veterans comes as a result of her introduction to these very special soldiers, sailors, airwomen, and Marines -- by her own Marine. YourNexStage is a "pay-it-forward", informed by life - not always easy; of reading, research and reflection on what it takes to move forward when you're not sure you can ... or want to. YourNexStage celebrates all of America's women warriors and seeks to give back to them all they've given for America and more, when and where they need it.
Gary Brunette USAF Veteran
Gary Brunette USAF Veteran
Gary Brunette USAF Veteran
Board Member
Accountant, Controller
Monument, CO
A military veteran of eight years, Gary served in the US Air Force as a Security Forces member, US Army as a Military Policeman, and six months in Desert Shield and Desert Storm. He earned a Bachelor’s in Accounting from Minot State University and an MBA from the University of Phoenix. Gary
Board Member
Accountant, Controller
Monument, CO
A military veteran of eight years, Gary served in the US Air Force as a Security Forces member, US Army as a Military Policeman, and six months in Desert Shield and Desert Storm. He earned a Bachelor’s in Accounting from Minot State University and an MBA from the University of Phoenix. Gary is an experienced accountant, serving more than 20 years in a variety of non-profit accounting staff and supervisory roles, including more than three years supporting veterans in transition as the Controller for Mt. Carmel Veterans Service Center in Colorado Springs, CO. Gary is married to his wife, Alice, who is retired from the US Air Force. Gary also has a daughter serving in the US Air Force and a son who served in the Marines.
Advisory Board Members
Kiersten Downs, Ph.D. USAF Veteran
Kiersten's passion for research, veterans and their families has found new roots as Research Director for ScoutComms, an Alexandria-based Certified B Corporation committed to to providing communication and marketing services that support veterans and military families. Formerly a health services researcher at the James A. Haley Veterans’ Hospital in Tampa, Florida, Kiersten bring her skills in research and evaluation of veterans’ experiences with reintegration to both ScoutComms and YourNexStage.
Dr. Downs' current world or work is legions away from her service as a bomb loader for four years in the U.S. Air Force and her four more years as an administrative assistant in a fighter jet squadron in the New York Air National Guard. She was deployed overseas three times, including once to Iraq.
Matthew Louis, Lt. Col. USA (Ret.)
Matt is one of the nation’s leading experts in career transition for veterans and public service professionals. The author of Mission Transition, a practical guide for veterans in career transition, Matt commits his spare time to a number of veteran supporting roles including Chairing the YNS Workforce Development Advisory Committee, being the veteran Transition Assistance officer for his West Point class of 1991, and leading the Cincinnati MyVA Community Veterans Engagement Board.
During active commissioned service in the US Army, Matt served in the Southwest Asia combat theater and in the 194th Separate Armored Brigade. During reserve commissioned service, Matt served on the staff of the Army’s Office of the Deputy Chief of Staff for Operations and commanded multiple regions around the country for the US Military Academy’s Admissions Office.
Rebecca Porter, Ph.D. USA (Ret.)
Dr. Becky Porter is the President and Chief Executive Officer of the Military Child Education Coalition, since September 2019, following her retirement from the United States Army. Her 38-year military career culminated in command of Public Health Command Europe. She enlisted in 1981, was commissioned in 1983, and served as a clinical psychologist since 1995. Becky served in numerous command and staff positions, most notably as a Special Assistant to Chief of Staff of the Army General Eric K. Shinseki and as the Director of Psychological Health for the Army.
With more than three decades of military service, Dr. Porter is a board-certified clinical psychologist, a fellow of the American Psychological Association, and a member of the Order of Military Medical Merit. She was a founding member of the Science Advisory Board for the Military Child Education Coalition, former president of the Society for Military Psychology, and holds the Surgeon General’s “A” Proficiency Designator as recognition of her significant contributions to the Army Medical Department.
Tracey Koehlmoos, Ph.D. USA Veteran
Tracey, a health systems and policy scientist who specializes in leading complex tasks, program development and capacity building, joined the faculty of Uniformed Services University in 2015. Previously, as the Special Assistant to the Assistant Commandant of the Marine Corps, Tracey served as the senior program liaison for community health, a senior representative of the Marine Corps on community health policy and research. She made recommendations on complex issues requiring knowledge of administrative laws, policies, regulation, and precedent applicable to the administration of community health programs and gender integration.
A former Army Air Defense Artillery officer, Tracey is a graduate of the Joint Military Attaché School. She is the widow of Colonel Randall ‘Moose’ Koehlmoos, US Army, and mother of Robert (USMA 2016), Michael and David Koehlmoos.
Nargis Kabiri-Mougey, Major, USA
An active-duty Army officer and entrepreneur, Nargis Kabiri Mougey graduated from the United States Military Academy at West Point and was commissioned as a Field Artillery Officer. More than a Solider, she is also a first-generation American who immigrated from Afghanistan only to deploy to Afghanistan in 2011-2012 in support of Operation Enduring Freedom. As a Field Artillery Officer, Nargis became the 1st female cannon platoon leader to the Army’s (then) only Airborne M777 unit in 2012. She commanded an all-male firing battery unit at 1st Battalion 9th Field Artillery Regiment in the 3rd Infantry Division.
When Nargis became a mother, she responded to another calling Launching in 2020, Zanbazan, strives to help working mothers by providing a clothing line that supports lactation while women work in austere environments. Mougey currently teaches in the Department of Physical Education at the United States Military Academy at West Point, NY. She is a mother of two young boys, Caleb and Gabe.
Jennifer Prince, Ed.D. USN Veteran
A native of Ohio, Jennifer served 12 years in the U.S. Navy, including an operational tour with the U.S. Marine Corps—in the Fleet Marine Force—as a Dental Technician and Dental Hygienist. In 2000, she was honorably discharged as a Dental Technician Second Class (DT2).
After her naval career, Jennifer returned to school, completing a master’s degree in psychology and doctor of education degree in counseling psychology. Licensed as a marriage and family therapist , Jen has treated children, adults, couples and families with a variety of mental health and substance use disorders. She is a Clinical Fellow for the American Association for Marriage and Family Therapy.
Jennifer has had a highly successful career, working with and for some of the nation’s most prestigious agencies, including but not limited to, the U.S. Dept. of Homeland Security, U.S. Marine Corps, and U.S. Special Operations Command.
Rebecca Lorraine, Col. USAF (Ret.)
Becky is a retired Colonel, retired Family Nurse Practitioner, and a never-to-be-retired military wife and mother. Subsequent to retiring from the Air Force, rather than pursuing the next degree in a series which includes a BSN and a MS, Becky sought a second Bachelors studying anthropology, sociology and gender studies to understand the transition experiences of post-9/11 women veterans. She is also investigating how the women-into-combat roles and non-traditional career fields has created a evolution in the socio-cultural aspects of women veterans.
Affiliated research team
Karl Hamner, Ph.D. has been a social science and health researcher, program development and evaluation consultant, and training specialist for federal, state, county and community-based agencies. He has extensive experience conducting research and evaluation on multi-cultural health and social issues, as well as conducting professional development workshops and trainings on a wide range of topics. Throughout his career, he has written or directed the development of numerous successful grant proposals funded by a wide variety of federal agencies – including the Department of Defense, the Department of Veteran Affairs, the National Institutes of Health, the Health Resources and Services Administration, Housing and Urban Development, and the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Administration – private and corporate foundations – including The California Endowment, The David & Lucille Packard Foundation, The Mott Foundation, and The Alcoa Foundation, and numerous state, regional and local agencies. He received his Ph.D. in Sociology from the University of California, Los Angeles in 1993.
Kate Hendricks Thomas, PhD, is a Marine Corps veteran with a doctorate in health education and health promotion. An active-duty Marine from 2002 through 2008, she served in Iraq and at home as a Military Police Officer. A public health researcher, Kate is a lecturer with George Mason University's Department of Global and Community Health. Her previous books include Bulletproofing the Psyche: Preventing Mental Health Problems in Our Military and Veterans (2018); Invisible Veterans: What Happens When Military Women Become Civilians Again (2019); and Stopping Military Suicide (2020).