Rossina Schroeer-Santiago - Fellow

Rossina Schroeer-Santiago enlisted in the U.S. Army in January 1996 not only for the education benefit but to serve her country and carry on a family tradition. Her seven years of active duty concluded with a deployment to Balad, Iraq, in support of the Army’s V Corps in 2003. 

While working as a Human Resources Assistant at the Denver Veterans Affairs Medical Center, Schroeer-Santiago saw an announcement for a position in the Denver, CO, office of Congresswoman Diana DeGette through the U.S. House of Representatives’ Wounded Warrior Program.  

Schroeer-Santiago wanted to work more closely with veterans so she applied. She was selected and began her fellowship in August 2012 as a Veterans Case Worker. Her duties include outreach to veterans service organizations in the district and personal interaction with veteran constituents to assist them with myriad issues. 

Grasping the unique language and protocol of a Congressional office has been a challenge, but the satisfaction of helping constituents has inspired Shroeer-Santiago to pursue a master's degree in clinical mental health counseling. Her goal is to one day work with veterans suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder.