Commissioners considering moving Veterans Service Officer position to full-time

The Dubois County Veterans Service Office may move toward full-time staffing after Veteran Service Officer Nick Pagragan presented commissioners with a formal proposal at Monday’s meeting.

Pagragan told commissioners the office has logged 1,117 total veteran interactions so far this year — including 931 in-person visitors and 186 documented phone calls — averaging 10.8 interactions per day while operating just 28 public hours per week, Tuesday through Friday.

“This proposal is not being presented out of a personal interest or out of my individual benefit,” Pagragan said. “The position of the county Veterans Service Office will outlast any one person who holds it.”

Pagragan, the sixth VSO in six years, told commissioners that high turnover under the part-time model has repeatedly disrupted continuity, required retraining on VA systems and county processes, and undermined long-term office stability.

He presented three budget options to commissioners: maintaining both positions as part-time, transitioning one position to full-time while keeping the other part-time, or moving both the VSO and administrative assistant to full-time status — the option he recommends.

Based on a recently completed wage study, the proposed full-time VSO salary would be approximately $27.22 per hour, with the assistant position at approximately $23 per hour, both calculated on a 40-hour work week.

Pagragan also pointed to a surge in demand tied to recent property tax benefit changes, noting the office served nearly 30 veterans on July 1, 2026 alone, with an additional 23 the following day.

“I definitely see the full-time need,” said Commissioner Serice Stenftenagel, adding that she plans to attend a follow-up meeting with Commissioner Chad Blessinger and a council member to review the proposal further.

“I’m certainly open to doing this full-time position, said Commissioner Nick Hostetter. “I think it’s been a long time coming. I think we’ve all seen it, the need for it.”

Commissioner Chad Blessinger acknowledged the office’s track record of requests from previous VSOs as well as s members of the veteran community and asked the other commissioners if they were prepared to change the position to full-time.

The commissioners decided to wait to gather more information, agreeing instead to place the item on the agenda for their next meeting, where a final determination on staffing structure will be made. Blessinger stated the county council will ultimately weigh in on whether funding is available.

Pagragan said he would email all three budget options to commissioners before the end of the day.