Garret Biss | Professional Curriculum Vitae
National Trainer, TEDx Speaker, Marine Veteran & Creator of the CAM Framework™
About Garret Biss
Garret Biss is a national trainer, TEDx speaker, retired Marine Corps officer, curriculum developer, and creator of the CAM Framework™. He helps people and organizations navigate major transitions, strengthen engagement, and build the connection, authenticity, meaning, and personal capacity that support sustainable performance, recovery, wellbeing, and growth.
His work is applied across higher education, behavioral health and addiction recovery, corporate leadership and workforce development, and programs serving justice-involved veterans.
AREAS OF PROFESSIONAL EXPERTISE
Military transition and civilian reintegration
Identity reconstruction and self-efficacy during major change
Connection, belonging, authenticity, and meaning
Post-traumatic growth, resilience, and human flourishing
Student, participant, and employee engagement
Veteran-responsive and strengths-based practice
Recovery capital and capacity development
Applied positive psychology and self-determination
Curriculum, program, and professional-education development
Leadership development and workforce wellbeing
Justice-involved veterans, reentry, and Veterans Treatment Court programming
A MULTIDISCIPLINARY PERSPECTIVE
Garret’s professional path spans military aviation, engineering, real estate development, recovery services, nonprofit leadership, continuing education, professional speaking, and curriculum development.
This breadth allows him to connect research, lived experience, frontline practice, and organizational priorities. Whether working with students, treatment participants, employees, helping professionals, or justice-involved veterans, his focus remains consistent: helping people regain the connection, self-understanding, agency, and meaning needed to move forward.
Expertise Applied Across Organizations and Systems
The setting may change, but the underlying human needs often do not. Garret adapts his keynotes, training, consulting, and program development to the priorities, language, and desired outcomes of each audience.
HIGHER EDUCATION & STUDENT SUCCESS
Garret provides keynotes, workshops, student-veteran programming, and professional development for colleges, universities, student-affairs teams, and military-connected student services. His work addresses transition, identity, belonging, resilience, wellbeing, and career readiness to support student engagement, persistence, retention, and success.
BEHAVIORAL HEALTH, ADDICTION & RECOVERY
Garret develops training and curricula for behavioral-health, substance-use treatment, peer-support, and recovery organizations. His work helps professionals strengthen participant engagement, develop recovery-supporting capacities, and help people move beyond stabilization toward sustainable growth, stronger retention in services, and improved recovery outcomes.
CORPORATE WORKFORCE & LEADERSHIP
Garret delivers keynotes, workshops, and consulting that help organizations support veterans and others navigating major transitions, deepen employee engagement, develop values-aligned leadership, and strengthen the human foundations of performance, retention, and veteran talent success.
JUSTICE-INVOLVED VETERANS & VETERANS TREATMENT COURTS
Garret develops training and nonclinical programming for organizations serving justice-involved veterans and Veterans Treatment Court participants. His work extends beyond compliance alone by strengthening participant buy-in, agency, connection, identity, meaning, engagement, reintegration, and the capacity to sustain long-term growth.
PROFESSIONAL LEADERSHIP & EXPERIENCE
Garret is the Founder & Principal Trainer of Diamond Mind, LLC, where he develops and delivers keynotes, workshops, professional development, continuing education, consulting, and curricula for organizations serving veterans and others navigating transition, adversity, recovery, and growth.
He also serves as a Recovery Consultant for the Opioid Response Network and as Co-Founder & Executive Director of Realize U 252, an NCARR-certified Level III recovery residence aligned with NARR standards.
Garret’s community leadership includes founding One Million Goal, a nonprofit that has supported clean-water initiatives in Africa and Central America.
Before entering this work, Garret completed a 16-year enlisted-to-officer career in the United States Marine Corps. He served as a KC-130J Aircraft Commander, instructor pilot, functional check flight pilot, and aviation leader supporting missions in Afghanistan and the Horn of Africa.
SELECTED PRESENTATIONS AND ORGANIZATIONAL ENGAGEMENTS
Garret has delivered keynotes, workshops, professional education, facilitated programming, and curriculum development for universities, national conferences, public agencies, behavioral-health organizations, corporations, and veteran-serving systems.
Selected engagements include:
TEDxApex
NASPA Annual Conference
NASPA SMCS Symposium
Oklahoma State University
NAADAC Annual Conference
Alabama Department of Mental Health
NBCC Foundation National Symposium
NAMI North Carolina
CHESS Health
Opioid Response Network
U.S. Marine Corps Insider Threat Hub
Addiction Professionals of North Carolina
Georgia School of Addiction Studies
CarolinaEast Medical Center
FRAMEWORKS, CURRICULA, AND PROGRAM DEVELOPMENT
CAM Framework™
The CAM Framework™ focuses on Connection, Authenticity, and Meaning as foundational human needs. It provides an educational and practice-informed way to understand how disruption to identity, relationships, and purpose can affect regulation, engagement, wellbeing, performance, and growth during major transitions.
Diamond Mind Training
Through Diamond Mind Training, Garret develops live and asynchronous continuing education for addiction, behavioral-health, peer-support, higher-education, and veteran-serving professionals. Current topics include military transition, post-traumatic growth, resilience, recovery, participant engagement, and veteran-responsive practice.
Veteran Programming and Curriculum Development
Garret’s veteran-focused program development includes Veteran Wellness, Engagement & Resilience Training (V-WERT™), the CHESS Health Veteran Initiative, Thriving in Your Recovery, and FIRST STEPS to Thriving in Recovery™. His work spans professional education, participant programming, digital content, facilitated discussions, and strengths-based curriculum development.
PUBLICATIONS, TEDX TALK, AND MEDIA
TEDx Talk
The Unspoken Trauma All Veterans Face — TEDxApex 2024
Garret’s TEDx talk explores the identity disruption, loss of belonging, emotional disconnection, and search for meaning that many veterans experience after military service.
Published Works
FIRST STEPS to Thriving in Recovery — Workbook and curriculum, 2020
The Spheres Approach to Happiness and Fulfillment — Book, 2016; Readers’ Favorite Silver Medal
Charity: The Gifts of Giving — Book, 2015; Readers’ Favorite Honorable Mention for the paperback and Silver Medal for the 2016 audiobook
Understanding the New American Dream — Book, 2014
Media
Garret has appeared in more than 80 podcast, radio, television, and digital-media interviews focused on veteran mental wellness, recovery, resilience, identity, and human flourishing.
Selected outlets include WCTI News Channel 12, SiriusXM, CBS Radio/Live365, UK Health Radio, New Bern Live, and national podcasts.
EDUCATION, CREDENTIALS, & MILITARY SERVICE
Education
Master of Real Estate Development — Auburn University, 2016
4.0/4.0; selected to deliver the cohort graduation address.
Bachelor of Science in Mechanical Engineering — University of Maryland, 2006
Completed while serving on active duty through the Marine Enlisted Commissioning Education Program.
Selected Credentials and Active Licenses
Certified Professional Recovery Coach
Certificate in Applied Positive Psychology
Certified Canfield Success Principles Trainer
Recovery Coach Academy graduate
RIM® Facilitation Training, completed 2020
Graduate, National Speakers Association Cavett Institute
North Carolina Real Estate Broker
FAA Commercial Pilot Certificate, Single-Engine and Multiengine Land
Military Service
Garret served in the United States Marine Corps from 1999 to 2015, completing an enlisted-to-officer career and retiring as a Captain.
His aviation service included roles as a KC-130J Aircraft Commander, instructor pilot, functional check flight pilot, Deputy Operations Officer, Quality Assurance Officer, Maintenance Division Officer, and detachment leader.
His military awards include the Air Medal (Strike/Flight) with Bronze Numeral 6 and the Military Outstanding Volunteer Service Medal.
Download the Full Curriculum Vitae
For a detailed record of Garret’s professional experience, national presentations, curricula, certifications, publications, leadership, and military service, download the complete PDF.
Selected Professional Endorsements
Bring Garret’s Work to Your Organization
Garret delivers keynotes, workshops, professional development, continuing education, and customized training for universities, behavioral health organizations, justice systems, corporations, and veteran-serving programs.
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