Dr. Blas Villalobos is the Chief Executive Officer of Centerstone’s Military Services. As the Chief Executive Officer, Villalobos leads the organization’s delivery of mental health and substance use disorder services to veterans, active duty military personnel, and military families. Villalobos also leads the organization’s partnerships with other military-friendly organizations, including partnerships with Wounded Warrior Project, Cohen Veterans Network, and the Supportive Services for Veteran Families (SSVF) program.
Previous to his current position, Villalobos served as Veterans Affairs director at Chapman University, where he established the university’s very first Veterans Resource Center. Villalobos also managed Mayor Eric Garcetti’s Office of Veterans Affairs. Under this position, he developed, and implemented, Mayor Garcetti’s strategic vision to leverage private and public resources to assist veterans and their families reintegrate into civilian life, managing the 10,000 Strong Initiative, a program that helped more than 12,000 veterans find full-time employment. Villalobos also served as the Executive Director of Community Programs and Veteran Services for U.S.VETS Patriotic Hall, where he managed the Outside the Wire program, the Career Development Initiative, and the Supportive Services for Veteran Families program. In 2018, Villalobos served as a member of the Veterans Administration Advisory Committee on the Readjustment of Veterans, and was appointed to the committee by VA Secretary Shulkin in 2018.
Villalobos served in the United States Marine Corps from October 1999-October 2003. During his military service, he was deployed to Iraq during the invasion in March 2003, where he served as a Squad Leader during combat operations earning several awards, including the Combat Action Ribbon, Presidential Unit Citation, Meritorious Unit Commendation, Iraq Campaign Medal with two bronze campaign stars, Global War on Terrorism Service Medal and Humanitarian Service Medal.
After his military service, Villalobos attended Long Beach City College, then graduated from Cal State Long Beach with a bachelor’s degree in psychology, and holds doctorate and master’s degrees in social work from the University of Southern California.
