training-0001 — VA-Accredited Claims Agent Curriculum

Maintainer: Arnoldo A. Alonso — Individual Author (personal project, not affiliated with Brasidas Strategies LLC) License: MIT — Open Source, Community Contributions Welcome Status: Active Development — v0.1.0

---

What Is This?

training-0001 is a free, open-source, AI-executable curriculum for individuals preparing to become VA-Accredited Claims Agents — the federally authorized non-attorney representatives who assist U.S. veterans in filing benefits claims before the Department of Veterans Affairs.

This repository provides:

• A complete A–Z curriculum aligned with OGC accreditation requirements
• Modules in English and Spanish with full accessibility variants
• Practice exams, quizzes, and evidence packet templates
• AI automation prompts so any LLM can regenerate, translate, or extend modules
• CI/CD pipelines for automated linting, accessibility checks, and site builds
• A community contribution model for veteran and practitioner contributors

---

Who Is This For?

Audience	How to Use
VA Claims Agent candidates	Study modules in order (Module 01 → Module 10)
Current Claims Agents	CE refreshers, topic deep-dives
VSO representatives	Reference materials and bilingual content
AI developers / researchers	Automation prompts and pipeline scripts
Veterans and families	Plain-language versions in a11y/ folders
Community contributors	See CONTRIBUTING.md

---

Repository Structure

training-0001/
├── .github/
│   ├── workflows/          # CI/CD: lint, a11y, build, AI generation, translation QA
│   └── ISSUE_TEMPLATE/     # Bug reports, content corrections, translations
├── modules/
│   ├── module-01/          # VA Accreditation Overview
│   │   ├── en/             # English lesson plan, readings, exercises
│   │   ├── es/             # Spanish translation
│   │   └── a11y/           # Plain language, screen-reader optimized
│   ├── module-02/          # VA Claims Process A–Z
│   ├── module-03/          # Disability Rating and Evidence Standards
│   ├── module-04/          # Fee Agreements and Ethics
│   └── module-05/          # Appeals: RAMP, AMA, BVA Process
├── assessments/
│   ├── practice-exams/     # Full-length auto-scoring practice exams
│   ├── quizzes/            # Per-module knowledge checks
│   └── rubrics/            # Grading rubrics for exercises
├── templates/
│   ├── evidence-packets/   # Sample evidence packet structures
│   ├── letters/            # Cover letter templates
│   └── forms/              # Guidance on VA form completion
├── automation/
│   ├── prompts/            # LLM prompts for module generation, translation, QA
│   └── scripts/            # Python scripts for AI pipeline execution
├── accessibility/
│   ├── wcag-checklist/     # WCAG 2.1 AA compliance checklist
│   ├── screen-reader/      # Screen reader testing notes
│   └── plain-language/     # Plain language guidelines
├── i18n/
│   ├── en/                 # English base strings
│   └── es/                 # Spanish translations
├── docs/
│   ├── research/           # OGC research brief, legal analysis
│   └── architecture/       # System design, AI pipeline docs
├── sandbox/                # VA testing environment integration notes
├── scripts/                # Utility scripts (validate, scan, check parity)
├── community/              # Governance, contributor guide, code of conduct
└── CONTRIBUTING.md

---

Quick Start

Study the Curriculum

# Clone the repository
git clone https://github.com/alonsobrx/training-0001.git
cd training-0001

# Start with Module 01 (English)
open modules/module-01/en/README.md

# Or the Spanish version
open modules/module-01/es/README.md

# Or the accessibility variant
open modules/module-01/a11y/README.md

Run the AI Generator

# Install dependencies
pip install openai anthropic pyyaml jinja2

# Set your API key
export OPENAI_API_KEY="your-key-here"

# Generate a new module
python automation/scripts/generate_module.py \
  --topic "Fee Agreements Under 38 CFR § 14.636" \
  --module-id module-04 \
  --language en

# Translate an existing module
python automation/scripts/translate_module.py \
  --module module-01 \
  --source en \
  --target es

# Generate practice questions
python automation/scripts/generate_questions.py \
  --module module-01 \
  --count 20 \
  --difficulty mixed

Run CI Locally

# Install tools
npm install -g markdownlint-cli pa11y-ci

# Lint all markdown
markdownlint '**/*.md' --ignore node_modules

# Check accessibility
pa11y-ci --config .pa11yci.json

# Validate translations
python scripts/check_translation_parity.py

---

Curriculum Map

Module	Title	CFR Reference	CLE Hours	Status
module-01	VA Accreditation Overview	38 CFR §§ 14.626–14.637	1.5	✅ Draft
module-02	VA Claims Process A–Z	38 CFR Part 3; M21-1	2.0	🔲 Planned
module-03	Disability Rating & Evidence	38 CFR §§ 3.303–3.385	2.5	🔲 Planned
module-04	Fee Agreements & Ethics	38 CFR § 14.636; § 14.632	1.5	🔲 Planned
module-05	Appeals: AMA & BVA Process	38 CFR Part 20; AMA	2.0	🔲 Planned
module-06	Evidence & Medical Nexus	38 CFR §§ 3.303–3.304	2.0	🔲 Planned
module-07	MST Claims	38 CFR § 3.304(f)	1.5	🔲 Planned
module-08	DIC and Survivors Benefits	38 CFR §§ 3.5–3.22	1.5	🔲 Planned
module-09	Individual Unemployability	38 CFR § 4.16	1.0	🔲 Planned
module-10	Practice Exam & Capstone	All modules	3.0	🔲 Planned
TOTAL			18.5 hrs

---

Accreditation Requirements (Summary)

Requirement	Detail	Source
Application	VA Form 21a	38 CFR § 14.629(b)
Character Standard	Good character and reputation	38 CFR § 14.629(a)
Examination	OGC-administered written exam	38 CFR § 14.629(b)(3)
Annual CE	3 hours per year	38 CFR § 14.629(b)(4)
Fee Rules	Post-final-decision only (generally)	38 CFR § 14.636
Oversight	VA Office of General Counsel	38 U.S.C. § 5904

---

Accessibility

This curriculum is built to WCAG 2.1 Level AA standards:

• Every module has a plain-language a11y/ variant (8th grade reading level)
• Screen-reader tested with NVDA and VoiceOver
• Dyslexia-friendly formatting (short paragraphs, no justified text, high contrast)
• Bilingual by default: English + Spanish
• No time-limited assessments

---

AI Automation

This repository is designed to be fully AI-executable:

• automation/prompts/master_prompts.md — 8 production-ready LLM prompts
• automation/scripts/ — Python scripts for generation, translation, QA
• GitHub Actions with workflow_dispatch for on-demand AI generation
• Compatible with OpenAI GPT-4o, Anthropic Claude, and Google Gemini APIs

---

Contributing

We actively welcome contributions from:

• Veterans and Claims Agents (content accuracy)
• Bilingual educators (Spanish quality)
• Accessibility experts (WCAG compliance)
• Developers (CI/CD, automation scripts)
• Legal professionals (regulatory accuracy)

See CONTRIBUTING.md for full guidelines.

Quick contribution path:

1. Fork this repository
2. Create a branch: git checkout -b content/module-02-lesson-plan
3. Make your changes (follow the module naming scheme)
4. Run markdownlint and pa11y-ci locally
5. Open a Pull Request with the template

---

Legal Disclaimer

This curriculum is for educational purposes only. It does not constitute legal advice. All content is aligned with publicly available VA regulations and OGC guidelines. No proprietary VA exam content is reproduced. For accreditation questions, contact the VA OGC directly at: va.gov/ogc/accreditation.asp

---

License

MIT License — see LICENSE

Copyright (c) 2026 Arnoldo A. Alonso / Brasidas Strategies LLC

---

Contact

• Project Lead: Arnoldo A. Alonso
• Organization: Brasidas Strategies LLC
• Email: arnoldo@brasidasstrategies.com
• GitHub: github.com/alonsobrx/training-0001
• Issues: For bug reports and content corrections
• Discussions: For curriculum questions and community dialogue