The Office of Veteran and Military Affairs has only been on campus for a year, but The University of Alabama is already ranked in the top 15 percent of military-friendly universities.
Whether they are active-duty members, veterans or dependents, VMA helps students with military affiliations make an easier transition into college life.
Jasmine Scott, a student worker for VMA and daughter of a lieutenant colonel in the U.S. Army, has received extra support from the VMA as a dependent while her dad is overseas.
“Being a dependent, we don’t actually serve, but our parents do,” Scott said. “We are able to meet and connect with other students here whose parents are also active duty, and it really brings us together.”
The idea for the office came from veterans on campus who noticed the lack of a social structure among the veterans who returned from duty. To combat the growing rate at which veterans dropped out of the University, the Campus Veterans Association was created in 2009 and began lobbying for more support on campus. The University listened.
“They finally decided that the University needed to put a greater support system in place for their returning veterans,” said Laura Hurter, a U.S. Air Force veteran studying anthropology. She has completed tours in Japan, Germany and Kuwait.
The VMA office, located in the basement of B.B. Comer Hall, offers a variety of programs and resources for its students. It boasts multiple study rooms and its own computer lab.
The University office also offers three transition assistance programs to ensure academic success at the University.
The Freshman Learning Community is a semester-long class for veterans who have just returned from duty and are entering their first year at the University.
The Career Assistance Transition Program is a collaboration with the Career Center that allows veterans close to graduation to develop resumes that will highlight their military service.
The Family Assistance Program assists veterans with family needs, such as local housing and daycare. VMA works closely with local businesses, realtors and complex managers to make sure the veterans are included in campus life.
Although the VMA emphasizes the academic side of college life, it also aims to re-establish the sense of community for its veterans. The new office includes a lounge area, complete with two mounted flat-screen TVs and multiple gaming systems.
“We don’t want to just sit around and tell war stories constantly,” said Shane Thomas, a junior who completed a seven-month tour in Iraq last year. “If someone has something going on in their life that they’re having problems with and need some more insight, we’re here for them.”
As a part of Veterans Week, VMA will be hosting events throughout the week, ending with the grand opening of the new office located in B.B. Comer Hall on Friday at 2 p.m. For more information about any of these events, visit vets.ua.edu.
