Veterans connect through Mason resources

The Office of Military Services fills in the gaps left by other university services to help veteran students maximize their education benefits.

Military Services falls under the office of admissions, allowing them to inform students about their benefits and offer them assistance from the very beginning of their college experience.

“[The] office is unique in the fact that we help with admissions, and then once the students [are] here, we try to ensure success. So it’s a multi-faceted program,” said the Director of Office of Military Services Jennifer Connors.

The Office of Military Services has recently received national recognition for offering various programs for Mason students and faculty aimed at increasing retention, promoting success and utilizing benefits. In 2012, Mason was classified as a military-friendly school for the third year in a row by the G.I. Jobs Military Friendly Schools lists featured in G.I. Jobs magazine. Mason’s military services office has also been nationally recognized for its dual-certification process, in which paperwork goes through the Registrar’s Office and Student Accounts to avoid billing problems. Veterans Affairs cites Mason’s dual-certification process as a nationally-suggested model.

In addition to serving students during their years at Mason, the Office of Military Services provides post-graduation help.

“We try to target employers who are classified or considered veteran-friendly or [who] have a preference for hiring veterans. We bring them to the office for an hour or two a few times a semester, and have lunch,” Sweeney said

VetSuccess On Campus is a two-year program funded by the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs. Veterans Affairs counselors help veterans with post-9/11 G.I. Bill issues, including helping them process and understand different aspects of the G.I. Bill.

Another program, Battle Buddies, provides academic support to veteran students.

According to Sweeney, Battle Buddy-type relationships are formed naturally, without any formal arrangements. Students who need help in a certain area are matched with older peers who mentor them, give them advice and generally build meaningful relationships. Sometimes the program extends to helping students familiarize themselves with the campus and acclimate to college life.

The Student Veterans Housing Project, a new program this semester, assists veterans with finding off-campus housing.

Sweeney is the president of the Mason Veterans’ Society, a student organization started in 2006.

“[VETSOC] connects us to each other,” said Vice-President Maria Halkiadakis. “[Veterans are] a lot different than the rest of the student body. We were all a little bit older, some of us have families, but we all have a military background so that’s what we have in common. So it gets us together and helps us make friends.”

Halkiadakis, a single mother, explained that veterans with families and other obligations off-campus often have a harder time being connected with college life.

“We do have a lot of our vets who have families with children, so that’s something that we have to take into consideration when we’re organizing events and such,” Sweeney said. “Our students like to come to campus, go to class, go home, take care of their family. Or go to work - a lot of people have full-time jobs as well. Most vets don’t want, at 24, to have a 17-year old roommate.”

Since the veterans often find little in common with their classmates, the veterans’ society helps to bridge the gap and serves as a resource for veterans to teach each other about student veteran resources.

“It provides that support network,” Sweeney said.

The veterans’ society engages in intramural sports and monthly service projects and hosts special events, such as Thanksgiving dinner and Veterans Day weekend dinner at the local VFW post.

One of the key goals of the organization is to continue veteran social and service society beyond campus and after graduation. Sweeney hopes the Veterans’ Society will help student veterans to continue to serve and connect with the veterans’ community.

“We join the military for a lot of different reasons, but one thing that we all have in common is that we joined to serve, so there’s no reason why we shouldn’t continue that service to our country and our community after we get out,” Sweeney said.