New Liason to Aid Veterans

By Broadside Correspondent James Martin

­­Veterans and servicemembers at George Mason University now have a dedicated liaison for help, concerns, and support. The position was created during the middle of the fall semester and is a result of the university seeking to address issues faced by veterans. The position is unique as it provides assistance that the already existing staff on campus cannot give.

“The campus has estimated it has more than 1,000 students who are veterans or who are serving in the armed forces,” said Michael Johnson, military and veterans liaison. “My responsibility is to help veterans and their families.”

Johnson served 17 years in the U.S. Marine Corps and was deployed to Afghanistan, Iraq and South America. His jobs included military police and air traffic controller. Johnson’s position isn’t temporary as he works for Andrew Flagel who is the dean of admissions.

“Veterans don’t want to be treated differently, but they do have specific requirements that need to be fulfilled,” said Johnson. “Sometimes having a former military person who has been there is easier to talk to than another academic person on campus.”

The new position is not another certification official.

“That’s what the Office of the Registrar does. They certify [Veterans Affairs] benefits for veterans wanting to use their education benefits,” said Johnson. “I do everything else. I am the one stop shop. For a new veteran, college can be kind of daunting. There is a lot of bureaucracy involved, and you don’t have a first sergeant or company commander to take care of you.”

Colleges and universities all over the country have different policies on what certifying officials can do. Because of this, students may misinterpret the lack of assistance they’ve received from the university to be a lack of interest in their affairs.

“Other universities have allowed that role to expand into other areas such as answering a lot of Virginia questions students may have. We have created a distinct line between the two people. There is a liability issue here as the certifying official is paid by the university and not Veterans Affairs. I am the only one I know of in the Commonwealth of Virginia that has this role,” said Johnson.

The position provides veterans and servicemembers an avenue to address problems they may be facing.

“I can be an advocate or an ombudsman. I have the ability to bring up issues or concerns without fears of reprisal. Granted we aren’t always going to be able to change policy, but we will look at it. We will look at [what] we’ve done, and see what could be done to change it,” said Johnson.

Last year, students who were mobilized for a deployment had no policy or checklist to follow when preparing to leave the university. The campus now has an activation policy and Johnson has also created a pamphlet for those transitioning to the campus. However, he does not work for Veterans Affairs.

“Ultimately, especially for when it comes to education benefits, the decider isn’t anyone at this university. Veterans Affairs is the final decider,” said Johnson.
The new position’s responsibilities also include looking after family members.

“I don’t want to just focus on veterans; the tail is just as long as the dog. You have spouses, children, and just because they are a student doesn’t mean they aren’t affected. I’m married, and I know what it is to leave your wife.” said Johnson.

Future plans include working with counseling services to provide support for students who come back to campus after a deployment as well as a program where seniors sponsor incoming freshmen.

“You can never do enough for the people in uniform, but you can do too little. The system isn’t perfect, but this is a building block. George Mason University has brought on someone to address these issues,” said Johnson.

Editor’s note: You can e-mail or call Michael Johnson at cjohn2@gmu.edu or (703) 993-8243.