Launched last year by the commission’s Office of Veterans Education and Training, the 5 Star Challenge set forth a call to action to institutions to improve educational opportunities for veterans, military service members and their dependents. The West Virginia Community and Technical College System also issued the challenge to West Virginia’s public two-year colleges.
In accepting the challenge about a year ago, Marshall committed to 1) provide signed commitments from its president to dedicate time and resources toward meeting the needs of student veterans; 2) review and amend policies to increase college access and affordability for veterans; 3) provide increased academic support; 4) enhance social networking opportunities for veterans on campus; and 5) build partnerships with community organizations to better serve and support veterans in all aspects of their lives.
Hill reported today that all of the state’s public higher education institutions have met or exceeded the 5 Star Challenge initiative’s goals.
“Our military service members and their families make enormous personal sacrifices and perform invaluable services to our country,” Hill said. “The work our colleges and universities have undertaken this past year honors those contributions. I am hopeful that we can continue to expand on our efforts to give back to these individuals who offer so much to our campuses, our communities and our nation.”
As a result of the Challenge, Marshall—along with every other public college and university in West Virginia—is now offering student veterans either priority registration or guaranteed placement for classes.
“Priority registration is a huge win for these students,” L.G. Corder, the commission’s director of veterans education and training and a veteran of the U.S. Army, said. “Active and reserve military service members are juggling intense schedules in fulfilling the requirements of both their service and their educations. Giving them first priority for classes helps them better manage their responsibilities and can help offset any delays in completing their degree that may be caused by deployment.”
The highly successful veteran-only First-Year Seminar was started this fall at Marshall in response to the 5 Star Challenge, which encourages universities to enhance networking opportunities between veterans and non-veterans on campus and in the community.
The 5 Star Challenge also has fueled a variety of new community partnerships on campuses across the state.
For example, Marshall and Shepherd University worked with community business leaders and donors to fund new veterans resource centers on campus. Concord University, Mountwest Community and Technical College, and Southern West Virginia Community and Technical College partnered with community and campus organizations to enhance their existing centers, all of which had previously been recognized by state and national leaders.