An idea worth copying
By Patrick Kelley
Originally published 12:44 p.m., January 31, 2008
Updated 12:44 p.m., January 31, 2008
A university in Ohio started a program last year that is worthy of notice in Emporia, the home of Veterans Day.
Cleveland State University developed a program it calls SERV — Supportive Education for the Returning Veteran.
The program was developed because:
• Many men and women who join the military do so in hopes of earning money and benefits that will allow them to attend college.
• Soldiers returning from long deployments in Iraq or Afghanistan face challenges in the transition back to civilian life. A simultaneous transition to college life can seem like an insurmountable obstacle.
• Only 10 percent of veterans are taking full advantage of their education benefits.
The Cleveland school did some research into problems faced by veterans going to college, then designed a program that would deal with many of those problems.
In effect, the school created a “veteran’s track” to ease the entry into college by allowing veterans to stick together. Veterans are brought together for enrollment and for financial-aid and academic advice. Because many returning veterans are not comfortable in large, open spaces or in crowds, special sections of some freshman courses have been created. Those sections — open only to veterans — meet with small numbers of students in small classrooms instead of in crowded lecture halls.
The SERV program also offers counseling and other tailored services for veterans.
Would such a program be useful for some students at Emporia State University? Probably. ESU already has a coordinator of veterans’ educational services, which is a start. The question, of course, is whether the university could find the resources to provide a unified freshman academic program and support system for entering veterans.
It is certainly an idea worth exploring.
Emporia and its university have always honored their military veterans, who deserve all of the support we can give them.