Called to Serve: A Handbook on Student Veterans and Higher Education

Over the past several years, veteran enrollment in universities, community colleges, and vocational programs has increased dramatically, with over a quarter million student veterans taking advantage of military-related educational benefits packages, which have become one of the few remaining federal sources of grant funds for students pursuing higher education. Yet existing literature on the topic harkens back to Vietnam era issues and practices, and current administrators and faculty members likely have little experience serving this population. Significant changes in higher education and wartime military personnel policies in the last 30 years necessitate a fresh look at how colleges and universities can best respond to the needs of student veterans. Examples of contemporary issues include current patterns of multiple deployments and returns and the accompanying stop-out and re-enrollment periods. Costs for students have risen, as have military educational benefit provisions and institutional incentives.

Building upon the long history of educating veterans, this comprehensive volume offers the most up-to-date scholarship and practical program guidance to help student affairs professionals, academic administrators, and faculty understand, serve, and support student veterans. It offers recommendations for enhancing and strengthening current campus efforts in serving veterans, planning additional services or programs, and—perhaps most importantly—coordinating the efforts of potentially disparate campus-based services and programs with community-based or government-sponsored veterans’ programs, services, and affiliated groups.