HAMMOND – Southeastern Louisiana University has received the Silver designation for the 2024-2025 Governor’s Military and Veteran Friendly Campus. The achievement reflects the university’s commitment to supporting military-affiliated students through various initiatives.
Southeastern enrolls 492 veterans, dependents and military service members. The university maintains a Veterans Upward Bound program; provides academic and other counseling services; offers scholarships specifically for military students and veterans; and maintains a wide range of online and distance learning programs that provide students with flexibility in scheduling.
“We are proud of this recognition, as it illustrates Southeastern’s continued commitment to serve active military, veterans and their families,” said President William S. Wainwright. “Most importantly, we know the designation means we are doing our best to serve those who have made many sacrifices in service to our nation.”
This fall Southeastern designated a special housing unit specifically for military students, veterans, or those whose parents are veterans. The first of its kind in the state, the housing unit allows military affiliated students to get to know one another and support each other while enrolled.
Another addition to campus is the Southeastern Student Veterans Association, a group open to veterans, reservists, spouses, dependents, and ROTC participants attending both Southeastern and Northshore Technical Community College. The association was founded to provide opportunities for veterans to meet one another and build a community, help the university administration better understand and meet the needs of veterans and their families, and help civilians better understand the military experience.
The university’s ROTC program, which returned to campus in 2016 with 10 cadets, has seen significant growth and success. The program now enrolls over 50 cadets and is expected to continue to grow.
Southeastern also serves as a resource center for thousands of Louisiana veterans in an effort to help active-duty military service men and women successfully transition to college through a new program called LaVetCorps, and has a specific office dedicated to serving veterans and their family members. The Office of Military and Veteran Success processes all education benefits sponsored by the VA and DOD, conducts VA benefits counseling, offers priority registration for classes and on-campus housing, and more.
Director of Military and Veteran Success Emily Anthony, who is currently serving as a Captain in the Louisiana Army National Guard, said Southeastern recently became designated as a Purple Heart University by the Military Order of the Purple Heart, signifying an unwavering commitment to continuously improve services to combat-wounded veterans.
“The Southeastern community is passionately committed to serving our veteran community, and it truly shows through our customer service across campus,” said Anthony. “Each office works collaboratively to ensure a seamless experience for our students, and we continue to improve every day. We have created a network of resources involving countless local businesses and organizations that provide services to veterans. As a veteran myself, I am extremely proud to work here because of what we represent.”
Senator Bill Cassidy recently visited campus to meet with a distinguished group of student veterans, hear their stories, and gain insight on their experiences navigating the VA system, utilizing benefits, and juggling school with military service, Anthony explained. She said the university plans to host another student veterans roundtable in the near future.
Southeastern has also been named a Military Friendly® School for 12 consecutive years.
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Available online at www.southeastern.edu/news_media/news_releases
