thedrifter
07-24-07, 05:46 AM
Minnesota colleges help as vets adjust to a new drill
After time in a war zone, college life can seem like kid stuff for veterans. That's why Minnesota's state colleges and universities are trying to smooth that transition by helping them adjust.
By Jeff Shelman, Star Tribune
Last update: July 23, 2007 – 11:47 PM
Andy Davis had two tours of active duty in Afghanistan and another one in Iraq as an Army Ranger. None of that, however, fully prepared Davis for his new life as a college student at the University of Minnesota.
"I get into my first class, and they're telling us the midterm schedule and there are students freaking out and pulling their hair out because there's a midterm five weeks away," Davis said. "I got told I was going to Iraq three weeks in advance, so I didn't think this was a very big deal. That's a pretty stereotypical story of veterans in school."
In recent years, men and women have moved by the thousands from the battlefield to college campuses. The newly discharged veterans often find themselves adjusting to fellow students who are not only younger, but don't share the perspective and habits that defined their lives in uniform.
This summer about 2,600 Minnesota National Guard members will return from Iraq and Afghanistan. More will return home from active duty in one the four military branches. It's not known how many will enroll this fall in colleges and universities, but those institutions are getting ready for their arrival.
Campuses are hiring staff to help veterans obtain benefits and opening centers to give vets a place to find each other. They're training faculty and staff to help veterans assimilate into campus life.
Minneapolis Community and Technical College is expecting a flood of students for its Veterans Upward Bound program, a remedial program in place since the end of the Vietnam War.
"Here are people who are serving our country, coming back from war, and clearly it's our duty and obligation that they get all the services they need to reintegrate, to move ahead with their lives," said MCTC President Phil Davis.
"I think there's just a different attitude about returning vets than when I was in college."
Veterans in college face some common pitfalls. Some quit because of delays in getting government financial aid. Some get lonely because they're older and don't live in dormitories with traditional first-year students. Or they may suffer from post-combat stress or depression. For others, simply sitting through a 50-minute class can be a challenge.
"In the past they've been told pretty much what to do, where to go, when to go, how to go and they're going to be more on their own now," said Steve Wozniak, the assistant program director for Veterans Upward Bound at MCTC. "We've just tried to let staff and faculty know about the challenges so they could be aware of that. Hopefully they can be mindful that there could be some inner issues going on there, or there could be stress or even anger."
One of the first people vets will encounter at the University of Minnesota's Twin Cities campus is Carin Anderson, the veterans certification coordinator in the student service center and an Iraq veteran.
In 2003, Anderson was a student at the University of Wisconsin-Platteville when she received three days notice that her Wisconsin National Guard unit was being deployed.
"I came back 14 months later and all my roommates were gone and had graduated," said Anderson, who finished her degree at Wisconsin-River Falls. "Being in Iraq changes you. I didn't know what I wanted to do."
But Aaron Ledebuhr, a Rochester native who joined the Marines immediately after graduating from high school in 1998, knows there is more to the transition than simply getting a monthly check. The senior electrical engineering major at the University of Minnesota is involved with the veterans transition center on campus, a place where the vets realize they're not alone.
"Being a 23-year-old freshman doesn't quite fit maturity-wise with 18-year-old freshmen," Ledebuhr said. "My biggest struggle was making friends. It's only five years of age, but it's quite a bit of difference. It's a completely different world; it's really hard to relate."
Part of the alienation
Said Andy Davis: "Going to war ages you by 10 years at least. So you come back when you're 22 and you feel 32 compared to some of these 18-year-olds. That's a huge part of the alienation."
At MCTC, a classroom is currently being converted to a lounge where vets can gather. Other campuses are creating similar spaces for former military personnel.
"We all need a place that's safe and comfortable, and we get some level of understanding and support," said Steve Frantz, system director for student affairs for MnSCU. "Because veterans' experiences are fresh and sometimes raw and present, you need to find support from buddies and you're going to find those buddies -- male or female -- in the veterans centers."
That can be helpful in a campus where free expression can come as a shock to vets.
"It's definitely an adjustment having to deal with all viewpoints; it made me be a little more tolerant," Ledebuhr said. "Students and professors sometimes have no idea there is a veteran in the class and things get said. I think it could be very easy for a vet to take it personally.
"There was a protest where someone was flying the U.S. flag upside down. I don't have a quick temper, but things like that turn my stomach. Whatever your view on foreign policy is, that's just wrong."
The Twin Cities campus has about 500 veterans currently receiving government benefits. Moreover, there are about 3,000 veterans spread among the 32 MnSCU colleges and universities.
Mary Koskan, director of One Stop Student Services at the University of Minnesota, said faculty and staff need to help veterans adjust to campus life.
"It's not about the politics or the policy of the war, it's about helping these people reintegrate back into society," Koskan said. "We feel strongly that these people are going to come back, they're going to do great things and we want to support them."
Jeff Shelman • 612-673-7478 • jshelman@startribune.com
Ellie
After time in a war zone, college life can seem like kid stuff for veterans. That's why Minnesota's state colleges and universities are trying to smooth that transition by helping them adjust.
By Jeff Shelman, Star Tribune
Last update: July 23, 2007 – 11:47 PM
Andy Davis had two tours of active duty in Afghanistan and another one in Iraq as an Army Ranger. None of that, however, fully prepared Davis for his new life as a college student at the University of Minnesota.
"I get into my first class, and they're telling us the midterm schedule and there are students freaking out and pulling their hair out because there's a midterm five weeks away," Davis said. "I got told I was going to Iraq three weeks in advance, so I didn't think this was a very big deal. That's a pretty stereotypical story of veterans in school."
In recent years, men and women have moved by the thousands from the battlefield to college campuses. The newly discharged veterans often find themselves adjusting to fellow students who are not only younger, but don't share the perspective and habits that defined their lives in uniform.
This summer about 2,600 Minnesota National Guard members will return from Iraq and Afghanistan. More will return home from active duty in one the four military branches. It's not known how many will enroll this fall in colleges and universities, but those institutions are getting ready for their arrival.
Campuses are hiring staff to help veterans obtain benefits and opening centers to give vets a place to find each other. They're training faculty and staff to help veterans assimilate into campus life.
Minneapolis Community and Technical College is expecting a flood of students for its Veterans Upward Bound program, a remedial program in place since the end of the Vietnam War.
"Here are people who are serving our country, coming back from war, and clearly it's our duty and obligation that they get all the services they need to reintegrate, to move ahead with their lives," said MCTC President Phil Davis.
"I think there's just a different attitude about returning vets than when I was in college."
Veterans in college face some common pitfalls. Some quit because of delays in getting government financial aid. Some get lonely because they're older and don't live in dormitories with traditional first-year students. Or they may suffer from post-combat stress or depression. For others, simply sitting through a 50-minute class can be a challenge.
"In the past they've been told pretty much what to do, where to go, when to go, how to go and they're going to be more on their own now," said Steve Wozniak, the assistant program director for Veterans Upward Bound at MCTC. "We've just tried to let staff and faculty know about the challenges so they could be aware of that. Hopefully they can be mindful that there could be some inner issues going on there, or there could be stress or even anger."
One of the first people vets will encounter at the University of Minnesota's Twin Cities campus is Carin Anderson, the veterans certification coordinator in the student service center and an Iraq veteran.
In 2003, Anderson was a student at the University of Wisconsin-Platteville when she received three days notice that her Wisconsin National Guard unit was being deployed.
"I came back 14 months later and all my roommates were gone and had graduated," said Anderson, who finished her degree at Wisconsin-River Falls. "Being in Iraq changes you. I didn't know what I wanted to do."
But Aaron Ledebuhr, a Rochester native who joined the Marines immediately after graduating from high school in 1998, knows there is more to the transition than simply getting a monthly check. The senior electrical engineering major at the University of Minnesota is involved with the veterans transition center on campus, a place where the vets realize they're not alone.
"Being a 23-year-old freshman doesn't quite fit maturity-wise with 18-year-old freshmen," Ledebuhr said. "My biggest struggle was making friends. It's only five years of age, but it's quite a bit of difference. It's a completely different world; it's really hard to relate."
Part of the alienation
Said Andy Davis: "Going to war ages you by 10 years at least. So you come back when you're 22 and you feel 32 compared to some of these 18-year-olds. That's a huge part of the alienation."
At MCTC, a classroom is currently being converted to a lounge where vets can gather. Other campuses are creating similar spaces for former military personnel.
"We all need a place that's safe and comfortable, and we get some level of understanding and support," said Steve Frantz, system director for student affairs for MnSCU. "Because veterans' experiences are fresh and sometimes raw and present, you need to find support from buddies and you're going to find those buddies -- male or female -- in the veterans centers."
That can be helpful in a campus where free expression can come as a shock to vets.
"It's definitely an adjustment having to deal with all viewpoints; it made me be a little more tolerant," Ledebuhr said. "Students and professors sometimes have no idea there is a veteran in the class and things get said. I think it could be very easy for a vet to take it personally.
"There was a protest where someone was flying the U.S. flag upside down. I don't have a quick temper, but things like that turn my stomach. Whatever your view on foreign policy is, that's just wrong."
The Twin Cities campus has about 500 veterans currently receiving government benefits. Moreover, there are about 3,000 veterans spread among the 32 MnSCU colleges and universities.
Mary Koskan, director of One Stop Student Services at the University of Minnesota, said faculty and staff need to help veterans adjust to campus life.
"It's not about the politics or the policy of the war, it's about helping these people reintegrate back into society," Koskan said. "We feel strongly that these people are going to come back, they're going to do great things and we want to support them."
Jeff Shelman • 612-673-7478 • jshelman@startribune.com
Ellie