Southwest Tennessee Community College awarded Veteran’s Education Transition Support designation

For more information, contact: Diana Fedinec, Director of Public Relations and Media
(901) 333-4247 
dfedinec@southwest.tn.edu

(Memphis, Tenn.) - Southwest Tennessee Community College has achieved distinction as a Veteran’s Education Transition Support (VETS) Certified Campus.  The Tennessee Higher Education Commission  (THEC) awarded the college the VETS designation June 21 in recognition of the supportive environment Southwest has cultivated for veterans transitioning from military service to civilian life, from soldier to student. 

Southwest is proud to join 26 other military-friendly colleges and universities across Tennessee that have been granted this special designation.  “We have been intentional about carving out learning spaces inside and outside the classroom to help our veteran scholars not only adapt to college life, but also thrive and achieve their academic goals,” Student Affairs Vice President Jacqueline Faulkner said. “We hope this prestigious designation will serve as a beacon to veterans who are seeking to transition to civilian life in rewarding careers,” she added. “Our academic programs and wrap-around student supports are designed to help prospective students like our country’s veterans succeed at Southwest and beyond.”

Three years ago, the college’s Veteran’s Affairs and Veterans Student Organization established the Veterans Support Center. The center provides veterans with the resources, support and advocacy they need to succeed in higher education and beyond.  The VETS program extends that outreach and assistance, from easing the enrollment process to helping veterans adapt to a new college environment. Throughout the 2020 academic year and spring semester 2021, the VA center has helped reintegrate to college life more than 460 enrolled veterans.

The Tennessee Veterans Education Transition Support Act established the VETS campus program in 2014, recognizing institutions that engage in the following activities: 

1. Conduct an annual campus survey of students who are veterans to identify their views, needs, issues and suggestions;
2. Provide information to faculty and staff about military and veterans’ culture, including combat-related mental or physical disabilities or other challenges;
3. Administer orientation programs for students who are veterans;
4. Facilitate mentoring and support programs for students who are veterans;
5. Develop outreach and communication strategies to engage military bases near the campus to learn about veterans’ educational goals and meeting their identified needs;
6. Create and maintain a prior learning assessment process to grant academic credit to veterans for transferable training and experience acquired through military service; and
7. Provide information online regarding the availability of prior learning assessments and program credit for skills, training or education acquired during military service.

For information about Veterans Affairs at Southwest, contact VA Coordinator Kristina King at kking1@southwest.tn.edu or call 901-333-4029.