College is the new front for many student veterans

COLLEGE IS THE NEW FRONT FOR MANY STUDENT VETERANS As waves of men and women in uniform return home, they often find the transition from combat to college to be challenging. Fortunately, an increasing number of student veterans are finding staunch allies on campuses around the country and the new edition of Lumina Foundation's FOCUS Magazine tells the story of two institutions that are modeling the way. Less than one percent of the population will serve in the military', yet, 10% of the country's and unemployment among homeless population has served?, Gulf-War-era II veterans is higher than joblessness in the general population. 10 9.9% 7.6% Veterans General Popuation --12200 US. Homeless citizens - Homeless US Veterans Some two million men & women in uniform have returned or will return from the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan' More than 800,000 veterans have already used post-9/11 benefits to attend college." Total outlays could reach $90 billion within 15 years.5 = $1 Bil Efforts to promote the success of student veterans seem to be paying off.The four-year graduation rate at the University of Arizona is 40 percent. For student veterans, it is more than 50 percent. ARIZONA RUTGERS In 2010, Rutgers University had no student veterans program to speak of. Today, it has a campus-wide support system for veterans that is among the best in the country. THE STATE UNIVERSITY OF NEW JERSEY 2,000 2,000 As Rutgers has earned a reputation as a veteran-friendly institution, its enrollment of vets has surged. In the summer of 2010, Rutgers knew of 446 veterans on campus. Today, the office supports some 2,000 men and women who have served in the military. 1,600 1,200 446 800 400 2010 2013 Sources: 1) NPR report, citing Defense Department and US Census Bureau 2) HUD 3) Bureau of Labor Statistics 4) Student Veterans of America 5) The Chronicle of Higher Education 6) University of Arizona 7) Rutgers University