G.I. Jobs magazine has again named East Tennessee State University as a “Military Friendly School.” This distinction, granted for the second year in a row, places ETSU in the top 15 percent of colleges, universities and trade schools considered nationwide. The institution will appear in the 2011 Guide to Military Friendly Schools, a publication that caters to the 8 million military troops and veterans eligible for GI Bill education benefits.In 1946, what was then East Tennessee State College welcomed 250 World War II veterans, and ETSU continues that tradition today. The school houses a Veterans Affairs Office and a Veterans Upward Bound program. In addition, the ETSU Veterans Affairs Standing Committee, comprised of faculty, staff and student veterans, addresses veterans’ issues on campus.

Hundreds of ETSU student veterans are using Montgomery GI Bill benefits to achieve their higher education goals. In addition, the university works closely with Reserve and National Guard members who are deployed and offers complete reimbursement of tuition and fees for that semester.

The ETSU Department of Military Science has helped guide the campus toward “veteran awareness.” Since 1952, when the university’s application for an Army Reserve Officers’ Training Corps (ROTC) unit was accepted, the “Buccaneer Battalion” has commissioned over 1,400 student cadets as second lieutenants, including seven who have reached the general officer ranks within the Army.

Today, ETSU ROTC graduates continue to serve across the nation and around the world – on active duty and as members of the Army Reserve and National Guard.

A number of current cadets are also veterans who served in the Army prior to attending ETSU. ROTC scholarships and other financial benefits assist them and other qualified veterans as they pursue their education.

For further information, contact Angela Haire of the ETSU Department of Military Science at (423) 439-4269 or hairea@etsu.edu.

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