An
Active MTSU builds on a long tradition of aiding veterans in their transition from the battlefield to civilian life
by Allison Gorman
T
ony Johnston was no stranger to college when he used the GI Bill to attend graduate school. But his time in the military had changed him, and suddenly he felt every bit the stranger on a campus full of 18- to 22-year-olds. “It was a culture shock,” he says. “I was significantly more mature than I was as an undergraduate, and I was very mission-oriented. My objective was to get my degree and get a job so I could support my family.”
Malcolm Stallard has served in the U.S. Army since 2008. He served in Iraq from 2009 to 2010.
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Now an associate professor in the School of Agribusiness and Agriscience, Johnston says he recognizes himself in the veterans who have swelled the student ranks at MTSU over the past several years. The pullout of tens of thousands of American troops from Iraq and Afghanistan, along with a new, more generous Post-9/11 GI Bill, have led to the greatest influx of veteran students since the Vietnam War. In spring 2013, about a thousand MTSU students were attending on GI benefits. “Our veteran population has grown, and as we continue to pull out, it’s going to grow even more,” says Cathy Kirchner, who retired in June as registrar and was the former point of contact for veterans affairs. photos: J. Intintoli