mentoring for students making the transition from the military to academia. Support soon coalesced around the idea to create an annual scholarship to cover tuition, fees and living expenses for one veteran to earn a graduate business degree. Jones Graduate School of Business Dean Bill Glick, along with Rice trustees and members of Jones’ leadership team, inaugurated the scholarship in 2012. (Lyles is this year’s recipient.) “Here, veterans get a two-year window after they come out of the military to figure out what they want to do,” Glick said. “And in the process they figure out which parts of their military leadership training actually translate into the business world. They come in with advanced leadership skills in some dimensions, and we give them opportunities to grow and develop. And vets are very good at doing that. They’ve got a great sense of mission.” Admission officers at the Jones School take into consideration the specific challenges facing veterans — “You can’t take a Princeton Review GMAT course in Kandahar,” one veteran said. Annie Hunnel, associate director of recruiting and admissions at the Jones
Lillie Besozzi ’16 HOMETOWN Baton Rouge, La. COLLEGE U.S. Military Academy at West Point SERVICE U.S. Army Besozzi was trained as a combat medic platoon leader and, during her deployment to Iraq, served as a hospital administrator, overseeing clinical operations in 38 locations.
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