Serving Those Who Can Serve

When World War II veterans returned from duty looking to enroll in college, Fr. Meinrad Gaul, then Saint Martin’s dean of college faculties, put together a list of courses and guidelines specifically tailored to address the needs of veteran students, and the College added trailers, Quonset huts and other new facilities to accommodate the growth in the student body. Later, in the 1970s, Saint Martin’s established dedicated extensions at Fort Lewis and McChord Air Force Base, now Joint Base Lewis-McChord (JBLM), to provide convenient access to education for service members. In 2014, the University, in partnership with JBLM and Microsoft, launched the Microsoft Systems and Software Academy (MSSA), an accelerated 16-week training and certification program designed to help members of the military transition to careers in information technology. Saint Martin’s opened the Veterans Center, a dedicated space for veteran and military-affiliated students, in Harned Hall in 2017.

This commitment to veterans and students with military affiliation is part of the University’s DNA. Saint Martin of Tours, the namesake of the University, served in the Roman cavalry as a young man and is one of the patron saints of soldiers, and the University would not be the institution it is today without the contributions of the many veterans among the ranks of faculty, staff, monks and alumni.

The University was recently recognized as a Military Friendly® school and as the first Purple Heart University in Washington. But it’s clear that the active members of the military, veterans and students with military affiliation who make up 20 percent of the University’s current enrollment

already knew that there is something remarkable about Saint Martin’s; the Benedictine values that define the University, especially hospitality, listening, community living and respect for persons, have influenced the experience of many veteran students.

Robert Hearne ’19, who graduated this May with his degree in communication studies, spent more than 22 years in the Army, first as an armored crewman and later in human resources. He transferred to Saint Martin’s from South Puget Sound Community College and felt immediately welcomed as a student at the University. Hearne explained that he met Caitlin Gordon, senior recruitment transfer counselor, during the admissions process, and she reassured him that there was a thriving veteran community at Saint Martin’s. “I never could imagine myself going to a university,” Hearne says. “[Gordon] took the edge off of that and made me feel welcomed, and so did Fiona Kelly ’15 [former data analyst and marketing strategist at Saint Martin’s], who’s a veteran too and who introduced me well to Saint Martin’s.”

Staff and faculty at Saint Martin’s are not only welcoming, but also show a level of attention and personal concern that shape the academic and extracurricular circumstances in which veteran and non-veteran students can thrive.

Your instructors know you,” says Marc Figueroa ’19, a mechanical engineering major who enrolled in the 4+1 program, which means that he earned his bachelor’s degree in May 2019 and will earn his master’s degrees in mechanical engineering and engineering management in 2020. Figueroa came to Saint Martin’s after 12 years in the Air Force, which he left as a training flight non-commissioned officer.

It’s a sentiment that’s shared by other veteran students taking classes at the Lacey campus, at Saint Martin’s-JBLM and in the MSSA program.

Devin McLellan ’19 served in the Army from 2009 through 2012, when she joined the Army Reserves and served until February 2019. She is a dual major in business administration and psychology who graduated in May. She’s taken all her classes at Saint Martin’s-JBLM or online during her time at Saint Martin’s and she shared a story about the help she received from Lisa Power, Ph.D., assistant professor of business, and Ron Trapp, lecturer in business. “During the first two weeks of class in fall 2017, I was in a car wreck and my mother passed away,” she says. “I wasn’t sure I was going to be able to finish that term. Dr. Power and Ron Trapp were absolutely amazing through all of it. With their encouragement,

understanding and support, I was able to get through one of the hardest times of my life and finish the semester with a 4.0. I wouldn’t have been able to continue on my academic journey without that level of care and compassion.”

While McLellan has taken a number of her courses online, Michael Vidick, staff sergeant in the Air Force, criminal justice major and the 10th recipient of the America’s Service Heroes Scholarship, has taken only online courses while still serving full time. Vidick said he was impressed with the fact that, as an online student, he feels like he’s a fully supported member of the University community. “My advisor, Robin Pellerin [program coordinator, admissions and systems support at Saint Martin’s-JBLM], is always looking out for my best interests,” he says.

“And in the classroom, William Jackson—I like the way he teaches. He makes it clear what you need to do, and that’s definitely the way I learn.”

Besides the important relationships that veteran and military-affiliated students establish with faculty and staff, there are also the tight bonds that many create with their peers. Figueroa said that the camaraderie he’s experienced with his fellow engineering students is similar to what he encountered when he was in the Air Force. “You’re not trying to step on each other, because we’re all trying to survive,” he says. “We’ve all worked together. We’ve all studied for tests. We’re always there to pick each other up. You need that group of people behind you.”

Juan Avila, a student in the MSSA program, agrees with Figueroa. Avila worked in human resources in the Air Force and retired on May 31, 2019, shortly after he graduated from the MSSA program. Avila said that one of the aspects of MSSA he appreciates most is the way he and his peers use their respective strengths to solve problems. “Everyone here has different skills they bring,” he says. “There are some things I’m not good at and I can talk to someone who’s much better at programming, for example. Then I can help someone who might not be good at public speaking. Working together as a team is really important—and finding a good support network. This is a journey we don’t do by ourselves.”

The all-around support offered by Saint Martin’s faculty, staff and peers—in addition to support from their own families—is what ultimately helped McLellan and Vidick feel less apprehensive about pursuing their degrees. Hearne said that he wants to urge other veterans who are unsure about higher education to consider going back to school. “There’s a percentage of veterans out there who never start school because they have a job lined up or because high school was enough for them,” he says. “But I want to say to all the veterans who are questioning their thoughts about attaining a higher degree, you should rethink that. Give it a chance. Especially at Saint Martin’s, since there are great opportunities here and people who can help you further your education.”