Two dozen student veterans came together November 11 at Newcomb Hall to celebrate Veterans Day and share the struggles they’ve faced transitioning from military to student life—as well as the advantages being a veteran has afforded them. UVA President Jim Ryan, along with other university officials, also attended the event, hosted by the Student Veterans of America.
Student veterans detailed the struggles they faced adjusting to UVA. Alex, a second-year statistics major, shared that he had difficulty adapting to the amount of downtime he now has as a student, and learning to manage his own time and commitments.
However, many veterans praised UVA for offering them opportunities they may not have had elsewhere. As a first-year computer science major with a young daughter, Dalton expressed gratitude for being afforded early enrollment and graduate housing for his family. He felt that these advantages helped him better navigate the university as an unconventional student: “I felt the UVA hand reach out,” he said.
Halfway through the event, Ryan arrived to give the Veteran Student Center a check for $25,900 “due to the generosity of others,” he said, detailing the ways in which he wants to “make UVA synonymous with service.” He expressed admiration for those who have served in the military, and said he felt honored to be in the presence of student veterans, particularly on Veterans Day. UVA officials in attendance—many of whom were veterans themselves and work closely with student veterans—also shared stories about their time in the military.
Though the students discussed their gratitude for the Veteran Student Center, some said they often faced additional stress because of the lack of representation in the upper echelons of UVA administration. Brett Schriever, a third-year aerospace engineering major, detailed his struggles getting help from the university when he faced complications with his GI Bill benefits. In the end, Schriever—who spent two years on active duty, and is now in his eighth year in the Army Reserves—said he had to ask another student veteran for advice.
Marine Corps veteran and first-year student Romeo Sarmiento, treasurer of UVA’s Student Veterans chapter, expressed similar concerns. Sarmiento, who spent seven years as an infantry assaultman, articulated his disappointment that there is still no veteran representation among the university’s faculty, and that there are no faculty advisors to help veterans with all the aspects of their transition into university life.
Sarmiento also explained the ways in which his time in the military affected his career path—he plans to apply to the McIntire School of Commerce, and eventually become a lawyer to serve his country in a new way. “Service doesn’t end,” he said.
Concluding the event, Sarmiento expressed hope that the Veteran Student Center will be able to organize more events in the future incorporating the general student body. There is an “important opportunity for exchange,” he said.
