For the first time ever, SUNY New Paltz has been named a Top 10 Military Friendly® School in the Small Public category, as the College continues its rapid rise into the upper echelon of colleges and universities serving veterans, dependents and active military students.
New Paltz has consistently moved up the Military Friendly® Schools list since first receiving the recognition six years ago. The Top 10 designation is the highest honor available to colleges and universities.
The data-driven Military Friendly® Schools assessment is created each year based on extensive research using public data sources for more than 8,800 schools nationwide, input from student veterans, and responses to the proprietary, data-driven Military Friendly® Schools survey from participating institutions.
The methodology considers a number of factors, with the heaviest weighting going to graduation rates, career outcomes, student support services and student retention.
These have been consistent areas of emphasis in SUNY New Paltz’s Office of Veteran & Military Services, which supports a military-affiliated student population that has grown from less than 100 in 2014, to many hundreds of students today.
“Our team is dedicated to collaborating with the entire campus community to create a welcoming environment for military-affiliated students, faculty and staff at SUNY New Paltz,” said Jason Gilliland, coordinator of Veteran & Military Services. “It’s a privilege to support our veteran, active military and dependent students, many from right here in the Hudson Valley, in their pursuit of academic success and personal and professional fulfillment.”
The office coordinates a wide variety of resources and support structures for military-affiliated students, including early course registration, free parking permits, smooth credit transfer, team-building events and help navigating the application processes for GI Bill® and other benefits earned through service.
They also work closely with civilian students, faculty and staff, providing trainings on unique challenges faced by veterans and service members in their pursuit of higher education.
Visit the Office of Veteran & Military Services online to learn more.
About the Military Friendly® program
The Military Friendly® designation creates better outcomes for veterans by setting and promoting standards of excellence that provide positive reinforcement for American organizations to work to improve the lives of veterans. Military Friendly® is the standard that measures an organization’s commitment, effort and success in creating sustainable and meaningful opportunity for the military community.
The data used to determine Military Friendly® designations and awards are sourced from public data sources, proprietary data and personal surveys of veterans themselves. More information at https://www.militaryfriendly.com/.
