Findings

Congress finds the following: (1) Almost 1,000,000 veterans attend institutions of higher education each year. (2) Veterans face unique challenges in transitioning from the battlefield to the classroom and eventually to the workforce, including age differences, family obligations, significant time away from academic life, and service-related disabilities. (3) Studies have found that student veterans can feel lonely and vulnerable on campus and that connecting student veterans can effectively ease this isolation by bringing together new student veterans with those who have already successfully navigated the first few semesters of college. (4) Student Veteran Centers are recognized as an institutional best practice by Student Veterans of America. (5) The Department of Education included as one of its 8 Keys to Veterans’ Success that colleges and universities should coordinate and centralize campus efforts for all veterans, together with the creation of a designated space for them. (6) Budget constraints often make it difficult or impossible for institutions of higher education to dedicate space to veteran offices, lounges, or student centers. (7) The 110th Congress authorized the funding of Student Veteran Centers through the Centers of Excellence for Veteran Student Success under part T of title VIII of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1161t). Congress has appropriated funding for this program in subsequent years.