ST. BONAVENTURE, N.Y. — St. Bonaventure University has earned a place on the 2010 list of Military Friendly Schools, ranking it among the top 15 percent of colleges, universities and trade schools that are doing the most to recruit students with military experience.
The list was released Monday, Aug. 17, by G.I. Jobs magazine published by Victory Media, a veteran-owned business headquartered in Pittsburgh, Pa. In addition to publishing the annual Guide to Military Friendly Schools, the company issues other annual military friendly lists including those spotlighting corporations and other employers.
Schools have long valued veterans in the classroom because of their maturity, life experiences, diversity and leadership. That interest in veterans has only intensified with the recent passage of the Post-9/11 GI Bill, which made available tens of billions of dollars in tuition money.
“This list is especially important now because the recently enacted Post-9/11 GI Bill has given veterans virtually unlimited financial means to go to school,” said Rich McCormack, G.I. Jobs publisher. “Veterans can now enroll in any school, provided they’re academically qualified. So schools are clamoring for them like never before. Veterans need a trusted friend to help them decide where to get educated. The Military Friendly Schools list is that trusted friend.”
Jim DiRisio, director of undergraduate admissions at St. Bonaventure, said being included on the list is verification that the university values the veteran-student.
“The team at G.I. Jobs put a great deal of thought into identifying the criteria that make a college friendly to veterans, and I am pleased that St. Bonaventure faired so well in the final assessment,” said DiRisio. “As a veteran myself, I would be inclined to pursue educational goals at a school that has demonstrated, and been recognized for, its commitment to veterans’ needs.
As a St. Bonaventure alumnus and member of the university’s administration, I am even more pleased that St. Bonaventure has attained this kind of national distinction.”
St. Bonaventure is also a participant in the Yellow Ribbon GI Education Enhancement Program, which is designed to help students pay for education programs not covered by the Post-9/11 GI Bill tuition benefit. The Yellow Ribbon program essentially eliminates any difference between the GI Bill’s educational benefit cap and the tuition rate at a private college or university.
Colleges and universities on the Military Friendly Schools list also offer additional benefits to student veterans such as on-campus veterans programs, credit for service, military spouse programs and more.
The list of Military Friendly Schools was compiled through exhaustive research starting last May during which G.I. Jobs polled more than 7,000 schools nationwide. Methodology, criteria and weighting for the list were developed with the assistance of an Academic Advisory Committee consisting of educators and administrators from Carnegie Mellon University, the University of Toledo, Duquesne University, Coastline Community College and Lincoln Technical Institute.
A full story and detailed list of Military Friendly Schools will be highlighted in the annual Guide to Military Friendly Schools and on a poster, both of which will be distributed to hundreds of thousands of active and former military personnel in September. A new Web site, found at www.militaryfriendlyschools.com, will launch in September with interactive tools and search functionality to assist military veterans in choosing schools that best meet their educational
needs.
The 2010 Military Friendly School list can be found at www.militaryfriendlyschools.com/mfspr.
About the University: St. Bonaventure is in the top 25 percent of institutions in U.S.News & World Report’s 2009 ranking of Northern universities that offer master’s degrees. It has a history of accomplishment and service that extends back 150 years. At the heart of St. Bonaventure University is the Franciscan affirmation of the dignity and worth of the entire created order. Fundamental to this vision is an awareness that it is within relationships and community that individuals discover and develop their potential.