March 8, 2023
SVSU earns Silver status as a 2023-2024 Military Friendly® School
Thanks to its commitment to and support of military-affiliated students, Saginaw Valley State University has earned Silver status as a Military Friendly® School for the 2023-2024 cycle. This is the 12th time the university has earned this distinction. Of the 1,800-plus schools participating in the 2023-2024 survey, only 530 received the Military Friendly® designation.
SVSU meets all the standards for being a Military Friendly® School, which include culture and commitment, financial aid, graduation and military student support and retention. The university’s Military Student Affairs Office is an integral part of this culture.
“I would say SVSU offers a great campus community and a great military community,” said Brianna DeMeyers, a sociology major and Army reservist from Silverwood, in Michigan’s Thumb. “I have a couple friends in my reserve unit who went to other universities and struggled for a long time getting their benefits. SVSU has a great military student affairs staff, and they do amazing work getting you set up with those benefits.”
The Military Friendly® ratings system was established in 2003 and is the standard that measures an organization’s commitment, effort and success in creating sustainable and meaningful benefit for the military community. The Military Friendly® designation – which is applied to employers, brands and schools – creates better outcomes for veterans. SVSU will be included in the April Guide to Military Friendly® Schools from VIQTORY.
SVSU has received numerous recognitions at both the state and national level for being a military- and veteran-friendly institution for its procedures and policies that benefit military-connected students. The Military Student Affairs Office at SVSU provides resources and support to military-affiliated students, such as:
- Admission counseling
- Academic advising
- Department of Defense and VA benefit advising and certification
- Transition assistance
- Peer support group
- Veterans resource referrals
DeMeyers credits Bethany Alford, SVSU’s director of Military Student Affairs and special assistant to the associate provost/dean of students, and Kelli Wenzel, the university’s school certifying official, with leading the charge to help military-affiliated students succeed at SVSU.
“Both Beth and Kelli do a great job making sure that military-affiliated students, veterans, reservists and dependents get all the resources they need to be successful on campus,” DeMeyers said. “When I walked in the office for the first time, I had no idea what benefits I was eligible for and how I was to get them. Kelli and Beth both helped me apply for my benefits and they made sure I understood what was happening throughout the whole process.”