Empowering veterans at LCC

By Emmett Roman
Staff Reporter

Veterans are an integral part of the student body at LCC. According to Andrew Cosgrove, the director of the Center for Veteran and Family Support, “Veterans are very important to our campus community. They bring various life experiences that many general population students haven’t had.” Because of this, LCC has many different veteran services for students and staff alike. According to Cosgrove, “Veterans have always had access to services. However, over the past year, we have really made it a point to set up a standard process for new students coming into LCC so we can make sure they don’t miss any steps and are better prepared to start classes,” Cosgrove said.

To begin, a support option for veterans at LCC is the Veterans Resource Center. The center was created as a space for veterans and other military-connected students (someone with a parent or guardian who served in the U.S. military or National Guard) to gather and relax. In the resource center, there are computers, printers, a lounge area with a big television, an Xbox One and a study room. There is also private tutoring available. The Veteran Resource Center is located in the Huron Building and the entrance to the center is directly off of Shiawassee Street. The center is open from 8 a.m. - 5 p.m.

The college offers links to many military-connected scholarships that are either affiliated or not with LCC, such as Fisher House, National Military Family Association, AMVETS Scholarships and American Legion. More information about the scholarships is linked on the LCC Veteran Services website.

LCC’s veteran services also partner with different organizations to help provide veterans, family members and current service members career opportunities in the Lansing area and surrounding community. The college partners with Michigan Veterans Affairs Agency to provide a list of veteran-friendly employers in Michigan.

To honor veterans, a memorial is located in the Health and Human Services Building. According to LCC’s website, the memorial was developed to honor Michigan veterans who served during times of war and peace. The college hopes that the memorial will keep the history of veterans alive for future generations. LCC offers the option for anyone to honor a veteran through the Nominate a Veteran for Memorial form found on the LCC website.

Not only are veterans valuable for the student body, they are also another diverse group to add life experiences to LCC. “Veterans bring a sense of responsibility because of their military service, along with great leadership capabilities,” Cosgrove said. “They bring different and diverse views to the table which is great for classroom discussions and looking at things in a different way; thinking outside of the box is a key trait for many veterans.”