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Women student veterans have been an understudied student population for decades. Although researchers have explored women student veterans' transition to higher education from the military, challenges relating to their peers, and mental health and service-related disabilities, there is virtually no literature on their lived experiences in the college classroom (Atkinson et al., 2018). The field lacks research on the narratives and counternarratives of the women student veterans' lived experiences in the classroom and on campus, and how their gender and veteran identities add to or hinder those experiences. Addressing this gap in the literature, this qualitative study explored the following research questions: 1) What experiences do undergraduate cisgender women student veterans have in the college classroom? and 2) How do gender and student veteran identity influence cisgender women student veterans' experiences in the classroom? Veteran Critical Theory (VCT; Phillips and Lincoln, 2017) was used as a guiding framework for this qualitative study. The tenets of the theory provided guiding principles that assisted in understanding and evaluating how policies, procedures, and practices in the military and higher education marginalize and oppress women student veterans. Narrative inquiry was used as the methodological approach for data collection and analysis, which allowed the women student veterans to express themselves and their lived experiences through dialogue and stories (Creswell, 2014). Participants included seven undergraduate women student veterans (five from large, public research universities, and two from community colleges), between the ages of 23 to early forties, and were veterans from various branches of the military (Air Force, Army, and Marine Corps). Data was collected through a participant questionnaire and semi-structured interviews and analyzed using initial and second-cycle coding procedures. In response to the study's first research question (What experiences do undergraduate cisgender women student veterans have in the college classroom?), the theme of classmates emerged with the sub-themes of organic reveals, microaggressions, indifference, inability to relate, and ignorance. The participants shared they refrained from informing their classmates of their veteran identity unless it came up organically in conversation. They also shared that on occasion, when they did share their veteran identity, they experienced various forms of microaggressions or indifference. The participants described their inability to relate to their civilian peers due to differences in age, marital/parental status, and general life experiences. The participants also shared their frustrations regarding their classmates' ignorance of veterans and the military. Another theme that emerged was faculty and included sub-themes of indifference and positive interactions. The participants discussed how they only revealed their veteran status to their faculty if it came up organically in class conversation, and their faculty responded either positively or were indifferent to the news. None of the participants had negative experiences with their faculty regarding their veteran identity or military affiliation. Several participants spoke of specific positive interactions they had experienced with faculty members and how those interactions had a lasting and influential impact on their classroom and academic experiences. The final theme that emerged was experiences with the campus environment beyond coursework, which included sub-themes of "veteran-friendly" campus, disability support services, "you don't look like a veteran," and liberal environment. Regarding having a "veteran-friendly" campus, participants described having both positive and negative experiences. Many mentioned they did not participate in veteran-related activities on campus due to their busy schedules, and they also did not know of other women veterans on campus. Some described the ease of using their GI Bill benefits, while one participant talked about the gender inequity of having to rush against the clock to finish classes before her GI Bill benefits expire due to multiple stop-outs from having her children. A couple of participants also described their experiences working with disability support services on campus. One participant had a positive, easy, and simplistic experience obtaining an accommodation letter for her military-related disabilities, while another participant described multiple challenges in trying unsuccessfully to get accommodations for her military-related disabilities. The women in the study also described multiple instances where their peers on campus and other veterans in the community would comment "you don't look like a veteran" when they would reveal their veteran identity. Additionally, participants described their campuses' geographical areas as being liberal environments. Several of the women shared that they felt anti-military and anti-veteran sentiments from their classmates while on campus, resulting in their desire to "blend in" and not advertise their veteran identity. When referring to campuses being liberal environments, the findings in the study also found that the participants were not referring to a geopolitical ideology, but rather an undercurrent of privilege and a negative peer culture that exists on campus. In response to the second research question (How do gender and student veteran identity influence cisgender women student veterans' experiences in the classroom?), several themes emerged: gender identity, sexism, and veteran identity. The first theme, gender identity, was a consistent theme throughout each of the participant's interviews. They described how being a woman had a significant impact in their military experience as they experienced various forms of gender inequities, sexual harassment and assault, as well as having to work twice as hard to earn respect and acknowledgements. The women also discussed how those experiences impacted their desire to want to "blend in" on their campuses and be "regular" students. Although they shared that being a woman in class made no real difference in their in-class experiences, the findings showed that gender played a key role in the way they approached their veteran identity, which influenced how they engaged with their classmates and faculty in the classroom and on campus. The participants did clarify, however, that they felt age, marital status/parental status, and a difference in general life experiences from their civilian peers were more influential to their classroom experiences than their gender. The next theme that emerged was sexism. The participants discussed how they experienced various forms of sexism and gender inequities in the military. They shared numerous anecdotes of their experiences in the military due to their gender. Another theme that emerged was veteran identity. Three sub-themes also emerged: blending in, fear, and reactions to "thank you for your service." With regard to blending in, the participants described their desire to blend in on their campuses and not advertise their veteran status. The second sub-theme of fear was in reference to the participants' feelings when anticipating the responses of their civilian classmates and faculty after revealing their veteran identity. The third sub-theme that emerged was reactions to "thank you for your service". Several participants discussed how the well-intentioned statement of gratitude makes them uncomfortable because they do not know how to respond. Overall, the participants described how they typically felt the need to keep their veteran identities to themselves unless it came up organically in conversation, but their veteran identity was not as salient as some of their other identities (i.e., student, mother, friend, etc.). In conclusion, this study offers implications and recommendations for policy and practice. These include training faculty and staff on veterans and military culture; providing additional resources and staff for on-campus resources like veteran resource centers and disability support services, improving classroom environments, peer culture and the liberal environment, and improving campus policies and procedures to better support student veterans. Further research should explore how to better serve women student veterans on college campuses, undergraduate women student veterans from other parts of the country and other types of higher education institutions; and the harmful effects of "thank you for your service" and similar comments. / Doctor of Philosophy / Women student veterans have been an understudied student population for decades. Although researchers have explored women student veterans' transition to higher education from the military, challenges relating to their peers, and mental health and service-related disabilities, there is virtually no literature on their lived experiences in the college classroom (Atkinson et al., 2018). The field lacks research on the narratives and counternarratives of the women student veterans' lived experiences in the classroom and on campus, and how their gender and veteran identities add to or hinder those experiences. Addressing this gap in the literature, this qualitative study explored the following research questions: 1) What experiences do undergraduate women student veterans have in the college classroom? and 2) How do gender and student veteran identity influence women student veterans' experiences in the classroom? Seven participants participated in an interview where they shared details about their experiences serving in the military, interacting with civilians as veterans, and their experiences in college classrooms and on campus. In response to the study's first research question (What experiences do undergraduate women student veterans have in the college classroom?), the findings included the theme of classmates with the sub-themes of organic reveals, microaggressions, indifference, inability to relate, and ignorance. Regarding the second research question (How do gender and student veteran identity influence women student veterans' experiences in the classroom?), several themes emerged: gender identity, sexism, and veteran identity. The theme of veteran identity also included sub-themes of fear and participants' negative reactions to the phrase, "thank you for your service." This study offers implications and recommendations for policy and practice and recommendations for further research. Such efforts may not only assist in the support of women student veterans, but all student veterans and other marginalized and underrepresented students.

"It was the purpose of this writer to obtain such information in regards to the living costs of the students enrolled at North Texas State College as to suffice in making a comparative study with the living costs of students enrolled at other educational institutions over the nation."-- leaf 1.

Some veterans transitioning from military duty to the classroom are not obtaining college degrees. The purpose of this study was to investigate student veterans’ perceptions of the transition services and support systems at their college that might impact the challenges they face while pursuing a college degree. The theoretical framework for this study was Schlossberg’s Theory of Transition. The guiding research question asked how military veterans perceived the transition services and support systems at their university in the context of their decision to obtain their degrees. A purposeful sampling approach was used for selecting student veteran participants who had returned from active duty and were enrolled at the university for 1 year. Moustakas’s transcendental approach was the model used for interviewing 12 veterans. Inductive analysis was used to analyze data, including coding the interview transcripts and identifying themes to capture the collective experience of the veterans. Participants indicated that existing emotional or social support programs, organizations, and personnel to assist them on campus were inadequate. Implications for social change include increasing faculty and staff understanding of veterans’ needs, which may lead to improved transition services, support systems, and communications within the university. Results may be used to improve retention and degree completion rates of student veterans.

abstract: As many as one-third of OEF/OIF soldiers and combat veterans may be struggling with less visible psychological injuries. Military/veteran students may face heightened difficulties as they are not only adjusting to civilian life but also transitioning to college life. University administrators and staff have been charged to address their transitional needs and to promote their academic success. Despite significant influx in enrollment with the passing of the Post-9/11 GI Bill, research on OEF/OIF service members and veterans in higher education remains limited. Utilizing self-report measures, the current study examined the psychosocial functioning of 323 military/veteran students enrolled at Arizona State University who served at least one combat deployment as part of OEF/OIF. The study further investigated whether enlisting for educational benefits and utilizing campus programs/services were associated with more positive academic persistence decisions. Participants were also asked to rate ASU's programming for military/veteran students as well as suggest campus programs/services to promote their academic success. More PTSD symptoms, depression, anxiety, and anger/aggression were found to be associated with less cultural congruity and lower perceived social support. Cultural congruity and social support were significant predictors of academic persistence decisions. Participants who reported utilizing more campus programs/services also tended to endorse more positive persistence decisions. No significant differences in persistence decisions were found between participants who enlisted in the military for education benefits and those who enlisted for non-educational reasons. Approximately two-thirds reported utilizing academic advising services and Veteran Benefits and Certifications. Library services, financial aid services, and ASU sporting events were the next most frequently utilized. More than 91% rated ASU's programming satisfactory or better. Over 71% of participants indicated that increasing recognition of their military experience would facilitate their academic success. Nearly 40% recommended a military/veteran student lounge and improvements to VA education benefits counseling. Another 30% recommended that ASU provide professional development for faculty/staff on military/veteran readjustment issues, improve the re-enrollment process following deployment/training, offer a veteran-specific orientation, and establish a department or center for military/veteran programming. Findings are discussed in light of Tinto's interactionist model of college student attrition, and implications for university mental health providers are presented. / Dissertation/Thesis / Ph.D. Counseling Psychology 2012

"The purpose of this study is to determine whether there is a significant difference between non-veterans and veterans in certain scholastic achievements and personality traits."--1.

The major purpose of this study was to investigate whether the level of engagement, as measured by the National Survey of Student Engagement (NSSE) correlates with veterans’ academic success as measured by cumulative Grade Point Average (GPA). Participants were senior college students, at a four-year urban public university who completed the National Survey of Student Engagement (NSSE). The design compared two years that the survey was administered, 2011 and 2013. The NSSE was also used to examine differences in perception among veterans, nontraditional and traditional students. Based on the quantitative analysis it was determined that the more engaged veterans are the better their GPA. While there was no statistical significance, there were positive correlations for veterans between GPA and their relationships with students, faculty, and administrative personnel in the 2011 sample; the 2013 sample showed a negative correlation. The analysis also determined that perceptions in quality of interaction with faculty, advisors, and administration changed from 2011 to 2013. Additionally, perceptions of veterans showed they felt the campus was supportive in 2011, however did not feel the same in 2013. The results of this quantitative study provide higher education institutions and researchers additional insight into which areas of their university services need attention in order to assist in the academic success of student veterans. / Educational Leadership

Each month, thousands of U.S service members are discharged from the military and are forced to make the decision of what to do with the rest of their lives. For an increasingly large percentage of such veterans, the decision that they will make will be to become full-time college students and pursue an education that will provide them with meaningful careers. Unfortunately, due to the type of constant deployment cycles that many student-veterans undergo while enlisted/commissioned, a large percentage of veterans taking part in the military-to-college transition process have received mental/physical injuries that serve as major obstacles for achieving successful transitions. Specifically, this study seeks to determine if social support, willingness towards campus communication, self-esteem, and eagerness towards social networking site usage are related to a student-veterans overall level of academic engagement. This study draws its data from a sample of 202 full-time student-veterans. Data was collected through a volunteer self-administered online questionnaire. Six sections respectively measured eagerness towards SNS (Social Networking Site) usage, academic engagement, social support, willingness towards campus communication, self-esteem, and demographic information. Data was collected from California community colleges, California State Universities institutions, University of California institutions, and California private non-for profit institutions. This study found a statistically significant positive relationship between social support, self-esteem, willingness to communicate, and academic engagement. Essentially, student-veterans who have high levels of social support/self-esteem and are willing to communicate are more likely to possess high levels of academic engagement. There was no significant relationship found between eagerness towards SNS usage and academic engagement. Moreover, this study is significant as it suggests that a student-veteran’s level of academic engagement is positively correlated to their overall level of academic engagement. Thus, maintaining strong social support networks that allow student-veterans to interact in personal and one-on-one interactions is of great importance for a student-veteran during their time in college in order to achieve their academic and professional goals.

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The purposes of this study are (1) to determine military and scholastic achievements made by North Texas State Teachers College lettermen during World War II; (2) to make tabulations of these achievements; and (3) to provide references and data on these athletes during World War II.