Vets at home at Trident Tech

Steven Johnson knew of only one way to get a college education without debt, so he enlisted in the Navy.

After serving for six years, which included working as a hospital corpsman on a surgical team in Afghanistan, Johnson, 27, now is taking advantage of the new Post-9/11 GI Bill and working toward a degree in nursing at Trident Technical College.

"This is a military town," he said of Charleston, "so I knew the school would be used to working with veterans."

Johnson is right about that.

Trident Technical College has one of the largest enrollments of veterans among the state's two- and four-year colleges. It also was named one of the nation's "Military Friendly Schools" by G.I. Jobs magazine.

Elise Davis-McFarland, Trident's vice president for student services, said serving veterans is important to the college and that Trident continues to beef up its services. "We see it as a responsibility to the community and to veterans who have served us and their country," she said.

Trident has programs to help veterans from the time before they enroll in college through graduation, she said. With a grant from the American Council on Education and Walmart, the school in August opened the Vets Center on campus. The center has computers, printers and study space for veterans. It also has couches, tables, a coffee maker and a refrigerator so veterans have a place to relax and help each other.

Trident was among only 20 colleges in the country to land such a grant, Davis-McFarland said.

Norman Gilmore, who recently returned to school after serving in the Air Force for 20 years, has a work-study job at the Vets Center. Gilmore said he and Tammy VanEtta, a veterans educational benefits counselor, help veterans with everything including sorting out benefits and getting tutors for tough classes.

Gilmore said he had to sort out the benefit and enrollment process on his own. "If they had this center, I could have gotten a lot of questions answered in a short amount of time," he said.

Trident also has helped veterans with financial aid problems, said Ellen Green, Trident's director of financial aid. When the federal government, overwhelmed by the number of veterans taking advantage of its new generous education benefits program, got behind in sending tuition money to the school, Trident let students enroll in fall classes anyway, Green said. "The backlog backlogged all the way down," she added.

Trident officials are certain they eventually will get the money, she said. The Veterans Administration is trying hard to process the payments, she said. And the veterans enrolling at Trident have done everything they were supposed to do.

Green said last year, 1,785 of about 12,000 Trident students were veterans. She thinks the number will grow this year because of the new Post-9/11 GI Bill benefits program. Under that program, veterans who served on active duty on or after Sept. 11, 2001, can receive -- with some restrictions -- tuition, a housing allowance and a yearly stipend for books and supplies. And benefits are transferable to immediate family members.

Mary Baumer, who served in the Navy from 1999 to 2003, was working on an English paper in the Vets Center last week. "I love it", she said. "You can drink coffee and print for free."

Baumer, who hopes to enroll in veterinary school, said she also likes getting to know other veterans. "It's like the library but better," she said, "and you have community."

She also said that a special center on campus lets veterans know they are welcome. "It's nice to feel appreciated," she said.

McFarland said the $100,000 two-year grant with which the school opened the center also will be used to train faculty and staff members to work better with veterans.

Katheryn Brennan, who served as a Marine reservist for 23 years, said she thinks the school is doing a great job. Brennan's 19-year-old daughter also is enrolled at Trident.

But Brennan, who is considering becoming a teacher, said she wasn't able to attend college when she was younger. Her family simply couldn't afford to send her. Then, she got married, had children, and didn't have the time. But now she can "with Uncle Sam's generosity," she said.

"It's something I always wanted, but didn't get the chance to do," she said.