Veteran Student Services Center Salutes Student Veterans

The ISU Veteran Student Services Center serves all military service members and veterans, along with military-connected students and family members (children, spouses, etc.)

They provide a multitude of services including:

• VA education & university benefits assistance, including your VA registration form
• A safe, social, study environment with trained staff at your service
  
• Professional development and employment preparation including access to the Career Closet
• Hero, a trained, on-site emotional support dog
• A strong, knowledgeable support network and staff to assist military-connected students and their family members with academic and professional endeavors
• TRIO Veterans program
• Bannock County Veterans Services Coordinator
• And so much more

These are just a handful of students, and one recent graduate who took advantage of the services offered by the VSSC.

Travis Kempf, Veteran, US Marine Corps - Combat Engineer, is a recent graduate, earning a bachelor's degree in business administration in the summer of 2023. He is currently an associate account executive at Ainsworth Game Technology in Las Vegas, NV. He was a natural student leader who helped the Veteran Student Services Center (VSSC) maintain progress during the COVID-19 pandemic. According to Dr. Shane Hunt, Travis was an inspirational force in the creation of the Walter P. Brown Center for Sales Excellence. He later placed First in the Walter P. Brown Center for Sales Excellence & Aflec bi-annual Sales Competition in April 2022.

Conner Coyle, Veteran, US Navy - Nuclear Electrician's Mate, is from a multi-generational military family as his mother is an officer in the US Air Force. Conner is currently a senior, and will earn a bachelor of science in physics. He conducts research in photonuclear medical isotopes using particle accelerators. Conner is a valuable asset to the department as he is the primary teaching assistant for the physics labs. Conner has had a long-time love of rugby and plays for the ISU Rugby Club.

Petty Officer-First Class, Marlon "Thomas" Thomas, US Navy- Aviation Maintenance, is Idaho State University's first DoD SkillBridge Intern in collaboration with the Idaho Veterans Chamber of Commerce. Thomas is completing his military service while working as a support specialist in the Veteran Student Services Center. Thomas will complete his enlistment in the Navy at approximately the same time he begins his first semester as a student Veteran at ISU in pursuit of a degree in psychology. He will then continue working with the VSSC as a VA work-study student and eventually a Career Path Intern with an emphasis on student veteran trends and mental health.