Senator Crapo Visits Veteran Student Services Center and TRIO Programs
August 8, 2024
Idaho Senator Mike Crapo visited the Veterans Student Services Center and TRIO programs at ISU Monday, August 5, 2024.
The VSSC was ranked #4 for military friendly schools in 2024 and the last several years, which Director Todd Johnson highlighted in the presentation.
"Our primary focus for the VSSC is to get veterans here and to ensure they receive the educational benefits they are eligible for following their military service, along with creating a home away from home for veterans and their families," said Johnson. "We have a motto we call 'Application, Graduation and Beyond' and we really stay connected to these folks, they remain part of our Bengal family."
After acknowledging that he himself didn't identify a major until his fourth year of college, Senator Crapo was delighted to learn about some of the details shared by Johnson related to veterans in the state of Idaho and their use of educational benefits. In fiscal year 2022, the following statistics show the impact of military veterans benefits across all higher education institutions in the state of Idaho.
- 2736 students utilizing military benefits
- 1935 students utilizing the post-9/11 GI bill benefit
- $20 million to Idaho higher education in tuition and fees
- $44 million to higher education in housing and book stipends
- Over $65 million total coming to Idaho's colleges and universities
President Robert Wagner highlighted his vision for ISU to not only provide services and support for all students, but to also focus on individual students who need customized support.
"The Veteran Student Services Center and TRIO programs facilitate our ability to focus on the one, and to meet those individual needs," Wagner said.
TRIO Veterans Program Director Katie Leishman shared a success story of just such a student with Senator Crapo about once TRIO participant Dani Riese who served in the United States Navy, and now works as a student advisor at ISU's TRIO Veterans Program.
Crapo shared his gratefulness for all of the programs that serve veterans in achieving their educational and personal goals, committing his continued support in Congress.
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