An Advocate for Student Veterans in College
College of Southern Maryland student and Navy veteran Bill Buffington was one of 125 students chosen from 1,500 applicants to attend this summer’s Student Veterans Association (SVA) Leadership Institute in Bentonville, Arkansas. Hosted by Walmart Corporate Headquarters, the Leadership Institute is a cohort-based program for emerging leaders within the SVA to learn best practices and operational concepts to aid in strengthening the local chapters. In addition to training, attendees had the opportunity to network with Walmart corporate leaders.
The Department of Veterans Affairs reports that for fiscal year 2013, there were 1.09 million VA education beneficiaries. According to data provided by SVA, 85 percent of student veterans are age 24 or older, 47 percent have a family and 27 percent are female. At the end of 2011, over 950,000 veterans and eligible family members were enrolled in college, reported former Veterans Administration Secretary Eric K. Shineski. The nation’s community colleges have been the forefront of the new GI Bill. Locally, College of Southern Maryland President Dr. Brad Gottfried can boast that CSM serves as one of the largest veteran-serving colleges or universities in the state and assists more than 900 military students and their dependents each year in their academic and career goals.
“I was honored to be chosen to represent the veteran students enrolled at CSM and to learn what other institutions around the country are doing to assist their veteran student populations,” said Mr. Buffington, of White Plains. At the program, Mr. Buffington met with other student veterans from schools such as Florida State, George Mason University, and San Diego State, and collaborated in workshops on solutions to real-life scenarios and challenges that affect student veterans nation-wide.
No stranger to these challenges, Mr. Buffington works to be a voice for student veterans in his positions as the Veterans Club vice president and SVA representative. “Student veterans who are transitioning from a military culture where discipline and precision is required look to their institution to help them transition to an academic culture where diversity of ideas, individualism and creativity are encouraged,” said Mr. Buffington.
For Mr. Buffington, the SVA Leadership Institute provided many ideas that he will share with staff at CSM such as best practices for recruitment and retention of veteran students, developing a stronger student veteran organization on campus, and further building trust and relationships with college faculty and administrators.
“The big take-away from the conference is that the transitioning process requires patience and understanding on all fronts, between student veterans and traditional college students, between college administrators and vets and most importantly between faculty and vets,” said Mr. Buffington.
Mr. Buffington has received high praise for his work with SVA and is referred to as a fantastic advocate for student veterans. “He actively seeks them out, guides them, and helps them find the resources they need to succeed,” said CSM Vice President for Student and Instructional Support Services Dr. Bill Comey.
Mr. Buffington, whose military career included two nominations as Sailor of the Year and numerous selections as Sailor of the Quarter, has achieved just as stellar an academic career. His performance in the class room, where he is studying business administration, has earned him a spot on the Dean’s List, and he was elected to the college’s chapter of the National Society for Leadership and Success as well as Phi Theta Kappa, the National Honor Society for community colleges.
Within the community, Mr. Buffington has founded the Veterans Coffee Break held and sponsored by the La Plata Chic-Fil-A from 9 to 11 am every Monday. Along with free coffee, veterans have the opportunity to meet and network with fellow veterans in the community. For more information on CSM’s Veterans Club or veteran benefits and programs, contact (301) 934-2251 or visit http://www.csmd.edu/.
SVA is a non-profit coalition of more than 700 student veteran organizations on college campuses globally with a mission to provide military veterans with the resources, support and advocacy needed to succeed in higher education and following graduation. For information, visit www.studentveterans.org.
