Hilda Voisin Buquet
August 25, 2009
Mary Little McFarland
August 27, 2009
From the battlefield to the classroom, members of the U.S. Armed Forces and their descendants have a place at Nicholls State University for their higher education needs.
According to G.I. Jobs magazine, Nicholls has been designated a military friendly school for 2010, an honor shared by only 15 percent of higher education institutions nationwide.
Nicholls earned the recognition from its efforts to recruit and retain students who are active military and veterans.
“It’s an honor to help those who have so bravely and selflessly served in the armed forces to meet their educational goals,” said Courtney Cassard, director of enrollment services. “These men and women come from an array of diverse backgrounds and experiences and will no doubt enrich their fellow students in class and around the campus.”
“Everyone at the university is committed to helping these men and women make the transition into the university setting,” she added.
Cassard said Nicholls has nearly 135 military enrollees, 30 of which are new students.
The new military enrollees can expect priority service when enrolling at Nicholls, school officials said. Admissions criteria are exempted for veterans who have received a discharge for any reason other than dishonorable. They also can register before the general student population.
Incoming freshman Thaddues Lumar Jr. of Abbeville can attest to the speedy process.
Lumar, 18, is attending Nicholls through military benefits earned from his father Thaddues Lumar Sr.’s 13-year stint in the U.S. Army. The elder Lumar earned a business administration degree from Nicholls in 1989.
“It’s awesome for my son to be able to attend the same school I did,” Lumar Sr. said. “I know how important getting an education was for me and I want him to have that same attitude.”
“It’s a blessing that he can receive the benefits of me serving my country,” he added.
The younger Lumar, a 2009 graduate of Abbeville High School, first had to meet certain requirements before he could take advantage of the dependant military benefits. First, he had to be accepted into a higher education institution.
Once accepted, Dr. Eugene Dial, vice president of student affairs, said Lumar has to maintain passing grades in all his classes to continue using his father’s benefits each year.
“It’s an honor to go to school under my dad’s military service benefits,” Lumar said. “I hope I make him proud.”
Business administration senior Staff Sgt. Clancy Kirk, 29, is a returning military student. He has been in the military for nine years as a member of the Louisiana Army National Guard.
Kirk had to rely on the military services the school provides when he was deployed to Iraq during the 2007-08 school year. Nicholls was very helpful to him, he said. With the student services the university offers, Kirk was able to take online courses from Iraq to stay abreast of his schoolwork.
“I found that I didn’t really miss anything by being away,” he said. “The way Nicholls has things set up, it was pretty easy to get my assignments and to get in contact with my teachers.”
Kirk has been at Nicholls for three years, and he said he has seen a vast improvement in services through the university’s veteran affairs liaison and the enrollment process.
Dial said Nicholls administration identified a group of individual advisers to serve as veteran advocates. The veterans may consult with these faculty members for information, advice or understanding as they work their way through university rules and regulations.
Military veteran Dr. Stephen Michot, an associate history professor at Nicholls, serves as one of the veteran advisors. He has been teaching at Nicholls for eight years, with a total of 21 years on a collegiate level.
Michot had to leave school for military duties in 2004-05, and he said the university was very supportive in its efforts to make his return to school seamless.
– The Associated Press contributed to this article
On any given day, Clancy Kirk is just a student at Nicholls State University. But whenever duty calls, Kirk transforms into Staff Sgt. Clancy Kirk with the Louisiana Army National Guard. Kirk said Nicholls State University’s military services helps his transition to be seamless. * Photo courtesy of NICHOLLS STATE UNIVERSITY
