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Niagara University lauded by Military Times as a 'Best for Vets' college destination

by jmaloni

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Mon, Nov 11th 2013 01:00 pm

Another high-profile, veteran-friendly organization has ranked Niagara University as one of the nation's top institutions when it comes to embracing America's veterans as students.

Military Times - the family of publications that includes Army Times, Navy Times, Air Force Times and Marine Corps Times - announced its "Best for Vets: Colleges 2014" rankings today, a list that includes Niagara University.

Military Times placed a new emphasis on academic rigor this year when conducting and scoring the fourth annual Best for Vets: Colleges survey, a highly respected 150-question analysis of a school's complete offerings for veterans.

"As with all of the Best for Vets rankings, Best for Vets: Colleges is an editorially independent news project that evaluates the many factors that make an institution a good fit for military veterans," said Amanda Miller, editor of Military Times EDGE.

The news comes less than two months after Niagara was designated as a "Military Friendly School" for 2014 by Victory Media for being among the top 20 percent of all schools nationwide that are doing the most to embrace America's military service members, veterans, and spouses as students and ensure their success on campus.

"It's wonderful to be recognized by these organizations for our commitment to help servicemen and women transition to college life, and prepare them for success in the civilian workforce," stated Robert Healy, Niagara University's veterans services coordinator. "As a fellow veteran, I continue to be impressed by the accommodations this institution is willing to make for these very deserving individuals."

Best for Vets provides servicemen and women a gauge by which to judge whether a school or degree program will truly benefit them. The rankings factored in service member enrollment, percentage of tuition covered by the GI Bill, and availability of specific programs to help service members.

The extensive evaluation process also factored in statistics commonly used to track student success and academic quality, including student loan default rates, retention rates, graduation rates and student-faculty ratio.

The rankings are published in full in the November issue of Military Times EDGE magazine, the premier publication for military transition, and online at MilitaryTimes.com, as well as ArmyTimes.com, NavyTimes.com, AirForceTimes.com and MarineCorpsTimes.com.

The Veterans Day release of Best for Vets: Colleges 2014 coincides with several Military Times initiatives to celebrate service members. The #MyVeteran social media/online campaign allows people to post pictures, videos and stories about a veteran in their lives.

Niagara University will celebrate its student-veterans throughout this week, with a different branch of the military being recognized each day. Student-veterans will man displays on the Gallagher Center's lower level, which Healy said is a way to help students, faculty and staff understand what it meant for these men and women to serve our nation.

  • Coast Guard - Tuesday, Nov. 12
  • Air Force - Wednesday, Nov. 13
  • Marines - Thursday, Nov. 14
  • Army - Friday, Nov. 15

In addition, on Nov. 15, Niagara University will hold its annual Military Appreciation Day at Dwyer Arena as the NU men's hockey team takes on Army. Those who have served in the armed forces will be recognized during the game.

Among the numerous opportunities Niagara offers student-veterans are four-week online courses through the General Education Mobile (GEM) program, which are designed specifically for military members. Complete information on the program can be found at www.niagara.edu/gem.

For more information about Niagara University's efforts to assist American veterans, call 716-286-8341 or visit www.niagara.edu/veterans.

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