Collegiate vets say campus needs often unmet

[unhappycamper]

Collegiate vets say campus needs often unmet
By David Mercer - The Associated Press
Posted : Saturday Jul 19, 2008 17:24:22 EDT

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. — Nothing Derek Blumke saw during three Air Force tours in Afghanistan prepared him for college life.

That was obvious to him during one of his first calls to the University of Michigan, when employees told him they couldn’t answer his questions because he wasn’t yet a student. Later, he found himself wandering the Ann Arbor campus trying to figure out how to use his military benefits to pay tuition.

“I was frustrated and angry and disappointed,” said Blumke, 26, a former gunship maintenance supervisor who’s now a senior studying political science and psychology at Michigan. “That frustration and anger turned into motivation. You don’t want me here? OK, fine. I WILL come here.”

As veterans of the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq return to campus, many are finding that colleges and universities are only beginning to figure out how to help soldiers, sailors and others transition back to civilian, social and academic life.

Many need help with paperwork. Others seek emotional and psychological support. And others struggle to fit into the social fabric of a campus where their classmates often are much younger.


Rest of article at: http://www.armytimes.com/news/2008/07/ap_vetsoncampus_071908/