Aubrey Carr/Staff Writer
The Student Veterans of America chapter at the University has a mission statement to provide a resource for all active duty service members, National Guard, dependents, etc.
According to Israel Najarro Jr., a former Army serviceman, having a space like the SVA is beneficial for both educational and community needs, where it’s possible to “be around your own people and relax.”
It also encourages students to be on campus more often, Najarro said, which can lead to networking and “find[ing] opportunities with other organizations that they want to be a part of.”
Out of the 56,000 students attending FIU, there are 1,029 student veterans as of fall 2016, a number that has been declining as of late. According to Najarro, this is to be expected and will probably get to a stable level soon.
“The wars are dying down, the services themselves are getting rid of people, and all the folks that had left to go to school have already [completed their educations],” he said.
Being a veteran and a student can be a struggle when it comes to financial aid. These students complete certification and enrollment at FIU, which then gets processed and sent to the VA.
“Some semesters are worse than others,” Najarro admitted, but generally “they do a very good job with that.”
The real problem is when students have to use both FAFSA and military benefits, like Najarro does. Military benefits come on the first of every month for students certified for enrollment.
However, if it is the beginning of the semester and a student isn’t officially certified, they might have to take out loans through FAFSA in order to pay for rent, for example, and then have to use their military benefits— which have yet to arrive— to then pay off that loan.
When FIU receives the government aid, it doesn’t immediately go to the student, and this can end up leaving students waiting on a series of connecting issues and certifications while they’re going more into debt to pay for food and housing.
This is why the SVA has members involved in the Student Government Association to help resolve this issue, which albeit a rare one, can have a heavy impact on the student veterans it does affect.
There are also a handful of other resources available on campus for the student veterans apart from the SVA. According to Najarro, Student Affairs is a good general resource, which has taken “a very proactive stance” in engaging the veteran population on campus.
There is also the Veterans Mental Health Clinic at FIU where, once a week, “veterans throughout the community – not just at FIU – have an alternative to the Miami Health Clinic downtown,” Najarro said, pointing to the poster that hangs on one of the SVA building’s walls.
Najarro said the “thing we’re most looking to improve, going forward,” is the increased existence and availability of organizations geared toward helping current and ex-servicemen and women.
It’s been hard for the SVA to reach out to even half of its default members, and the organization would like to improve on that front as well. There are only so many tables in GC they can advertise at, only so many orientations to attend, but Najarro would like for the total of the 1,029 student veterans to at least know that the SVA is here and available for anyone in the community that needs it.
It’s of paramount importance that the SVA, above being an FIU group that holds leadership and professional development events, is a place for student veterans to go when they need a sense of community that was lost upon leaving the military, but can still be found through outlets like this.
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The opinions presented within this page do not represent the views of FIU Student Media Editorial Board. These views are separate from editorials and reflect individual perspectives of contributing writers and/or members of the University community.
Image retrieved from Flickr.
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