United States Army Second Lieutenant Katherine “Kat” Whitson was born in Augusta, Georgia and was raised in Grovetown, Georgia. Kat enrolled at the Georgia Military College in 2022, where she earned two associate degrees while participating in numerous extracurricular activities. Her dedication to academic excellence and service culminated in being named a Distinguished Graduate, graduating summa cum laude at the top of her class. A member of the Army’s Early Commissioning Program (ECP), Kat was commissioned as a Second Lieutenant in 2024.
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Campus Community Invited to 109th Chancellor’s Review and Awards Ceremony
Syracuse University cordially invites the campus community to the 109th Chancellor’s Review and Awards Ceremony, a distinguished event honoring our Reserve Officer Training Corps (ROTC) cadets, on Friday, March 27, 2025, at 9 a.m. in the JMA Wireless Dome, followed by a brief reception at Club 44. This time-honored tradition, inaugurated on May 4, 1917, by Chancellor James R. Day, underscores the University’s unwavering dedication to military service and mirrors traditional military ceremonies that date back to the Middle Ages.
Continue ReadingSyracuse University Retires Jersey of Former OVMA Board Member and Longtime Supporter Jim Lee ’75
Syracuse University retired the basketball jersey of Jim Lee ’75 on Saturday, Feb. 21, honoring a former co-captain of the 1975 Final Four team who has remained one of the university’s most consistent supporters of its veteran and military-connected community.
Continue ReadingMission clarity: SU’s decades-long military legacy inspires ‘best place’ commitment to veterans
Before Syracuse University built the National Veterans Resource Center, campus leaders were striving to make the university a premier institution for veterans and military-connected students.
The gleaming, $62 million center punctuates SU’s commitment to that goal in a way that its many off-campus military endeavors do not. Its bright glass exterior, accessibility-centric design and intricate wooden interior make it stand out on Waverly Avenue.
Like most buildings, the NVRC began with a set of blueprints.
Continue ReadingHometown Hero: Matthew Coyne
United States Army Lieutenant Colonel Matt Coyne was born and raised in Stony Point, New York, and attended the University of Scranton, where he commissioned through the Army ROTC program in 2006. LTC Coyne began his career as a Military Police Platoon Leader, deploying to Eastern Afghanistan in 2007 with the 546th Military Police Company, Fort Stewart, Georgia in support of Operation Enduring Freedom. Following his deployment, LTC Coyne served in multiple operational assignments, including the 10th Mountain Division, Fort Drum, New York, where he deployed to Kandahar, Afghanistan in 2010.
Andrew Zellar’s Two Decades of Shaping Lives Through Military Service
When Sgt. First Class Andrew Zellar began basic training at Fort Leonard Wood, Missouri, on June 6, 2006, he thought he knew what his career in military service would look like.
Hometown Hero: Andrew Zeller
United States Army Sergeant First Class Andrew Zellar was born in Syracuse, New York, and he was raised in Cazenovia, New York. A lifelong resident of New York, Sergeant First Class Zellar enlisted in the New York Army National Guard as a Military Policeman in 2006.
Student Veterans Find Community and Direction At NatCon
Eleven Syracuse University student veterans traveled to Colorado Springs in January for the 18th Annual Student Veterans of America National Conference (NATCON), the largest gathering of student veterans in the world. The 4-day event brings together thousands of student veterans for workshops, career development, and networking with peers and employers.
Continue ReadingSeinfeld Scholars Program Inspires Navy Veteran Ty Tran ’24 to Never Give Up
The Seinfeld Scholars program in the College of Professional Studies provides comprehensive support and mentorship for military-connected students pursuing higher education.
Continue ReadingMarine Corps Veteran Takes Helm at Office of Veteran Success
Justin Machain brings more than a decade of experience supporting military-connected students in higher education to his new role as director.
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