“Girl, go join the military.”
That’s what Marriler Wilson G’25 told herself before enlisting in the Air National Guard after struggling in college. “I honestly had no direction of where I wanted to go in my life,” Wilson says. “I decided I wanted to do something bigger than myself.”
The decision led to six years of service with the security force at the Stewart Air National Guard Base in Newburgh, New York. In 2018, she joined the New York Police Department as a traffic enforcement agent and spent more than five years dealing with parking scofflaws, uncooperative drivers and moving traffic for emergencies and major Big Apple events. “Traffic is really a hot mess in New York City,” Wilson says. “It is what it is, but I learned from it.”
For Wilson, Maxwell’s ranking as the nation’s top public affairs school and the University’s reputation as a “best place” for veterans drew her to campus. “I thought, ‘This is perfect—a No. 1 school, a great veterans’ program, and it’s not too far from home,’” says the Brooklyn native.
As a member of the University’s student-veteran community, Wilson calls the National Veterans Resource Center a “home away from home.” She’s been involved with the Student Veteran Organization and, through the Office of Veteran and Military Affairs (OVMA), has attended a national conference in Nashville, Tennessee, and a career immersion trip to Boston. She especially values the support network of the OVMA, which honored her with a 2024 internship award. “They’re trying to help me make sure I get the resources and tools I need to thrive here,” says Wilson, who also received a scholarship from SoldierStrong, which helps post-service veterans move forward in life.
For Wilson, the support at Syracuse has been a game changer. She believes it’s important to have “your team around you” and take advantage of all available resources. “Whatever career path I follow, I definitely have to pay it forward and support OVMA and Maxwell in any way I can,” she says. “They’ve supported me throughout this entire journey, and it’s been amazing.”
