In a list created by U.S. News and World Report this year, Hillsdale College was ranked as the best liberal-arts college in the country for veterans to attend.
Currently, 11 men who are veterans or in the reserves attend Hillsdale College; two of the men have spent their fall semester in Washington, D.C. for the Washington-Hillsdale Internship Program.
“Hillsdale has a good relationship with veterans, mostly because of our school’s history with the Civil War and the men we sent to fight and in regard to our philosophy,” Director of Admissions Doug Banbury said. “That’s a big reason I feel that veterans want to come here.”
For Jared Jordan, a paralegal in the U.S. Army Reserves, studying economics at Hillsdale was just as important as living close to his family.
“I have given thought to law school after Hillsdale because of Hillsdale’s history with outstanding LSAT performances,” Jordan said.
Jordan is grateful to Hillsdale for the option it provides in lieu of the GI Bill.
“The reality is we’re replacing the GI Bills for these folks,” said Rich Moeggenberg, director of financial aid. “Eight or nine years ago we conceived the first real military scholarship. Since that time donors have come forward with the funding for military scholarships. We can guarantee vets free tuition, room, board, and even books for some.”
Students like Jordan appreciate these scholarships because it allows them to save their GI Bill benefits for graduate school.
Eric Hodgdon, a reserve corporal in the U.S. Marine Corps said that once he decided Hillsdale was the school for him, the only obstacle was money. Since the college does not take GI Bill benefits because it is federal money, he was concerned about paying his way through school.
“I didn’t know how much they’d make up for the GI bill and, when I received the financial aid letter telling me that I didn’t owe the college anything, I was overjoyed,” Hodgdon said.
Daniel Pierce, an Army infantryman in the 82nd Airborne from Fort Bragg, North Carolina, knew he wanted to attend Hillsdale from the alumni connections and his Michigan home.
“I had heard lots of great things about the education and due to some very generous donations I was able to come here without any of my military benefits,” Pierce said.
Pierce loves that Hillsdale has an accepting community for veterans, something that other schools seem to lack. Some of the men in Hodgdon’s care face problems with paper due dates and exams because they conflict with drills. While Hodgdon’s teachers give him extremely generous due dates and gratuitous leeway, other students must deal with instructor disinterest in helping military students.
“Once, a teacher let me turn in a paper two days after the semester ended, because drill forced me to miss the due date,” Hodgdon said. “This is something you don’t see many other places.”
Although they all come from different backgrounds, Hodgdon said that there’s something special about their shared experiences serving their country.
“I don’t need a fraternity,” Hodgdon said. “I already have my brothers in the military.”
