I first met Josh when he waited for me after class on the first day of the semester. His firm handshake as he introduced himself gave me a pretty good indication that he was not a typical undergraduate student.
I found out that Josh was 28, had served in the Army and had been deployed to the Middle East. He was also very particular about where he sat in the classroom.
“I’m sorry if I ever seem distracted” he said. “I still find myself sitting where I have a clear visual of the doors and windows and still catch myself planning my escape route.” His maturity, his sense of humor and his insight into class discussions was quite a contrast from his colleagues, whose biggest concern sometimes seems to be what time the party starts.
Josh eventually interned with the military’s Morale, Welfare and Recreation “Liberty” program, in which he planned recreational programs (including skydiving) for active duty sailors in their time off and is now managing a fitness and health center on an installation down south.
Jim was another one of my favorites. He sat in the back of the classroom wearing the perfunctory baseball hat and PSU gear. When I read his first paper, I was blown away with his writing skills and insight.
One day, he came to class a little early, and I asked him: “You are so quiet in class, but you really get it. What’s your story?”
I found out that Jim had never wanted to be anything but a soldier. An honors student, he enlisted straight out of high school and was on the trajectory for a shining military career. Breaking up a fight at a party on base, as a military policeman, he was injured by a civilian who didn’t respond to his command to stop. The resulting traumatic brain injury led to a medical discharge and many uncertainties about his future.
Jim shared with me his story of rehab, depression and confusion about what to do with his life. He credited his mother with bringing home a brochure from one of Penn State’s commonwealth campuses and telling him to “Get off the couch and do something.”
Jim enrolled at PSU, made the Dean’s list every semester and earned more awards than any student I have ever seen. He is using his academic and military experience to his success and is climbing the ladder in the state parks system.
I was walking around the classroom in the first days of the semester when one of the students looked up from his small group discussion and gave me a smile and a wink. His small group had wandered off task and were complaining about classes, the football ticketing system, cell phone bills and random college kid stuff. Kortney just laughed. He had bigger fish to fry.
Kortney had been just days from coming home from Iraq when he was hit by a roadside bomb as he helped load a wounded comrade into a medical helicopter. Three of his buddies were killed in the attack. Unknown to those kids in that classroom that morning, their colleague was sporting a state-of-the-art prosthetic for his above-the-knee amputation under his sweat pants.
He came to Penn State and majored in Therapeutic Recreation with hopes of helping others in rehabilitation. While training with PSU’s Ability Athletics coach, Teri Jordan, Kortney was the first veteran of the conflict in Iraq to qualify for the U.S. Paralympic games.
Kortney graduated from Penn State, is working in the field of accessible athletics and is training with athletes without disabilities at the U.S. Olympic Training center in California. He has his sights set on graduate schools and continuing to break records in track at the 2012 Paralympic Games in London.
They have all impacted my life.
I’ve met many students who were transitioning to civilian life after serving our country. Our paths cross as their life journey brings them to Penn State. I’ve met incredible young men and women who manage physical disabilities that will forever serve as reminders of their service. Other student-veterans deal with scars that aren’t as visible but which are just as life altering. Some are in a constant state of anticipation, waiting to hear if they will be returning to places and risks that most of us can’t even imagine. All are glad to be in Happy Valley.
I’m proud to work at a university that was recognized as being top in service to the men and women who are defending our country, both here and overseas. Penn State was recently awarded the 2009 Ray Ehrensberger Award for Institutional Excellence in Military Education.
The American Association for Adult and Continuing Education recognizes one university each year for education of our service men and women. Penn State was recognized for outstanding service, largely because of our amazing World Campus, but also because of specialized scholarships and other programs that serve both active duty and veteran members of the military.
In addition to offering soldier-friendly options for enrolling in on-line classes, faculty and staff all over the university offer many support programs for our service men and women. In the Recreation, Park and Tourism Management department alone, we have several on-going initiatives directed to meet the needs of military personnel and their families.
We work with military families and the children of soldiers to provide support and skill building to manage the stress of a parent’s deployment. We train professionals who work with our soldiers and sailors to be able to help them create environments that are user-friendly for Wounded Warriors in both recreation and lodging opportunities. Our students have helped with local special events for Operation Military Kids.
It’s pretty cool that a university located in the middle of Central PA has a mission to support those who serve and protect us all over the world.
Regardless of political views about military conflicts in Iraq, Afghanistan or elsewhere, the individuals who serve and protect deserve our honor and our respect. The holiday season is a wonderful time to reflect on their sacrifices and thank them for their service. They touch our lives — sometimes by meeting them in classes or at work or at the mall or in our neighborhoods — but always because of their willingness to protect us.
Happy holidays to our soldiers and sailors, here and overseas. We appreciate your service and look forward to your safe return.
WE ARE…
