麻豆无码版

UAA earned silver-level status as a 2025-26 Military Friendly School (MFS), marking the 17th consecutive year of overall recognition and the 15th time achieving distinction at the bronze-or-above level. The rankings evaluate colleges and universities for their investments in serving military and veteran students according to several factors, with student retention, graduation and job placement rates making up 60% of the total score.

"Earning the MFS designation is a powerful testament to the resilience, determination and progress of our military-connected students," said Jonathon Sanders, director of UAA Military and Veteran Student Services (MVSS). "Their outstanding efforts made this achievement possible. For UAA, it reflects our deep and ongoing commitment to supporting and empowering those who serve and their families." 

Gold status, which UAA received for the previous two award cycles, is conferred upon schools whose military-connected student outcomes are within 10% of the 10th-ranked institution in the survey. Although UAA students scored higher marks for each metric this cycle, the university didn't quite make the 10% threshold, earning silver status instead.

Meeting students where they are

At UAA, approximately 10% of the student population is military-connected. Of that group, 65% are veterans, 25% are dependents and 10% are active-duty military members or National Guard and Reserve personnel.

With an office on UAA's Anchorage campus and two success centers on Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson (JBER), MVSS aims to help military-connected students succeed by removing barriers and supporting the transition to college.

"We offer a one-stop shop for any and all issues a military-connected student may have while attending UAA," said Becky Brokaw, MVSS's JBER coordinator. "If they are struggling with the admissions part, we can help them complete the entire admissions process. If they are unsure how to contact their advisor, we can help connect them. If they are having trouble with a class or instructor, we can provide them the resources they need. All of this is completed in a very low-stress environment to help them feel comfortable and more willing to come in and ask for assistance."

The success centers on JBER serve more students each semester as the word gets out, with about 300 people helped so far this academic year. Also housed within UAA's on-base locations is the JBER Testing Center, which allows anyone with base access (even non-UAA students) to take proctored exams, such as the CLEP or Accuplacer, for college credit. Among all military testing centers, UAA's JBER location is in the top 20 for total CLEP tests administered.

"Our partnerships help provide all the tools service members, veterans and their families need to complete their higher education goals," said Brokaw, emphasizing that spouses and children are welcome as well. Already a proud UAA mom, Brokaw joined the university as a staff member last summer and said she draws on her own experience as an Air Force spouse to support military-connected students.

"Helping service members and their families has always been a passion of mine," said Brokaw, who previously served as a liaison and mentor with the U.S. Air and Space Force Commander's Key Support Program.

Making the transition from military to college

For MVSS, the work to find ways to serve military-connected UAA students and provide them with resources to improve their quality of life and student experiences is constant. Those efforts are paying off with increased enrollment (up 15% in fall '24 and 10% in spring '25) and increased retention for every category of military-connected students.

Communication and understanding are two key focus areas for the office's efforts to improve the military-connected student experience at UAA.

"We try to inform students on how to navigate higher education, how to navigate the VA, how to navigate their benefits and how to utilize a lot of the resources that sometimes get siloed out in the community," said Sanders. MVSS partners with New Student Orientation to offer summer sessions for military-connected students to get acquainted with UAA, in addition to sending regular newsletters and tabling events during the academic year to share information and resources. MVSS also hosts Seawolf Boot Camp training for faculty and staff to help the university community better serve military-connected students.

"We are consistently showing that we care about this population, that they're an important part of the fabric of UAA," said Sanders. "I think that earning this award for the 17th time in a row speaks to our dedication to all military-connected students."