Community colleges to step up efforts to serve military, families

Those who have served will, in turn, be served.

Beginning in January, community colleges across the state will step up efforts to make educational and community services available to members of the military, their families and veterans.

The announcement was made in Springfield last week just as 2,800 members of the Illinois National Guard's 33rd Infantry Brigade Combat Team were preparing to deploy to Afghanistan.

The plan includes creating or expanding on-campus veterans centers; sponsoring reintegration programs for soldiers returning to the States and establishing liaisons between community colleges and military family assistance centers, said Lt. Justin Anweiler, reintegration project officer for the Illinois National Guard.

The idea for the increased efforts, Anweiler said, came about a year ago.

"One of the issues we were having were the large number of soldiers returning from deployment," Anweiler said.

Community colleges served as some of the few available spaces that could accommodate so many individuals attending reintegration programs, he said.

A conversation began between the Illinois National Guard and the Council of Community College Presidents.

"They were concerned about what else they could do, more than just provide space. They really took things a step further," Anweiler said.

Schedules and locations for events, beginning in January, are still tentative, council President Bob Mees said. Things will likely be firmed up by mid-December.

One of the areas of focus, Anweiler said, will be the Fox Valley area, which features a large number of soldiers and military families.

Sugar Grove, in particular, is an area "where we need to meet the needs of soldiers and their families," he said.

Illinois National Guard and Waubonsee Community College officials have been talking about upcoming events, Anweiler said.

At an orientation next spring, Waubonsee faculty will attend sessions on how they can better attend to the need of returning students in the classroom, spokesman Jeff Noblitt said.

The counseling department is also doing a separate professional development session with Anweiler in February.

Reintegration and family assistance programs involving community colleges, while sponsored by the Illinois National Guard, are open to all members of the military, Anweiler said.

The council plans to reach out to other branches of the armed forces to offer similar programs, Mees said.