If Ashli Babbitt Had Used Her GI Bill, Would Her Life Have Been Different?

Jill Hinton Wolfe is the Military and Veterans Resource Manager at Grand Valley State University.

After watching the video of Air Force veteran Ashli Babbitt as she was shot and killed climbing through the mob-broken windows of the House chamber doors, I thought of my own students. I’m the Veterans Manager at a medium midwestern university, new to the job in July. I serve all manner of vets, but mostly post-9/11 veterans who have served in all four branches, in all sorts of capacities, all over the world. The semester starts soon, so I’ve been busy helping many of them first apply to college, then pick majors, register for classes, and secure GI Bill and other federal funding so they can take their first — or final — steps towards graduation.

After just six months on the job, it’s become clear: we need to do a better job supporting student vets.

Why? After all, aren’t they going to school “for free”? Haven’t they been steeped in the discipline, integrity and leadership of one of the most elite military organizations in the world, capable of persevering through anything?

Babbitt’s story offers a clue as to why veteran education — whether college or trade school, the GI Bill pays for both — is so critical. Supporting student veterans is one of our most-viable paths toward transforming our companies, colleges and communities through the largest pool of untapped…