March 17, 2021
San Diego Mesa College Earns Silver Status as Military Friendly School
The Nation’s Top 2021-22 Military Friendly® Schools Announced
By Office of Communications
San Diego Mesa College has earned a Silver Designation as a Military Friendly School.
Institutions earning the Military Friendly® School designation were evaluated using
both public data sources and responses from a proprietary survey. Over 1,200 schools
participated in the 2021-2022 survey with 747 earning the designation. As a fully
accredited, comprehensive community college committed to access, success, and equity,
Mesa College currently serves over 4,000 veterans and their families.
“We thank our military veterans, active duty and families for their service by providing
a welcome and inclusive learning experience at San Diego Mesa College,” stated Dr. Pamela Luster, President. “We are excited to receive this designation as recognition of this effort.”
In order to best serve students – and particularly veterans and their families - Mesa
has a diverse community of faculty, students, professional staff, and administrators
who collaborate to foster scholarship, leadership, innovation, and excellence in an
inclusive learning environment. Mesa College provides a vast array of Veterans services specifically geared towards assisting Veterans and their families succeed while pursuing
their education. Programs and services include financial aid and assistance with the GI Bill and other sources of support. Mesa provides dedicated academic counselors,
and has an on-campus Veterans Success Center where Veterans can gather for community, in addition to being able to access additional
resources, such as tutoring. Mesa also offers multiple scholarships and an internship
program for Veterans.
The 2021-2022 Military Friendly® Schools list will be published in the May issue of
G.I. Jobs magazine and can be found at www.militaryfriendly.com. Methodology, criteria, and weightings were determined by Viqtory with input from
the Military Friendly® Advisory Council of independent leaders in the higher education
and military recruitment community. Final ratings were determined by combining the
institution’s survey response set and government/agency public data sources, within
a logic based scoring assessment. We measure the institution’s ability to meet thresholds
for Student Retention, Graduation, Job Placement, Loan Repayment, Persistence (Degree
Advancement or Transfer) and Loan Default rates for all students and, specifically,
for student veterans.
“Military Friendly® is committed to transparency and providing consistent data driven
standards in our designation process. This creates a competitive atmosphere that encourages
colleges to consistently evolve and invest in their programs. Schools who achieve
designation show true commitment and dedication in their efforts. Our standards assist
schools by providing a benchmark that promotes positive educational outcomes, resources,
and support services that better the educational landscape and provide opportunity
for the Military Community.” - Kayla Lopez, National Director of Military Partnerships,
Military Friendly®
Mesa offers associate degree and certificate programs, and is one of 15 California
community colleges offering a four-year baccalaureate degree. By promoting student
learning and achievement that leads to degrees and certificates, transfer, workforce
training, and lifelong learning, Mesa empower our students to reach their educational
goals and shape their future. Among the largest community colleges in California,
Mesa College serves 30,000 students per year, approximately 36% of whom attend full-time.
Mesa ranks as San Diego’s top transfer institution, and is a proud Hispanic Serving
Institution.
Tags: Veterans, Press Release, Veterans Success Center, Military Friendly
