Though May is Military Appreciation Month, thousands of veterans make use of resources throughout Alachua County all year.
About 650 veterans and 160 active-duty students currently attend UF, Anthony DeSantis, the associate dean of students, wrote in an email.
USA Today recognized UF as the No. 5 college for veterans in 2015, and Victory Media recently designated the university as a 2016 Military Friendly School.
The Counseling and Wellness Center provides free mental health assistance to military students, DeSantis wrote. Veterans can utilize UF’s Collegiate Veterans Success Center to learn about other resources.
U.S. Air Force veteran Kirsten Berling works as a graduate assistant with the Dean of Students Office. Berling said she encourages veterans to seize available opportunities.
“Whichever resource (veterans) are looking for, it probably exists on campus,” she said.
About 18,500 veterans are registered to the Alachua County Veteran Services Office, said Nick McMillen, the senior office assistant for ACVS.
He said plenty of resources are available to the county’s veterans, including the Military Support Group of Alachua County, Veterans For Peace Chapter 14 and Chapter Three of Florida’s Rolling Thunder, Inc.
Kim Smith, a U.S. Navy and Florida Army National Guard veteran, said veterans sometimes experience a difficult transition after their service.
“Veterans are often proud of what they’ve accomplished in the military,” said Smith, the director for ACVS, “and sometimes the civilian side doesn’t understand what they mean when they [share] their accomplishments.”
