Individuals from all walks of life, civilian and military-affiliated, understand the reverence given to Purple Heart (PH) recipients. That is due to the circumstances under which this military decoration is presented. The Army’s Human Resources Command (HRC) website states that the PH is awarded in the name of the President of the United States and per 10 USC 1131, effective 19 May 1998, is limited to members of the Armed Forces of the United States who, while serving under component authority in any capacity with one of the U.S. Armed Services after 5 April 1917, has been wounded, was killed, or who has died, or may hereafter die of wounds received under any of the following—

• In any action against an enemy of the United States.
• In any action with an opposing armed force of a foreign country in which the Armed Forces of the United States are or have been engaged.
• While serving with friendly foreign forces engaged in an armed conflict against an opposing armed force in which the United States is not a belligerent party.
• As the result of an act of any such enemy of opposing Armed Forces.
• As the result of an act of any hostile foreign force.
• As the result of an international terrorist attack against the United States or a foreign nation friendly to the United States, recognized as such an attack by the Secretary of Army, or jointly by the Secretaries of the separate armed services concerned if persons from more than one service are wounded in the attack.
• As the result of military operations while serving outside the territory of the United States as part of a peacekeeping force.

While it is no secret that this revered military award is the oldest decoration, who knew that an institution of higher learning could be designated as a Purple Heart University? A Purple Heart University is a part of a variety of programs colleges and universities are implementing to support their military-affiliated populations. The title is bestowed upon academic institutions by the Military Order of the Purple Heart to recognize the efforts to support the PH populations in educational environments. Being that this label is somewhat unfamiliar to those in academia, as well as military circles, the following are some of the schools that have been awarded the designation.

Current Purple Heart Universities

The University of Arkansas at Little Rock (UALR) earned the PH university designation in 2016. The school offers a Mentoring Veterans Program, which aims to provide a supportive environment for incoming student veterans in order to ease their transition from military to civilian and academic life. UALR also offers a tuition waiver for students that serve in the National Guard (certain restrictions apply) and offers discounted tuition rates for military students.

Liberty University became Virginia’s first Purple Heart University in 2017 and prides itself on the service it provides to its military-affiliated student population. Approximately 30% of the student body is comprised of veterans, dependents, and current service members, with over 30,000 participating in online programs. The university has allocated parking for PH recipients, celebrates PH Day every August, and holds an annual Military Emphasis Week.

Fayetteville State University (FSU) was awarded the PH university title in 2021, recognizing the school’s dedication to supporting military members and their families. FSU is a leading Historically Black College and University (HBCU) in supporting its military-affiliated population, being that it is located in close proximity to Fort Liberty (formerly known as Fort Bragg). The university has a robust external affairs and military relations department, which assists current service members, veterans, and their family members in reaching their educational goals.

Sometimes institutions label themselves as ‘military-friendly’ while doing the bare minimum to support their self-appointed titles. If you are unfamiliar with the specifics of this concept, please refer to this previous article, Exploring the Military Friendly Designation. Becoming a Purple Heart University requires a college or university to develop purposeful approaches to supporting not only the military-affiliated population but those that have sacrificed their most precious resource, their bodies, in the defense of this nation. These institutions have not only met the minimum standards in providing specific programs to aid this population in their academic endeavors, but they have by far exceeded those benchmarks.

Article Topics

Military Friendly Institutions Serving Military in HigherEd Workplace Inclusion

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