UNC Greensboro (UNCG) strives to foster an inclusive environment for military-affiliated students, including veterans, active-duty service members, and their dependents. UNCG serves approximately 1,600 military-affiliated students, with around 500 being veterans or active service members.

Chris Gregory and Erin Reifsteck have implemented a first of its kind faculty fellow role on their campus. The two share more about their military-affiliated services, their lessons learned, and advice for other institutions.

Can you share more about the military-affiliated landscape at UNC Greensboro? What services, programming, and events do you regularly host to create a military inclusive culture?

The Office of Military-Affiliated Services (MAS) serves as a central resource, coordinating services and acting as a liaison and advocate for our military students. MAS assists with navigating education and VA benefits, connecting with peers, and accessing campus support resources. The physical location is fantastic and provides two levels of space for military-affiliated students to meet each other, socialize, study, or talk with staff.

We know that connections to other veterans and chances to engage with the university are critical for the success of our students. We offer a wide variety of activities, built around veteran needs. We offer programs on weekends such as a Day at the Lake, which includes a cookout for veteran students and their families. We also offer social and educational programming virtually to reach all our veteran students, not just those who have in-person classes. In consultation with our faculty fellow, we hosted a 10-week Transition Triumph program to help acclimate veteran students to UNCG and discussed a variety of wellness topics.

Your institution has a faculty fellows program, can you tell us about this campus wide initiative and how/when your campus saw the need for more faculty engagement? How did this inspire your faculty fellow for student veteran wellbeing position?

It's true that UNC Greensboro has a robust faculty fellows program, which includes different types of fellows such as faculty fellows, provost's fellows, and chancellor's fellows. These roles typically focus on a specific project or contribute to a defined university initiative, often aligned with strategic goals across areas like teaching innovation, retention, or academic policy.

What makes the faculty fellow for student veteran wellbeing truly unique among these positions is its population-specific focus. Rather than centering on a thematic initiative, this role is designed to directly support and engage a distinct student group - our military-affiliated and veteran students.

Our campus recognized a growing need for deeper faculty engagement with this population. While UNCG has long supported student veterans through dedicated services, we wanted to foster more meaningful faculty connections. Specifically, we aimed to increase the number of faculty who are Green Zone trained - a program that educates faculty and staff about military culture and the challenges student veterans may face, ultimately equipping them to offer better-informed support to our over 1,600 military-affiliated students

In addition, we noticed a gap in awareness among student veterans regarding opportunities available across campus. Many of these students bring rich real-world experience, discipline, and a unique lens to academic inquiry, but weren't always accessing high-impact practices like undergraduate research. The faculty fellow role was envisioned as a bridge - someone who could not only advocate for student veterans, but also connect them to academic enrichment opportunities, and serve as a point of contact for other faculty who wanted to be more inclusive and supportive in their teaching and mentoring.

How long do faculty fellows serve? Do you appoint faculty for an academic year or longer? Do you foresee having multiple military focused faculty fellows one day?

This is our first year of having a faculty fellow for student veteran wellbeing and the position was created for one year. We hope to keep the position in place for another year, with Erin staying in the role. Long-term, we would like to keep the position on a yearly basis. We don't envision having more than one faculty fellow supporting student veterans at the same time, but after the second year it possible we would open nominations/applications to a broader pool of faculty.

How is your faculty fellow for student veteran wellbeing funded? What advice do you have for campuses of different types, sizes, and those with varying budgets to fund a faculty fellow?

For the first year, all funding was provided by the Division of Student Affairs. This included funds provided to the Department of Kinesiology where Dr. Reifsteck teaches to cover instructional needs for one course she usually teaches so that she could devote time to the fellow position. Additional funds were provided for conference travel, specifically so that we could disseminate research on student veterans and share more about current veteran-focused initiatives at UNCG. The cost is relatively small overall, which may allow other schools to follow a similar funding model. By partnering with an existing faculty member, we get someone knowledgeable about the campus and other faculty members around the institution, but we also do not have to bear the entire costs of the position ourselves. The faculty fellow does not work for our office full-time, but the impact has been great.

One of the unexpected but also rewarding outcomes of this position has been the increased positive recognition of the work we do with veteran students, not only across campus, but also in the local community. The visibility of the faculty fellow role has helped spotlight the work of MAS and it has generated a renewed appreciation for the veteran student population among faculty, staff, and community members.

This recognition has sparked genuine interest from donors, who are now exploring ways to support the continuation of the faculty fellow position and expand programming within MAS. What started as a targeted effort to deepen faculty-student engagement has grown into a broader platform for advocacy, resource development, and campus-community connection.

What is the mutual benefit of creating a Faculty Fellow? How does this benefit faculty? How are you getting faculty buy-in? How does this benefit your military-affiliated services?

For MAS, we have seen significant benefit in a number of ways. First and foremost, as a tenured faculty member, Dr. Reifsteck is in spaces around the university that I am not as an administrator. We've always had a high number of staff attending Green Zone training and learning about how to serve our military-affiliated population. It's been more of a challenge getting faculty to attend. Having a faculty fellow has given us more access to our faculty to let them know about Green Zone Training and other opportunities to engage with veteran students.

From the faculty perspective, I can say the experience has been equally enriching. Working closely with MAS has expanded my scholarship portfolio in meaningful ways. It has also allowed me to develop a much stronger understanding of our student veterans' experiences, which makes me a better researcher and teacher. Interacting with faculty across our campus through Green Zone training has helped me to become more aware of student and faculty needs in other departments. Our student veterans are amazing individuals to work with, and Chris and his staff do an incredible job supporting them.

On a day-to-day basis, what does a faculty fellow do? What are the goals and tasks of the fellow and how do you define success with a fellowship program like this?

While each day looks a little different as many of the goals of the faculty fellow are related to specific initiatives that support student veterans, on the whole, the faculty fellow serves as an advocate for MAS in the faculty community. For example, the faculty fellow worked with the director of military-affiliated services to create an academic syllabus statement of support for military students. This provides faculty with specific information to be included in their course syllabus that addresses the needs of the veteran students and provides information to faculty on how best to serve military students in the classroom. The fellow acts as a thought partner, particularly on issues related to student veteran health and well-being, and provides insight into how policies, programming, and support structures can be tailored to better serve this population.

The goals of the fellowship are deeply rooted in advancing student veteran success through intentional, equity-minded programming and partnerships. One major objective is to develop and implement initiatives that support the health and well-being of student veterans, particularly during their transition to university life. Efforts are also being made to connect student veterans with culturally relevant undergraduate research opportunities by working with the Office of Undergraduate Research.

A key marker of success for this fellowship lies in the creation of sustainable, cross-campus collaborations. For example, we plan to host a campus-wide meeting with representatives from MAS, the Dean of Students, student health services, recreation and wellness, and academic departments to explore long-term, collaborative programming opportunities. The fellow also serves as a liaison to the UNC System Military Affairs office, contributing to system-wide strategy and coordination. Additionally, the fellow supports data collection efforts to inform student veteran success and well-being initiatives. Success in this role is ultimately defined by the ability to create a more inclusive, informed, and supportive environment for student veterans where their voices are amplified, their needs are addressed, and their potential is fully realized.

How can campuses find the right fit for a faculty fellow? Do you have any advice for recruiting faculty fellows?

To find the right fit for a faculty fellow, campuses should prioritize individuals who already demonstrate a genuine interest in supporting veteran students, whether through research, mentorship, or advocacy. Start by identifying faculty members involved in veterans' issues, such as those conducting research on military-related topics or informally advising veteran students. These individuals often already have the passion and understanding needed for the role. Another strategy is to ask student veterans directly which faculty they trust, respect, or feel connected to. Their input can guide you toward candidates who truly make a difference. When recruiting, highlight the fellowship's impact and how it might align with the candidate's current work. Make the process personal by focusing on shared values, not just qualifications.

Article Topics

Military Friendly Institutions Research on Student Veterans Serving Military in HigherEd Veterans Academic Success Women Veterans Working as a Veteran in HigherEd

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