CLARKSVILLE, TN – Austin Peay State University’s Military and Veterans Affairs Division (MVAD) celebrated six months on campus with Veterans Celebration Week from Nov. 6-11. The series of events welcomed Austin Peay’s military-affiliated students and invited them to take advantage of the division’s resources with celebrations, lunch-ins, an appreciation game and more.
As part of the festivities, the MVAD hosted a six-month celebration and birthday party for the Newton Military Family Resource Center on Nov. 8. The event featured food prepared by Austin Peay’s culinary program, a raffle and appearances by the Gov, Austin Peay President Mike Licari and Wilma Newton, the Newton Center’s primary funder.
The Newton Center hosts many events and activities throughout the year and has become a central place for military-affiliated students to get involved on campus.
“They’re doing exactly what I envisioned that they would do,” Newton said. “They’re really putting the building to good use. My greatest fear was that it would just be a building and other departments would start using it, but [Military Services] have clearly only used it for what it was meant.”
Other events hosted throughout the week featured exciting activities for all Austin Peay students, but the Military and Veterans Affairs Division’s primary focus is to support military-affiliated students on and off campus. That includes active-duty service members, retirees and their families.
MVAD serves those populations through both Austin Peay’s Clarksville campus and the Austin Peay Center at Fort Campbell, ultimately supporting deployed students all over the world.
“When we service students at our Fort Campbell Center or at our Newton Military Family Resource Center we know the impact and the positive influence that is being carried with them to their next duty station,” said Marisa Roberts, MVAD’s director of recruitment, communication and marketing.
The Military and Veterans Affairs Division will continue hosting events until the end of the year. From 6-8 p.m. Dec. 6, they are partnering with The Adult, Nontraditional and Transfer Student Center (ANTS) for the End of Term Celebration at Magic Wheels. From 5-6:30 p.m. Dec. 13, they will host the Military and Veterans Graduate Recognition Ceremony in the MUC Ballroom for ROTC, veterans and military students. These events are open to all Austin Peay students.
The Military and Veterans Affairs Division is a reorganization of multiple departments: The Austin Peay Center at Fort Campbell, Newton Military Family Resource Center, Veterans Education Benefits, Career Services, Veterans Upward Bound and VetSuccess on Campus.
For more information about the Military and Veterans Affairs Division, visit their website at https://www.apsu.edu/mva/.
You can also visit their social media pages on Facebook and Instagram @apsumva or reach out to them via email.