November 11, 2025 (Volume 49, Number 6)
Article by
Thomas Chavez
From left are panelists Shane Scherer, director of the Peter Secchia Military and Veterans Resource Center; Steven Dahlquist, associate professor of marketing; GVSU graduate Christian Lee; and Ingrid Tighe, former U.S. Army Signal Corps officer and president of the Michigan Manufacturing Technology Center. Tighe was the event's keynote speaker.
GVSU announced an expansion of its programming to assist current and former military service members during the Veterans Day Luncheon at the Eberhard Center on the City Campus.
President Philomena V. Mantella announced the GVSU Military Promise, which guarantees admission to the university to all service members who have committed to serve, are serving or have honorably served in the U.S. Armed Forces. The GVSU Military Promise also provides a $500 per-semester grant toward tuition for service members on active duty, in the Reserves or in the National Guard.
“To anyone who has been involved in military service — whether they are making a commitment to go out, or they are serving and they are coming back to school, or they have completed their service — those students will have an admission slot at Grand Valley,” Mantella said.
The GVSU Military Promise joins Veterans Advance, Michigan Veteran Entrepreneurship-Lab, Peter Secchia Military and Veterans Program and the LEADS for Vets accelerated bachelor’s program, as assistance and resources GVSU offers to its veteran students.
Shane Scherer, director of the Peter Secchia Military and Veterans Resource Center, noted that veterans comprise a significant portion of the adult learner population. Scherer said he believes the initiative fulfills the university’s commitment to educational access to those adult learners.
“I think it is a tremendous way for us to expand our ability to bring those student veterans onto campus and get them into the system,” he said.
Learn more about the initiative in this GVNext story.
This article was last edited on November 11, 2025 at 2:34 p.m.
Participants spent 10 weeks in an accelerator program offered by the DeVos Center for Entrepreneurship & Innovation, in partnership with GVSU's Northern Michigan Region.
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July 14, 2026 (Volume 49, Number 19)
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The vice president for Enrollment Development and College Futures discusses the successful launch of "The Pathways Project Podcast."
July 14, 2026 (Volume 49, Number 19)
Messages during the keynote presentations and breakout sessions focused on authentic communication and practical ways to tell the GVSU story.
July 14, 2026 (Volume 49, Number 19)
Article by
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