2017 Military Friendly School Designation
Colorado Christian University (CCU) has earned the 2017 Military Friendly® School designation for its “commitment, effort, and success in attracting and supporting military students.” This rating, scored by Victory Media, sets the standard for colleges that provide positive employment and education outcomes for veterans and their families.
Students in the military balance complex schedules with military requirements, in addition to their educational and personal commitments. CCU’s College of Adult and Graduate Studies offers degree programs that can be completed 100 percent online, allowing for military students to have the flexibility they need to earn their degree.
“Few schools are able to provide the kind of flexibility that military members need, but CCU over-delivers,” shares Jeremy Schoneboom, an active duty Air Force first sergeant currently stationed at Ft. Carson in Colorado Springs — he graduated from CCU this May with a B.S. Organizational Management in Human Resources. “While attending CCU, I have been deployed to a combat zone and I have been on several extended trips where it was difficult to have reliable internet access. With a little coordination with my instructors, I was able to continue my classes and stay on track for graduation, even while I was traveling.”
GI Bill® is a registered trademark of the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA).
CCU accepts military Tuition Assistance (TA), Post 9/11 GI Bill benefits, reduced tuition to military members and their families, and other veteran’s educational benefits. The University also provides academic credit for formal military training, accommodations for those with disabilities, vocational rehabilitation, and career placement opportunities for veterans.
CCU staff work cooperatively with base education services personnel, including one Army and several Air Force bases in Colorado and one base in Wyoming. This is one of several ways that the University supports students who want to earn their degree. “CCU has done a great job of understanding that although I was a student, I still had to adhere to military standards while fulfilling my military obligations,” explained Anthony Smith who graduated from CCU in 2017 with a B.S. Psychology. “Whenever I was unable to attend class due to military obligations, my instructors understood and were willing to provide me with the flexibility required to accomplish both my military and educational goals.”
Several CCU faculty and staff have served in the military, so they understand the unique needs of military students. These staff serve as advisors and resources for both the students and faculty as they continue to serve the needs of students in the military.
“We recognize the contributions and sacrifices our military and veteran students have made, and we believe that the experience they bring to the classroom enriches the entire learning process” said Gregory Buckley-Lowe, a military student advisor in CCU’s College of Adult and Graduate Studies. “Even though we provide specific benefits to our military students, we realize the need to continuously improve the services we provide to military service members.”
CCU is the flagship Christian university in the eight-state Rocky Mountain region, providing a unique approach that Buckley-Lowe believes is especially crucial when serving students in the military. “Given the extreme combat environments that many of our students have experienced, it is likely that many of them have had to do things that may have not necessarily conformed to their own values.” Buckley-Lowe continued, “CCU is a safe environment where our students can utilize the critical analysis skills they developed in the military in a supportive learning environment that embraces the Christian worldview.”
The 2017 ratings were scored from three data sources: publicly available federal agency data; personal opinion data from veteran students; and survey data from participating organizations. The Military Friendly® Advisory Council and a third party auditor (EY: Ernst & Young) verify the results by examining student veteran retention, graduation, job placement, loan repayment, persistence, and loan default rates. Read more about the results of the ratings on the Military Friendly website.
Learn more about CCU’s military and veteran benefits and services at ccu.edu/military.