Oct 03, 2014
KANSAS CITY, Mo. — The Veterans of Foreign Wars of the U.S. announced a new program developed in conjunction with Student Veterans of America (SVA) that will offer legislative fellowship opportunities for up to 10 student veterans to join VFW advocates on Capitol Hill next March. The announcement came at the start of the 2014 SVA Leadership Summit, hosted by the VFW.
Student veterans interested in the new VFW-SVA Legislative Fellowship must complete an application package that includes an essay discussing one of the VFW’s Legislative Priority Goals, and how that priority goal applies to the veterans’ community at large. Selected fellows will then be flown to Washington, D.C., to storm Capitol Hill alongside fellow veterans’ advocates as part of the 2015 VFW Legislative Conference, March 1-5. All applications must be submitted to the VFW by Dec. 31, 2014.
“The VFW has been at the forefront of advocating for veterans, service members and their families for more than a century,” said VFW National Commander John Stroud, a retired Air Force first sergeant from Hawthorne, Nev.
“We are proud to extend this unique opportunity to the newest generation of veteran leaders through our continued partnership with Student Veterans of America,” said Stroud, a former student veteran who graduated from Embry-Riddle University in 1990. “The VFW sees SVA members advocating on college campuses across the country every day. This fellowship will enable them to bring that concern and passion for their fellow student veterans directly to Capitol Hill, where they can and will make a difference on the national level not only for their generation, but for those that will follow.”
VFW-SVA Legislative Fellowships are open to student veterans at SVA chapters nationwide. Candidates must also satisfy VFW membership criteria, which can be found here. For full details about the fellowship and to apply, visit: www.vfw.org/StudentFellowship.
The VFW-SVA Legislative Fellowship is the latest collaboration between VFW and SVA that resulted from a memorandum of understanding signed by the two organizations at the SVA National Conference in January 2013. To date, the collaboration has resulted in a variety of initiatives such as commissioning VFW Student Veteran Liaisons in every state; establishing the 1 Student Veteran education benefits assistance program; and successfully pushing for in-state tuition for veterans via the #InState4Vets campaign.