Military Resource Center at WCC offers common ground for student veterans
By Phyllis Moore
Published in News on May 24, 2016 1:46 PM
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Steven Miller, left, and Melissa Eller talk and hang out in the Military Resource Center at Wayne Community College.
When Melissa Eller and Steven Miller met in the work study program at Wayne Community College, they quickly found they shared common ground.
Both have military ties.
Miss Eller is a military dependent, and Miller is a veteran, spending six years in the Navy.
So when given the chance to work with the campus veterans club, it was only natural that they stumbled upon the Military Resource Center.
Set up earlier in the year, it was a sparsely furnished office on the second floor of the Wayne Learning Center. Until Miss Eller and Miller took the reins.
"They wanted to change things. They wanted it to be community-based more than just a study hall," said their supervisor, Elvira Simmons, who estimated the college serves around 600 students with military affiliation -- active duty, veterans and dependents.
While pursuing their own degrees, Miss Eller in dental hygiene, Miller in mechatronics, they have revamped Room 224 into a welcoming gathering place, with more emphasis on the resource aspect.
"Recruiters come here. Students can come in and talk," Miss Eller said. "We're hoping to have actual events on campus."
"We have veterans coming into the center," Miller said, with the effort moving toward providing services they need, like help finding jobs, housing and such.
There is also a veterans outreach. Representatives from agencies like N.C. Works Career Center, formerly the Employment Security Commission, come in once a month and support the center and its patrons.
Military recruiters frequently visit the campus, Miller said.
"The big picture is to ensure the educational endeavors, to assist them in their endeavors, talking to them about funding sources," he said.
The college already had a counseling staff on site, providing financial and academic counseling as well as dealing with disabilities and areas specific to military.
"We have to be sensitive to issues they brought back, like PTSD (post-traumatic stress disorder)," said Tara Humphries, WCC public information officer.
While the college holds job fairs for the general population and the community, it offers job fairs that cater to the military, she said, providing assistance with interviews, resumes and references for all branches, retired and active duty.
Beyond the typical tables and chairs and a bank of computers, the Military Resource Center now has coffee, a microwave as well as popcorn. Patrons of the center are also directed to a large map on the wall, where colorful push pins reflect where military travel has taken them.
At the outset, the college sent out emails to all students, making them aware of the location's existence.
"The main thing is that we all are familiar with that background, whether you're a dependent or active duty," Miss Eller said. "We're pretty much open 8 to 5 most days of the week.
"Some come in to use the computer but also are coming in to try to get in touch with our other veterans."
The hope is to grow and provide support for that population, becoming a veritable "haven for the veterans," Ms. Simmons said.
"I'm there supervising (work study students)," she said. "We hope to increase, to grow and to provide the support and network for our veterans -- from classes to employment to networking, whatever they need."
In addition to the potential to expand on its offerings, the student organizers are also enjoying the connections being made.
"We get to meet a lot of different people when they come in here, young and old. The students don't have a particular group," Miss Eller said. "That's been my favorite thing so far."
"Mine's giving advice. There's been some good times in here," Miller said. "Two months ago, there was me and two Army guys. We started talking about boot camp, just laughing and having a good time."
Brittany Stover popped into the center to bank some study time.
The daughter of a military couple, now retired, her mother, also a WCC student, told her about the resource center.
"I mostly come in whenever my mom is (on campus)," she said. "It's quiet. I can work on the computer."
Claudia Mueller, former active duty Army, is in her first year at WCC, enrolled in the medical office admissions program.
"I study, work on the computer, do homework and then sometimes have conversation with other people," she said. "It's nice and quiet in here, I like that. It's nice to network."
"It's a unique community," Miss Eller said. "That's what's come about from this center, all these people that have that in common come together. It makes it easier to find them.
"But once you do find them, you have a lot to talk about."