Student veterans face a host of problems on a daily basis, but soon they’ll have one less stress.
Student veterans will be allowed to schedule earlier for their fall 2011 classes, according to University Registrar Robert Doolos.
Cpt. William Conger, associate professor of military science and ROTC scholarship and enrollment officer, said the Student Veterans of LSU group is in the process of obtaining scheduling priority.
Conger said there are 400 student veterans enrolled at the University this semester, and most of them are undergraduates.
Conger, who is also the director of public relations for the Student Veterans of LSU, said he worked with a faculty adviser to achieve his goal.
He said cadets — students contracted with the ROTC and who are actively pursuing a career in the military — already have high scheduling priority.
Doolos said cadets first began receiving priority in 2007 when administrators from the departments of Aerospace Studies and Military Science approached then-chancellor Sean O’Keefe.
“We were basically giving them priority because of their commitments and the time constraints they deal with,” Doolos said.
Doolos said he was careful not to give cadets top scheduling priority, which is reserved for graduating seniors, to avoid creating competition, and veterans will be treated the same way.
Doolos said the number of cadets on campus is not enough to make a significant impact on other students’ abilities to schedule.
Conger said he believes veterans deserve the same treatment.
Conger said student veterans are typically “non-traditional,” which means they’re older than a typical student and were out of school for a considerable amount of time before attending the University.
He explained that many aren’t familiar with the processes of school, and giving them scheduling priority would allow them one less stress.
“A lot of them are dealing with issues related to service like [post-traumatic stress disorder] and [traumatic brain injuries],” Conger said.
Conger also said giving veterans scheduling priority is a way for the University to thank them for their service.
“Everyone’s been very, very gracious,” he said. “From the chancellor to the student body.”
Doolos agreed.
“It’s a recognition of their service to the country,” he said.
Doolos said Student Government President J Hudson and Vice President Dani Borel approached him during the summer with a number of initiatives, including student veterans receiving priority.
The issue was originally an initiative of the Brooksie Bonvillain and Chris Sellers’ SG campaign “Leading the Way.”
Borel said she and Hudson respected the idea and wanted to undertake the initiative when they won the election last spring.
“It’s a great way to say, ‘Thank you,'” she said.
Doolos said he feels the same.
“It’s one thing we can do to relieve stress,” Doolos said. “Let them make up some time, get out of here and do great things with their lives.”
Doolos said the Office of the Registrar is frequently approached by service organizations looking to gain scheduling priority but is hesitant to grant it to anyone.
“We need to be very careful,” he said. “We didn’t want to undermine the idea of priority.”
Doolos said he feels the service organizations that approach him are deserving of a reward, but there may be other ways to do that.
“They do some great things for the University,” Doolos said. “We just need to find an appropriate reward for them.”
Doolos said the Office of the Registrar plans to implement the new policy in time for scheduling for the fall 2011 semester.
 ”The sooner, the better, obviously,” Conger said.
 
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Contact Rachel Warren at [email protected]