Towson University celebrates Veterans Day
The Military & Veterans Center will host several virtual events
By Kyle Hobstetter on November 9, 2020
Since its creation, Towson University’s Military & Veterans Center (MVC) has provided a community for TU’s active-duty and veteran students.
Usually on Veterans Day, MVC partners with other offices at TU to host special events
that honor students who are veterans or active military. But with the COVID-19 pandemic
and classes being moved online, the MVC was unable to do so this year.
To accommodate physical distancing protocols and still honor students who have served, TU and the MVC will host a series of online events to celebrate Veterans Day.
“President [Kim] Schatzel always puts together a Veterans Day luncheon, which was a huge event for us over the past few years,” says Dario DiBattista, director of the MVC. “We’re very interested in growing the Military & Veterans Center and our veterans alumni group. Once we realized we wouldn’t be able to have it, we kept trying to find some fun things to do for our students.
All Veterans Day events are open to the entire Towson University community. The celebration includes:
- The History of Veterans Day(Tuesday, Nov. 10 at 12 p.m.): Osher Lifelong Learning Institute instructor and veteran Rex Rehfeld to present the history of Veterans Day along with TU archives associate Felicity Knox ’94, who will discuss the impact service members and veterans have had on TU’s campus and how they focus their talents on the school as faculty, administrators and student leaders.
- The Veterans Day Comedy Show with the Armed Services Arts Partnership (Wednesday, Nov. 11 at noon): The event will feature military-veteran comedians reflecting on their service and other topics.
- Veterans Day Trivia with Charm City Trivia(Wednesday, Nov. 11 at 7 p.m.)
- Military & Veterans Center Support Program Giving Day:On Thursday, Nov. 12, Towson University Advancement will encourage its donors to directly support the MVC.
Many are taking notice of the work done by the MVC, as Towson University is in the top 1% among universities nationwide for veterans.
TU ranked No. 23 out of nearly 1,800 institutions for veteran friendliness in a review by the website College Factua. ln Maryland, TU earned top marks from College Factual for veteran students among all universities. TU has also been recognized by GI Jobs magazine as a military-friendly university. TU is one of the first institutions in the region to establish a military and veteran’s center.
As a veteran of the Marine Corps, DiBattista admits that he doesn’t sugarcoat a lot of things. He knows firsthand that the university not just going through the motions.
“I wouldn’t be here if it was not military friendly,” DiBattista says. “I wouldn’t feel comfortable looking somebody in the face and saying ‘you should come here because we’re going to take care of you,’ if it wasn’t true.”