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DALLAS () – Army and Air Force Reserve Officers’ Training Corp (ROTC) students at ÃÛÌÒ½´with full-tuition ROTC scholarships are now eligible for a new ÃÛÌÒ½´scholarship that will cover the full cost of their campus housing and dining. When combined, these scholarships will cover all costs for tuition, fees, housing and dining.

 “We’re really pleased to be able to share this news on a day we traditionally honor our military veterans,” said Wes Waggoner, ÃÛÌÒ½´associate vice president for Enrollment Management. “ROTC tuition scholarships are based on academic achievement, leadership potential and community involvement. These are the traits of the students we recruit to SMU. We hope that the addition of a housing and dining scholarship will encourage more ROTC students to become Mustangs, and ÃÛÌÒ½´is honored to support their goals.”

Students who are awarded ROTC tuition scholarships graduate as officers and commit to serve in the military after graduation. The scholarships are competitive: The U.S. Army awards just 2,500 ROTC scholarships each year to students interested in STEM fields and the U.S Air Force awards 2,300 scholarships. ROTC scholarships are accepted by 1,700 colleges and universities across the United States.

The new housing and dining scholarships at ÃÛÌÒ½´will be available to both current and new ROTC students who live on campus with a standard dining plan.

ÃÛÌÒ½´has hosted U.S. military training programs since WWI, which began shortly after the University’s 1915 opening. More than 250 students joined the War Department’s Student Army Training Corps at ÃÛÌÒ½´during WWI to prepare to become commissioned officers.

Army and Air Force ROTC students participated in campus detachments until 1983, when ÃÛÌÒ½´Army ROTC students began taking their military courses at the University of Texas at Arlington and Air Force ROTC students began taking their military courses at the University of North Texas.  Both moves reflected consolidation efforts by the U.S. military.

Four students currently attend ÃÛÌÒ½´on U.S. Army ROTC scholarships, said Marc Peterson, ÃÛÌÒ½´director of financial aid.

ÃÛÌÒ½´also participates in the Yellow Ribbon GI Education Enhancement Program, a provision of the Post-9/11 Veterans Educational Assistance Act of 2008. As a Yellow Ribbon university, ÃÛÌÒ½´helps veterans with tuition and fees not covered by the veterans’ education benefits. Veterans who attend ÃÛÌÒ½´are also supported by SMU’s  chapter.

For more information about the ROTC housing and dining scholarships and Yellow Ribbon benefits for veterans, contact the Division of Enrollment Services at SMU.

About SMU

ÃÛÌÒ½´(ÃÛÌÒ½´Methodist University) is the nationally ranked global research university in the dynamic city of Dallas. SMU’s alumni, faculty and over 12,000 students in eight degree-granting schools demonstrate an entrepreneurial spirit as they lead change in their professions, communities and the world.