OCC’s Ryan Luurtsema Receives Award for Dedication to Military Community

Ryan Luurtsema, assistant director of OCC’s Veteran and Military Resource Center (VMRC) recently was designated a 2021 Veteran Champion of the Year in Higher Education by VIQTORY.

One of only 19 in the country to receive this award, Luurtsema was recognized for his commitment, effort and success in creating sustainable and meaningful opportunities for the military community.
Luurtsema was nominated for demonstrating a proven track record of advocating on behalf of our nation’s veterans by seeking to improve the recruitment, enrollment, retention, graduation, and job placement of veterans, and working to bridge the cultural gap between veterans and civilian students.

“America’s veterans are well equipped to succeed as civilians when they leave the military,” Dan Fazio, managing
editor of G.I. Jobs magazine, said. “But champions like Ryan who work tirelessly behind the scenes to support veterans in their transition too often go unrecognized for their efforts. It’s truly our honor to shine the spotlight on those who champion our veterans.”

VIQTORY publishes G.I. Jobs magazine, which is distributed to more than 250,000 military, Department of Defense and corporations worldwide.

The Veteran and Military Resource Center at Ocean County Colleges houses an array of supporting amenities for military connected students, including tutoring and trained military liaisons across campus. The foremost objective as the Ocean County College Center of Excellence for Veteran Student Success (OCC-CEVS) is to provide guidance to veterans and military students on their path to educational success including academic, admissions and career advising, registration, financial aid counseling, disability services and veterans’ benefits and much more.

For more information on veteran and military services and the new Center of Excellence at Ocean County College, visit OCC’s Veteran and Military Resource Center online.