This Veterans Day special feature highlighted the Student Veterans of America (SVA) chapter at Bristol Community College (BCC), showcasing the experiences and contributions of student veterans. Center Director Denny Cosmo, a Staff Sergeant in the 75th Army Ranger Special Troops Battalion with combat tours in Iraq, shared his initial academic struggles, achieving a 0.84 GPA before finding crucial support within the veteran community at Community College of Rhode Island. Lance Corporal Osman Clark, a Marine reservist and satellite/radio communication operator, discussed public perceptions of veterans and how his military skills are transferable to his electrical engineering studies.
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Across the globe, student veterans from Bristol Community College excel in leadership roles. Center director Denny Cosmo contributes to the personal growth of his peers and students.
0:15You see them really open up and realize all the opportunities and access and resources and benefits available to them and then they start taking advantage of it and then they want to share it with their veteran friends and community as well. This is the hub for our area's student veterans of America chapter.
0:34With honor and distinction, the men and women here proudly represent the Warrior Scholar Project.
0:41Our chapter was a 2024 uh SVA Chapter of the Year finalist. We didn't win, but Bristol Community College was on stage with Cornell uh Baylor University out of Texas. These are schools that are Ivy League schools or or 10 times our student veteran population and Bristol Community College students were on the same stage.
1:01Internships, volunteering, academics, and military assignments have Lance Corporal Osman Clark involved on campus within his community and country.
1:13I think when people hear the word veteran, they think of the movies, the media they've seen. They have this image of like this battle hardened fellow like unstable even if you'd want to use that word. But we're still people at the end of the day.
1:36This Marine reservist presents a calm demeanor reliant on direct and continuous training. Being a reservist, there's always the thought of when I'll be needed, be activated. You want to say cuz you know, signing up, you carry the responsibility of being called into action if need be. Staff Sergeant Cosmo is a member of the 75th Army Ranger Special Troops Battalion. He speaks Arabic and completed several combat
2:10tours in Iraq. Cosmo though had difficulty transferring that elite training to the classroom after a year. I had like a 0.84 GPA and I I left. Uh my then girlfriend now wife moved back here where I'm from. I went to the community college Rhode Island and I actively sought out the veteran community and they had a really positive culture. They were asking me questions and they were inviting me into the
2:39circle and it was night and day.
2:41Lance Corporal Clark is a satellite and radio communication operator.
2:47Your setup might not be correct or it might not work. So, you'll have to cycle through and troubleshoot. You know, why isn't it working? Did I check all the plugs and cables? And I think that's transferable to like my field of study electrical engineering.
3:06BCC has repeatedly been named to the list of military friendly schools for retired and active duty service people, their spouses and children. The value that this center brings is building social capital, having older veterans that are kind of anxious about going back to school to meet some younger veterans and have that community- based learning aspect of it. So, they bond through shared military service in their
3:36history, but then they're all Bristol students here. So, they're all navigating higher education. They're all facing the same challenges.