11/05/15 rg local, area
HAYS, Kan. -- Fort Hays State University announced Thursday, Nov. 5, that it has been designated a 2016 Military Friendly School by Victory Media, the leader in successfully connecting the military and civilian worlds. Now in its seventh year, the original, premier Military Friendly Schools designation provides service members and their families with transparent, data-driven ratings about post-military education and career opportunities.

"It really puts us in an elite class that military students can relate to, knowing what we do at Fort Hays State is relevant and makes it easy for military students to get their degree," said Mike Michaelis, assistant director of strategic communication and assistant director of the Virtual College.

Institutions competed for the elite Military Friendly School title by completing a survey of more than 100 questions covering 10 categories, including military support on campus, graduation and employment outcomes and military spouse policies. Survey responses were scored against benchmarks across these key indicators of success. In addition, data was independently tested by Ernst and Young based upon the weightings and methodology established by Victory Media with guidance from an independent advisory board of higher education and recruiting professionals.

The Military Friendly Schools designation is awarded to the top colleges, universities, community colleges and trade schools in the country that are doing the most to embrace military students and to dedicate resources to ensure their success both in the classroom and after graduation. The methodology used for making the Military Friendly Schools list has changed the student veteran landscape to one much more transparent and has played a significant role over the past seven years in capturing and advancing best practices to support military students across the country.