As graduation season marched on, students like Rylan Dove served as reminders that the typical, straight to college from high school career path isn’t the only one to success.
On Saturday, May 17, Dove graduated with a bachelor’s in Applied arts and Sciences from West Texas A&M University (WTAMU). Like many other students, Dove worked hard and received his degree; however, unlike many students, he served in the military for six years before attending WTAMU.
“So I graduated from Caprock in 2016, was enlisted for six years and did two overseas tours, did a stint in Afghanistan, and then moved back here,” Dove said. Before coming to WT to study, he said wasn’t really sure what he wanted to do. “I started substitute teaching, and that’s when my wife told me, ‘You need to go to school to be a teacher.’”
Dove didn’t just attend college, though — he kept up a near perfect GPA and restarted the Student Veterans Assocation.
“We are now, I think, like 40 members strong, still growing. Working with Amy Chris has been phenomenal, and everything is veterans related,” Dove said. “We have a lounge set up for it, pretty much a whole dedicated area on campus. Me and a few people that I knew, we got all involved to get that started again. I’ve been the president of that the last couple years.”
What started out as just an inquiry into the organization turned into something that shaped his college career.
“I talked to Amy Chris and asked her, ‘Hey, what is this student veterans organization all about?’ She goes, ‘You absolutely can start it back up,’” Dove said. “So I took a big breath and got my team together, and we got it started again … We didn’t want veterans to feel like they were alone on campus, whether they were online or in person.”
Dove elaborated on how his service impacted his time at WTAMU.
“Man, I think (being a veteran) has everything to do with my experience here,” he said. “If it wasn’t for the benefits of serving, I probably never would have gone to college, in reality. A lot of stuff that we do that will benefit veterans here, pushing myself academically to kind of show other veterans that they are capable. I had a problem with wanting to take on more. But I wanted to kind of use my experience so that others could also look at me and say, ‘What’s stopping me from doing it?’”
Dove’s experience serving, and his service dog Roxy, weren’t the only things that shaped his time at WTAMU, but also his professor, Dr. Jennifer Denham, Clinical Assistant Professor of Education.
“He was very impressive in class; he wanted to always learn,” Dr. Denham said of Dove. “Any kind of questions he had, he reached out and asked, and we had conversations and it really got him thinking. … I just had a lot of fun talking to him, and plus his service animal was something new in my class at WT, so it was good to have the students that are going to be teachers. … He helped kind of explain that stuff to them.”
Dr. Shawn Fouts, senior director of campus community, discussed the importance of the military and veteran services at WTAMU and assisting with veterans when they make the transition from serving.
“It’s very difficult for them to get back into main life, civilian life, and WT helps with that transition, and our military veteran services provides that transition point,” Dr. Fouts said. “Military students make great employees because of discipline. They understand hard work, they understand putting together a regimen and a system to succeed, and they bring that with them. And they become exceptional students, because they’re kind of already in the mindset of what it takes to succeed in life.”
Dr. Fouts also emphasized the positive impact veteran students have on campus and their peers, highlighting how vital veteran services’ help with the transition is.
“The challenge is, that transition from military to civilian life and not having the rigor, and they have to impose their own discipline, make them stay that way,” Dr. Fouts said. “They’re important for us, because their grades are traditionally higher, and they bring other students in class along with them, and they’re natural leaders in the class.”
Dove shared encouragement for any veterans considering attending college.
“I would tell them, you earned your benefits, use them; they’re there for you,” Dove said. “There’s no better time than now to get it done. If, you know, if you’re waiting for a specific chance or specific opportunity, I would say just apply and see if they work, you can see if it works for you. Start with as much as you think you can handle, and then push yourself.”
This article originally appeared on Amarillo Globe-News: WT grad goes from military service to special education teacher
Reporting by By Ashlyn Harvell, Special to the Amarillo Globe-News / Amarillo Globe-News
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
By Ashlyn Harvell, Special to the Amarillo Globe-News | USA TODAY Network
