Boeing provides support to Veteran and Military Resource Center

Support to military-connected students at the University of Houston-Clear Lake has received a significant boost, courtesy of Boeing.

The global aerospace company has donated $20,000 to the Capt. Wendell M. Wilson Veteran and Military Resource Center (VMRC), part of UHCL's Division of Student Affairs. The center provides personalized, comprehensive support for students with military affiliations to advance Student Affairs' mission to provide a holistic student experience. The funding will support several programs at the center:

> Boots to Suits which helps military-connected students transition into professional life with business attire assistance and workshops on resume building, interviewing techniques, and other job preparedness activities

>The annual Military-Connected Year-End Celebration hosted by the VMRC to recognize and honor military-connected students

>UHCL's chapter of Student Veterans of America, one of 1,600 such chapters in all 50 states and three countries with more than 600,000 members

>Support to student assistants who work in the VMRC, all of whom are military-connected students

"It's an honor to be part of this program," said Michael Lawson, Senior Manager of Boeing Global Engagement. "As a company, we actively recruit (employees) from the veteran population. So, we are very passionate about supporting programs that help students transition from military to civilian life.

"The talent that comes out of the veteran population is important to us and part of our culture."

UHCL President Richard Walker accepted the donation on behalf of UHCL. "Thank you to the Boeing team for this gift. Our partnership with Boeing is important to us as a strategic relationship that helps us help our students, and we greatly appreciate their support.

"We have a very strong veteran population here, and it keeps growing," Walker said. "With support from partners like Boeing, our Veteran and Military Resource Center team can take care of this population."

One student currently among the more than 500 military-connected students taking advantage of the VMRC's services is Amanda Gumban, a senior majoring in criminology who expects to graduate in May.

"I am in the ROTC program, and the center has helped me access the benefits it offers to students like me," Gumban said. "I have participated in the Boots to Suits program for help with writing my resume and strengthening my job skills.

"I will be commissioned as a second lieutenant in the Air Force at graduation and have been selected as a criminal investigator in the Air Force Office of Special Investigations within the Department of War."

Eric Irving served in the Coast Guard from 2016 to 2024. Today, he is a junior majoring in management information systems at UHCL. He praised the center for its helpfulness to veterans.

"I wanted to apply my G.I. Bill benefits but didn't know everything about how to do it," Irving said. "The people in the center were extremely nice and welcoming to me, especially Luis (VMRC Director Luis Polanco De Leon).

"I was prepared to go job hunting outside the university, using the skills I gained from the center, but I was chosen for one of the jobs in the center. It's been an almost seamless transition for me."

The VMRC is well recognized for its work with military-connected students. Because of the center's work, UHCL is a Military Friendly School at the national level and was named to the Military Times Best for Vets: Colleges list. UHCL also earned the Veterans Education Excellence Recognition Award from the Texas Veterans Commission.

"The support from Boeing and the accolades we have received highlight our strong student success metrics, our military-specific resources, and meaningful financial assistance we provide to military-connected students and families," said De Leon. "I am grateful to Boeing and to the entire team in the Veterans and Military Resource Center for their hard work and dedication to ensure military-connected students receive the support and service they deserve."