Saint Martin’s University program wins award for computer science course for veterans
By Anna Weaver
Chad Townes spent six years in the Army, five of them married to his wife Amanda. But the couple had only managed to live together for about nine months of marriage, with Townes based at Joint Base Lewis-McChord in Fort Lewis and deploying twice to Afghanistan, and his wife serving in the National Guard elsewhere.
So last year, Townes decided it was time to transition from his intelligence analyst position to the civilian sector and spend more time with Amanda. The former staff sergeant said that mentally, leaving the military can be much harder than signing paperwork.
“You kind of recalibrate how you think about yourself as a person,” said Townes of the transition from a military to civilian job and life. “In the Army it’s all about serving the team and being a part of the greater good and serving your country … and trying to put all of that ahead of your own needs.”
“Once you’re in the transition, you have to start thinking about, ‘What about me?’”
Enter Saint Martin’s University in Lacey and the Microsoft Software & Systems Academy, which launched in fall 2013. Microsoft and Launch Consulting asked Saint Martin’s to pilot the program, which aims to fill computer science jobs.
While Saint Martin’s has offered extension classes at JBLM since 1972, MSSA was unique in that after being accepted to the program, 17 JBLM service members, all preparing to leave the military, were assigned full-time to the 16-week course. They earned 18 credits towards a computer science degree and an automatic job interview with Microsoft.
The program ties in with Saint Martin’s “mission of service and community,” said Radana Dvorak, the Benedictine university’s extended learning division dean. “We are helping the local community … and providing [veterans] with skills so they can get well-paid jobs in the IT industry.”
Fifty-one percent of graduates were hired at Microsoft, including Townes, who is now a service engineer for Bing and Bing Ads. Others were hired by Launch Consulting, and several members of the cohort plan to continue coursework at Saint Martin’s to finish computer science degrees.
Saint Martin’s received a 2014 Institution Award from the Council of College and Military Educators this month for its “significant contributions to the cause of military education,” particularly the Microsoft Software & Systems Academy.
The second MSSA cohort graduates in late April. Dvorak said there are plans to create a separate MSSA course for military spouses and veterans who have already left the military.
Townes, who was a MSSA cohort leader, said the program helped him translate his military skills into a civilian job plus “learning [how] to think about yourself differently and trying to build value in your skills.”
In addition to his Microsoft job, he’ll be continuing as a Saint Martin’s University student part-time once he spends a few months helping his wife move to the Seattle area.
March 25, 2014