Bakersfield College hosted a veterans resource fair on Nov. 9th. This event was all to showcase the amount of support that Bakersfield College and the community has for veterans and their families.

“Take advantage of the resources… don’t wait, go get help” stated one of the panel speakers.

Because of measure J, passed in November 2016 that allocated $502 million bonds to provide funding on the Bakersfield College campus, the main campus resulted in the Veterans Resource Center.

 Veterans and their dependents can go alongside people who understand them and are out there trying to help them every step of the way.

Faculty member Paul Beck was a major help in launching the program. President Dr. Zav Dadabhoy spoke about how he was one of the first faculty members to speak up about how we can be more supportive of the veterans at Bakersfield College. He understood and knew what they would need to be more successful.

At the veterans resource center they provide an ample amount of support from counseling, tuition assistance, peer tutors, computers, and book vouchers. They are fostering a community to make sure that they have what they need to succeed. “Democracy needs to be protected and nurtured and the veterans give their life limb and soul to protect our democracy” stated Jenny Frank the centers manger. They then went on to say that because of all the work that they do for our country, it’s time they seek out the resources that are available so that we can help them succeed. There were also outside partners such as CSUB Veterans Center, American Job Center, Bakersfield Behavioral Health, and CapK there as well to talk about services and how they could help.

“Veterans, thank you for your service” states Nan Gomez-Heitzeberg, the KCCD vice president of area 3. BC really showed their praise for veterans by informing all of them about the support from faculty, programs, and the community.  They thanked them and showed them how much they have for them to have a more supportive and successful college experience.