For Immediate Release:
March 1, 2019
Primary Media Contact:
Sally Voth
Public Relations Specialist
[email protected]
Phone: 540-868-7134
For the 10th year, Laurel Ridge has been designated a Military Friendly® School by Viqtory, a service-disabled, veteran-owned small business that connects service members to civilian jobs and education.
For the first time the college has been given a gold designation. This distinction means that Lord Fairfax scored within 10 percent of the 10th highest-rated school in the small community colleges category.
Institutions were assessed in relation to several variables including student retention, graduation, job placement, loan repayment, and whether students went on to transfer or advance their degrees.
Laurel Ridge received full marks in all categories: academic policies and compliance, admissions and orientation, culture and commitment, financial aid and assistance, graduation and career, and military student support and retention.
The college exceeded the Military Friendly® standards in financial aid and assistance by 79 percent, in admissions and orientation by 78 percent, and academic policies and compliance by 67 percent.
Cornerstone Hall on the Middletown Campus boasts a dedicated Veterans Center where students can meet with academic advisors/school certifying officials, use the free printing services, grab coffee and meet with fellow veterans. The college also has a Student Veterans Organization.
As a Virginia Values Veterans (V3) partner, Lord Fairfax has received education and training in the best practices of recruiting, hiring and retaining employee veterans.
“Laurel Ridge and its Veteran Services Department are very personal, respectful and understanding of any special circumstances or disability that comes with being a veteran,” says U.S. Army veteran Joel Lunghi, who is graduating this spring with an associate degree in general studies and planning to transfer to George Mason University.
Another graduating student, Gina Scalzo, a member of the U.S. Air Force Reserve, says the college has been very supportive of her.
“The veterans advising office has been extremely helpful in deciding what academic path to pursue and understanding how to use the tuition assistance I received from the reserves,” she says.
Lord Fairfax is committed to helping ease the return to civilian life for veterans and guiding them as they pursue their educational goals, veteran advisor/school certifying official Sharon Painter says.
“In many instances, our veterans haven’t been in a traditional classroom for at least four years,” she says. “We work hard to aid their transition into student life.”
This year marks the 10th time the Military Friendly® Schools list has been released by Viqtory. The list will be published in May in G.I. Jobs magazine.
It is developed from research on publicly available data from more than 8,800 schools around the nation, as well as input from student veterans and a survey done by participating schools.
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Founded in 1970, Laurel Ridge Community College is a multi-campus public institution of higher education. With four locations — Middletown, Warrenton, Luray-Page County and most recently, Vint Hill— the College serves eight localities in the Shenandoah Valley and northern Piedmont regions. The localities are the counties of Clarke, Fauquier, Frederick, Page, Rappahannock, Shenandoah and Warren and the city of Winchester. Laurel Ridge offers more than 75 associate degree and certificate programs in a wide variety of disciplines, in addition to providing access to bachelor’s, master’s and doctoral degree programs offered on site by a four-year institution. Laurel Ridge also serves the business community by offering workforce preparation programs for employees and employers. Laurel Ridge serves more than 9,000 unduplicated credit students and more than 11,000 individuals in professional development and business and industry courses annually.
Laurel Ridge Community College (Laurel Ridge) is accredited by the Commission on Colleges of the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools to award associate degrees. Contact the Commission on Colleges at 1866 Southern Lane, Decatur, Georgia 30033-4097 or call 404-679-4500 for questions about the accreditation of Laurel Ridge Community College. Laurel Ridge Community College is an equal opportunity institution providing educational and employment opportunities, programs, services, and activities and does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, sex, age, religion, disability, national origin, marital status, political affiliation, sexual orientation, or other non-merit factors. Laurel Ridge also prohibits sexual misconduct including sexual violence or harassment.
Laurel Ridge Community College was known as Lord Fairfax Community College until June 2022. For consistency purposes, the college will be referenced as Laurel Ridge going forward.
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