The Coordinating Commission is leading Nebraska’s efforts in a 13-state initiative to help military service members, veterans, and their families overcome barriers to earning postsecondary credentials and entering the workforce.
The Midwestern Higher Education Compact (MHEC) was recently awarded a $900,000 grant from Lumina Foundation for the Multi-State Collaborative on Military Credit (MCMC), which aims to, among other things, identify effective policies and best practices that can be shared among participating states.
Volunteers from state agencies, university systems, college campuses, and other organizations have been working together as part of the initiative. The Coordinating Commission has served as the MCMC facilitator in Nebraska. Kathleen Fimple, the Commission’s Academic Programs Officer, is Nebraska’s representative on the MCMC steering committee.
The Coordinating Commission recently consulted with interested parties from across the state in the drafting of a project plan for Nebraska. Those who have been involved in the initial conversations about MCMC include the directors of military and veterans services offices on one or more campuses of the University of Nebraska, the Nebraska community colleges, and Nebraska private institutions; a representative of the Nebraska State College System; a representative of the Nebraska Department of Education; and Nebraska State Sen. Sue Crawford. Particularly helpful were the veterans offices on the campuses of Central Community College, the University of Nebraska at Omaha and Bellevue University.
The Midwestern Higher Education Compact is a nonprofit regional organization assisting Midwestern states in advancing higher education through interstate cooperation and resource sharing. Lumina Foundation is an independent, private foundation committed to increasing the proportion of Americans with high-quality degrees, certificates and other credentials to 60 percent by 2025.