Brown expands financial support for graduate student veterans, enhances peer-mentorship program
In an important step toward expanded access, Brown will significantly grow funding for U.S. military veterans pursuing graduate degrees, while a generous donation will establish the Cisneros Veterans Scholars Program.
PROVIDENCE, R.I. [Brown University] — As communities across the nation honored those who have served in the U.S. military, Brown University marked Veterans Day with two significant steps forward in its ongoing work to expand access and strengthen support for military veterans enrolled as Brown students.
The University will expand its participation in the federal Yellow Ribbon Program for veterans pursuing graduate degrees at Brown, while a generous gift from the Gilbert and Jacki Cisneros Foundation will transform a successful Office of Military-Affiliated Students peer-mentorship program into the Cisneros Veterans Scholars Program.
Brown President Christina H. Paxson shared details on both new actions to support veterans at the University’s annual Veterans Day Ceremony on Tuesday, Nov. 11. As the nation’s semiquincentennial approaches in 2026, she noted that Brown’s rich history of military service dates back to the University’s founding on the eve of the Revolutionary War — and that student veterans and Brown’s ROTC participants continue to bring an incredible diversity of perspectives and experiences to campus today.
“Four of the seven graduates from Brown’s inaugural class — the great Class of 1769 — served during the American Revolution, and since then, Brown has educated scores of students who received academic and military training before going on to serve their country and returning to college after World War service to earn their degrees,” Paxson said. “That tradition continues today. Our commitment to our military-affiliated students only gets stronger, and we’re proud to be able to announce these new initiatives that will enhance the lives of our student veterans at Brown.”
Starting with students who enroll for the 2026-27 academic year, Brown will provide an unlimited match for any graduate program tuition and fees not covered by the Post-9/11 G.I. Bill, ensuring that eligible veterans can pursue master’s and doctoral programs at Brown with no financial barriers, Paxson said.
Brown President Christina H. Paxson shared details on two new actions to support Brown's growing population of student veterans at the University’s annual Veterans Day Ceremony on Tuesday, Nov. 11.
The expanded financial support for veterans at the graduate level builds on more than a decade of work at Brown to enroll more military veterans and increase accessibility, affordability and support for military-affiliated students. In 2023, the University surpassed an ambitious $25 million fundraising goal that permanently funded full scholarships for undergraduate student veterans — who are admitted through a need-blind admissions process — and partnerships with organizations like the Warrior-Scholar Project have strengthened mentorship, leadership and community-building opportunities on campus.
“This isn’t just the work of one person or office,” said Associate Provost for Enrollment and Dean of Undergraduate Admission Logan Powell. “This is a University-wide commitment, and it is a University-wide set of resources that ensures that we conduct robust outreach to prospective student veterans, that we admit them, that we matriculate them, and that we support them from day one.”
In 2019, when Brown launched its veterans initiative, 18 student veterans were enrolled as undergraduates. Today, that number has more than quadrupled to 75, and an additional 38 student veterans are now pursuing graduate degrees.
“To witness that kind of growth on campus has been one of the most rewarding things in my professional career,” Powell said.
The move to ensure full financial support for student veterans in master’s and Ph.D. programs now marks an important step in building on Brown’s existing support for undergraduate student veterans, Powell said.
“It’s the right thing to do, but it’s also important because it shares the message broadly that student veterans are welcome here,” Powell said. “They should know that — whether they’re undergraduates, master’s students or Ph.D. candidates — they’re part of the student veteran community at Brown, and they have the full support of the institution behind them.”
Mac Manning, director of the Office of Military-Affiliated Students, said student veterans bring important perspectives to the Brown community, often shaped by extraordinary experiences and a profound sense of commitment that enriches the entire community. By removing financial barriers to graduate education, Brown will enable student veterans to leverage those skills and leadership qualities in new academic contexts.
These benefits aren’t free — they’re earned, and Brown is very mindful of the service each veteran gave. If you’re a veteran, regardless of whether you served 20 years or four, you can find a home at Brown.
Mac Manning
Director of the Office of Military-Affiliated Students
“The ethos behind the undergraduate Open Curriculum is very much alive in Brown’s graduate programs,” said Manning, a U.S. Marine Corps veteran who in addition to leading the office is currently pursuing a master’s degree at Brown in urban education policy. “As a graduate student myself, I’m seeing every day that my peers and professors are open-minded and very welcoming to all types of students.”
The expansion, Manning said, ensures that veterans who pursue graduate degrees at Brown can do so with the same level of support the University has long provided at the undergraduate level. The expansion primarily impact students at the master’s degree level — Ph.D. students are eligible as well, but most doctoral students at Brown are already fully funded through University and/or external support, and therefore generally don’t exceed their Post-9/11 G.I. Bill benefits.
“These benefits aren’t free — they’re earned, and Brown is very mindful of the service each veteran gave,” Manning said. “If you’re a veteran, regardless of whether you served 20 years or four, you can find a home at Brown.”
Cisneros Foundation gift bolsters peer-mentorship program
For many Brown students who are veterans, that sense of home extends beyond the classroom and into the Office of Military-Affiliated Students, which moved into a new expanded home on campus in Fall 2024.
Brown student veteran Kloey Albertson, left, sits in Brown's Office of Military-Affiliated Students.
The office hosts a variety of programs, including the newly minted Cisneros Veterans Scholars Program. Renamed on Veterans Day in recognition of a generous gift from the Gilbert and Jacki Cisneros Foundation, the peer-mentoring initiative offers an enhanced support network for student veterans starting their education journeys at Brown.
U.S. Navy veteran and former U.S. Under Secretary of Defense for Personnel and Readiness Gilbert Cisneros is also a Brown alumnus who earned a master’s degree in urban education policy in 2015.
“As a veteran myself, I know firsthand that the transition from military to civilian life can be both exciting and daunting,” Cisneros said. “Education plays a crucial role in that journey. It opens doors to new possibilities, leadership pathways and purpose beyond service.”
Previously known as Battle Buddies, the Cisneros Veterans Scholars Program pairs incoming student veterans with returning peer mentors who help ease that transition, offering guidance on everything from coursework and clubs to building a close-knit community in a new environment. It also introduces incoming military-affiliated students to the robust on-campus resources available to them — from mental health and support services to professional development — before each academic year kicks off.
“Similar to our Cisneros Institute Scholars program, Brown’s Office of Military-Affiliated Students is intentional about providing not only the resources but also relationships to help them succeed,” said foundation President Jacki Cisneros. “Those two components of a program are important to us, because not only do we want every student and veteran to have access to education, but we also want them to have access to opportunity.”
The foundation’s gift will provide financial support for program enhancements, including leadership development initiatives, expanded training for peer mentors, and events that deepen engagement among student veterans and the broader Brown community — enabling the office to be nimble and direct funding where it’s needed most, Manning said.
“Their generosity gives us so many more opportunities to really match our offerings with the needs of our student veterans in any given year,” Manning said.
For the Cisneros family, the gift is an affirmation of the value that veterans bring to Brown, regardless of where they were before arriving on College Hill or where they’ll go after graduation.
“Veterans bring discipline, resilience and a deep sense of responsibility to everything they do,” Gilbert Cisneros said. “Investing in their education isn’t just about helping individuals succeed — it’s about ensuring they can continue to lead, to serve and to make an impact long after their time in uniform.”
