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Bank donates to Armstrong program to educate veterans
Photo - BOA Grant - POneill  William Kelso
Bank of America Savannah Market President Patrick ONeil presents a $5,000 to Armstrong State University Vice President for Advancement William Kelso for the universitys Veterans Career and Educational Pathways Program. - photo by Photo provided.

SAVANNAH — Bank of America Charitable Foundation recently donated $5,000 to Armstrong State University for the second consecutive year.

Armstrong will use the grant to support its Veteran’s Career and Educational Pathways Program, an initiative designed to create clearer career paths for Armstrong’s veterans and military students by better equipping them with job skills and career knowledge.

This grant was made possible on behalf of the Workforce Development and Education initiative within the Bank of America Charitable Foundation. Patrick O’Neil, an Armstrong alumnus and Bank of America Savannah market president, facilitated the process.

“Investing in our workforce is just one of the ways we’re addressing issues fundamentally connected to economic mobility,” O’Neil said. “Through this grant, we look forward to supporting Armstrong’s mission to better equip our veterans and military students with the job skills and knowledge needed to be successful.”

Armstrong’s commitment to creating a more educated, skillful and financially secure workforce served as a deciding factor in the grant award.

“We are focused on supporting and guiding our military-affiliated students into a career of their choice during their time at Armstrong,” said William Kelso, vice president for advancement at Armstrong. “With Bank of America’s help, Armstrong will be able to better equip our military community with vital career skills.”

The Veteran’s Career and Educational Pathways Program at Armstrong offers career training, advising and mentoring opportunities to the armed forces community. Previous program initiatives have included group training sessions with the Georgia Department of Labor’s regional veteran employment office, targeted career and academic advisement based on statewide and local statistics, a career exploration speaker series with veterans turned industry leaders and peer-to-peer mentorship with successful veteran alumni from Armstrong.

Along with a recent grant to improve Armstrong’s Military Resource Center on behalf of The Home Depot Foundation and Student Veterans of America, veteran and military support at Armstrong is gaining strength to serve the university’s growing armed forces community.

Armstrong was recently recognized as No. 7 in the Best for Vets Colleges and Universities 2016 ranking by Military Times and has been honored as a Top School for Military Education by Military Advanced Education Magazine.

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