UNC Greensboro continues to be recognized for its support of military-affiliated students. Recently, the Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry was honored with the Seven Seals Award by the Employer Support for the Guard and Reserve (ESGR), recognizing their departmental support of members of the U.S. National Guard and Reserve.
In addition, Dr. Jason Reddick, a professor in the department, received ESGR’s Patriot Award. This award honors supervisors of members of the National Guard and Reserve who support citizen warriors through practices such as flexible schedules, time off prior to and after deployment, caring for families, and granting leaves of absence if needed.
“Supporting military-affiliated students is simply the right the thing to do,” said Reddick. “They serve our country in the highest possible way, and we all owe them our support and gratitude in any way we can give it.”
Both the department and Reddick were nominated by PhD student Garett Barto, who serves as a captain in the Army Reserves while also conducting biochemistry research in Reddick’s lab.
“Balancing all of my responsibilities is a tough endeavor, but the Chemistry and Biochemistry Department has been more than supportive,” said Barto. “Dr. Reddick has been an outstanding supervisor and instrumental in my success as a PhD student and Army Reserve Officer. His support, even if he may not understand all of my military responsibilities, has given me the flexibility to flourish as a 4.0 student, champion our new research project, and be a top performing Army Officer, all while taking care of my family.”
In turn, Reddick says that military-affiliated students like Barto tend to bring maturity and valuable life experience to the classroom and the lab. Specifically, he says, Barto contributes significant leadership experience and a can-do attitude to both his research group and teaching duties.
“Students who have served have often spent years in hostile deployments, or at least with dangerous equipment and training, and so they are never intimidated by chemistry like many other students can be,” Reddick said.
These awards are the latest in a string of honors recognizing UNCG for its military-friendly practices. This year, the University was ranked among the Top 10 “Military Friendly” institutions across the country, as well as one of the top 10 “Military Spouse Friendly” schools.
The Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry was also recently honored with the Stanley C. Israel Award for Advancing Diversity in Chemical Sciences. Presented by the American Chemical Society, the award recognizes the department’s commitment to increasing and fostering inclusion of people from diverse and underrepresented groups.
Did you know all active duty (including National Guard and reservists) and veterans can apply to UNCG with no application fees? Activity-duty, veterans, and anyone who uses military educational benefits also get priority registration for classes. In addition, UNCG’s Military-Affiliated Services office serves as a one-stop shop for military-affiliated students on campus, providing a variety of services and support.
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Story by Elizabeth Keri, College of Arts & Sciences
Photography by Sean Norona, University Communications
