The Bridge Forward
For The University of Texas at Austin’s student veterans, the Jean Perkins Foundation does more than award scholarships. It’s the steady hand that helps hard-won discipline turn into a bright future.
Chris-Enrique Vega spent his childhood in foster care in El Paso. Today, he walks across the Forty Acres in a Texas polo. He is majoring in history and is one of more than 55,000 students, but he’s also part of something smaller and closer: a tight-knit community of veterans who understand exactly what it took to get here. Vega’s path is one of many. Across campus, student veterans arrive with different stories but share the same determination.
Often, that community comes together at the Texas Veteran and Military Student Experience Office (TVMSE), where Morgan Ferguson is more proof that there is no single path to a Longhorn degree. The 30-year-old kinesiology and exercise science major is a mother, a first-generation college student, and a U.S. Navy veteran who decided her story wasn’t finished. Motherhood and military service were simply the first chapters of something bigger. Her GI Bill® benefits cover a significant portion of her educational and living expenses. The Jean Perkins Foundation covers the rest.
That’s the quiet magic of the Jean Perkins Foundation Veteran Scholarship and the Bridge Fund. They meet student veterans wherever they are, so they can keep moving forward.
A scholarship, and a community that shows up
Since 2011, the Jean Perkins Foundation has been one of the most steadfast champions of UT’s student veterans. Every year, 55 student veterans each receive a $5,000 Jean Perkins Foundation Veteran Scholarship. That support has added up to more than $4 million during the past 15 years and helped generations of Longhorns move from military service into careers in medicine, law, government, business and technology.
Scholarships land once or twice a year, but life happens on its own timeline. That’s why the foundation also supports the Bridge Fund, administered by TVMSE, for the in-between moments: a car repair for a commuter student, a professional outfit for a big interview, the fee to attend a conference that could open a door. It’s flexible, it’s fast, and it exists for one reason — to make sure momentum never derails over something solvable.
“The Jean Perkins Bridge Fund has been key in keeping our students enrolled, in school, and able to succeed — it’s a vital piece of the puzzle,” says David Lessenberry, B.A. ’17, a retired U.S. Navy senior chief who serves as assistant director of TVMSE. “A lot of our students don’t live close to campus because of cost and other factors. So, when a car breaks down or other emergency expenses come up unexpectedly, that fund is there.”
For veterans juggling GI Bill timelines, coursework and often families of their own, that can mean the difference between a stressful week and a story like Vega’s or Ferguson’s.
The scholarship allows many TVMSE students to take an unpaid internship they might not otherwise be able to afford, Lessenberry says. That’s the kind of real-world experience employers expect from every new graduate, veteran or not.
“Not having a traditional support system, I have to take finances into consideration with everything,” Vega says. “The Jean Perkins Scholarship and veteran support on campus have really given me the liberty to explore things, like an internship in Ireland or continuing my veteran advocacy work.”
Support from application to graduation
While financial support is available through the Jean Perkins Foundation, UT’s support for student veterans runs deep. U.S. News & World Report has ranked the University No. 1 in Texas for veterans, and that support starts before students ever set foot on campus. TVMSE helps prospective students navigate GI Bill options during the application process, welcomes new Longhorns through the Campus Crawl orientation, and keeps them connected year-round with professional development and hands-on mentoring, all the way to a graduation celebration of their own.
The scholarship has helped Ferguson balance motherhood and her studies. She says Lessenberry and the TVMSE program managers gave her invaluable advice. “Connecting with the veterans program didn’t make me feel so alone. I learned that there’s a much bigger world out there and better opportunities.”
What’s possible on the other side
Jen Yung Lee’s story shows exactly where that support can lead.
A former Army staff sergeant and combat veteran, Lee, B.S. ’18, arrived at UT ready to write a new chapter and graduated with more than a degree in hand.
“The Jean Perkins scholarship eased the financial burden of tuition and educational expenses, enabling me to concentrate on my studies without the ongoing stress of financial worry,” Lee says. “This scholarship not only provided me with the means to pursue my degree but also instilled a sense of confidence and motivation to excel academically.”
These days, Lee competes as a Paralympian on the U.S. national sled hockey team. “I remain committed to giving back to the veteran community and to student-athletes with disabilities,” he says. “Thank you, Jean Perkins Veteran Foundation, for everything you’ve done for our veterans.”
A lifetime of generosity, built for veterans
The foundation carries the name of a woman most of today’s scholars never met. Jean Perkins Stuart, heir to the Carnation Company, had no children of her own and chose to make veterans and medical research her legacy. She died in 2004, but her generous spirit endures in every semester a student gets to finish on steady footing, in every new friendship, and in every veteran who walks across the stage at graduation knowing they didn’t do it alone.
“What starts here changes the world” is UT’s tagline, and our students bring it to life. For Vega, Ferguson and every veteran the foundation has supported, that change started the moment someone believed their next chapter was worth investing in. Thanks to the foundation’s generosity, it’s still being written — one semester, one milestone and one degree at a time.
Learn more about the Texas Veteran and Military Student Experience Office and how you can support our student veterans.
GI Bill® is a registered trademark of the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA). More information about education benefits offered by VA is available at the official U.S. government website at va.gov.
