Saint Martin's University, an independent four-year, co-educational university located in the South Sound, just introduced a new section, intended to aid military and military dependents interested in finding out what the school has to offer, to its website.

The new web presence was inspired by Presidential Executive Order 13607: Establishing Principles of Excellence for Educational Institutions Serving Service Members, Veterans, Spouses and Other Family Members, which President Barack Obama signed into law in 2012.

Though the order did not mandate any university establish a clearinghouse website to contain educational information for military students, Radana Dvorak, Ph.D., dean of the Extended Learning Division, stated Saint Martin's University wanted to go beyond the requirements since they aspire to "serve as an example for other educational institutions in this respect."

Such measures are in keeping with Saint Martin's excellent existing military partnership; in 2011, the president of Saint Martin's signed a Department of Defense Voluntary Education Partnership Memorandum of Understanding, which ensures that all servicemembers participating in off-duty education programs are consistently provided with quality education programs.

The new site is designed to function as an informational clearinghouse for military personnel who are currently serving, as well as veterans, disabled veterans, veterans involved in vocational rehabilitation, spouses and family members who are prospective students or are already enrolled at Saint Martin's.

Presently, there are 751 such students enrolled and taking classes at either the primary campus in Lacey or at the extension campus on JBLM, which just marked its 41st year on base.

"The new webpages are very accessible and user-friendly, offering all the information related to the specific educational needs of our military community in one location," says Cruz Arroyo, director of Saint Martin's Extended Learning Division.

With 23 majors for undergraduates and seven graduate programs for potential students to choose from, more information is always welcome, especially in the case of military students, who might also have critical questions regarding service-related absences, transferring of credits, academic and financial advising services and even refund policies. The site addresses all of that, plus it has a centralized system where users can post suggestions and/or requests for additional assistance from Saint Martin's.

To learn more, visit www.stmartin.edu/military.