Southern Miss Center for Military Veterans, Service Members and Families Earns 2025-26 Military Friendly® School Designation
Thu, 05/15/2025 - 01:39pm | By: Dr. David Tisdale
The University of Southern Mississippi (USM) continues to be recognized as one of the country's top institutions of higher learning for supporting military-affiliated students, earning designation as a 2025-2026 Military Friendly® School. Southern Miss ranked No. 3 among Tier 1 Military Friendly Research Institutions and secured the No. 1 spot as a Tier 1 Military Spouse Friendly School.
This designation continues a multi-year streak of recognition for USM, driven by the dedicated team at the university’s Center for Military Veterans, Service Members and Families. The center is widely praised for meeting the unique needs and academic goals of veterans, active-duty service members, their families and survivors. In 2021, Southern Miss was also named a Top University by Military Times, further affirming this commitment.
Military Friendly® ratings are earned—not purchased—and determined through a rules-based algorithm that incorporates data from public sources, proprietary surveys and individual feedback. These awards are given to institutions with a proven record of providing meaningful educational opportunities for the military community.
Military Friendly® is owned and operated by Viqtory, Inc., a certified service-disabled, veteran-owned business that is not affiliated with or endorsed by the Department of Defense or any government entity. Click here to learn more.
“The USM Center for Military Veterans team is a family of families who work long and hard to enroll, retain, nurture and mentor our many students who come from all walks of the military service-oriented lifestyle,” said Maj. Gen. (U.S. Army, ret.) Jeff Hammond, director of USM’s Center for Military Veterans, Service Members and Families. “Our overall goal through the years is to be the most military-caring university program in the nation. In this regard, our staff and students strive daily to be extraordinary, rather than average or simply good enough.”
Hammond praised the center’s supporters for its success, including Joe and Suzanne Quinlan, “who believe in our vision and as a result partnered with our program to achieve success in supporting our credentials."
“We continue to adapt to the emerging veteran environment by developing new programs and support mechanisms for our students to succeed in life,” Hammond further noted.
Information on designation and ratings can be found at 2025-2026 MFS | Military Friendly and will be published in the May issue of G.I. Jobs magazine. Click here for more information about the USM Center for Military Veterans, Service Members and Families.