ABSTRACT
Veterans were first granted benefits for serving in the continental army after the American Revolution. Passed in 1818, the Revolutionary War Pension Act provided benefits for both officers and the enlisted who found themselves in dire financial circumstances. The legacy of the Bonus Marchers influenced how the next generation of veterans would be treated. There is disagreement in the literature about the havoc waged on Vietnam War veterans. Although historians such as Dean wrote that the plight of the 'scorned' Vietnam veteran was largely myth, other researchers including Schwartz maintained that indeed in some ways the Vietnam veteran was worse off than other veterans. Student veterans of America (SVA) were founded in 2008 when student veteran organization leaders on colleges throughout the nation recognized the need to form a national coalition of student veteran organizations. A long-term goal of the SVA is to advocate for on-campus Veterans Resource Centers.
