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The Gladys W. and David H. Patton College of Education
Patton Hall
100 East Union St.
Athens, OH 45701-2979
Graduating students at commmencement
OHIO Patton Empower Veteran Education Program

Teacher Education Scholarships for Veterans

OHIO Patton Empower Veteran Education Program

With funding from the Ohio Department of Education and Workforce in collaboration with the Ohio Department of Job and Family Services, the Ohio University (OHIO) Patton Empower Veteran Education program is currently offering non-tuition scholarships for eligible undergraduate and graduate veteran education students (VetEds) who meet the following criteria: 

  1. Active-duty military service members, currently serving reserve and guard component service members, military veterans, or their spouses, AND  
  2. Registered with the Veterans and Military Student Services Center AND  
  3. Enrolled and in good standing in a Patton College of Education educator preparation degree program (bachelor's, master’s, or certificate) that leads to employment as an educator in the K-12 school system. Pre-majors are not eligible. 

The total award amount of the VetEd Scholarship is $1500 or $2000 per semester. The amount is determined based on the number of enrolled credits a student is enrolled in: 

  • $2000 for full-time students (9 or more hours for graduate students OR 12 or more hours for undergraduate students).  
  • $1500 for part-time graduate students enrolled in 4-8 hours OR undergraduate students enrolled in 6-11 hours 
  • $750 for part-time graduate students enrolled in 1-3 hours OR undergraduate students enrolled in 1-5 hours 

Ohio University has a long history as a military-friendly campus: In November of 2025, OHIO was named one of the nation’s top military-friendly schools for the 14th consecutive year by Viqtory Media, a veteran-owned company and publisher of G.I. Jobs magazine. For 2024-2025, OHIO earned the Military-Friendly School #6 ranking for Tier 1 research institutions in the nation, while also earning the Military Spouse-Friendly School #7 ranking.

Teacher Shortages in Ohio

Like other states, Ohio continues to experience teacher shortages. Schools and school administrators are experiencing difficulties staffing teaching positions and finding full-time teachers. 

In Southeast Ohio, a growing need for teachers is evident through the growing student-to-teacher ratios, an increase in the number of courses taught by improperly certified teachers, an elevated teacher attrition rate, and a steadily declining number of newly certified teachers. The state is projecting a 6.9% employment growth in the Education, Training, and Library sector by 2030.