Tana G. Loy

Originally featured in the Fall 2010 newsletter

Tana Loy started her career at Rutgers in the Fall of 2009 as a transfer student from Georgia Southern University and the North Metro Technical College. She shares that she is very happy with the choice she made to come to Rutgers University. She is a student at the School of Arts and Sciences and was recently admitted to the Edward J. Bloustein School of Planning and Public Policy.

Tana graduated from Georgia’s Pickens HS in 2002. She is a veteran of the U.S. Army, married to an Army officer, has a three-year-old son and another child on the way! She is the epitome of an adult/nontraditional student in higher education today and deservedly maintains a Rutgers’ GPA of over 3.4.

From firsthand experience balancing her schedule at home, work, and school, Tana is cognizant of the struggles that affect the lives of adult/nontraditional students. Tana said, “The University College has been so supportive of the needs of adult/nontraditional students that I had incredible success so far at Rutgers.”

This past January, Tana had the opportunity to meet other student veterans from the New Brunswick, Camden, and Newark campuses. These students inspired her to form a student organization that serves student veterans here on the Rutgers-New Brunswick campus. Along with several other student vets, Tana registered their group, which will be an active component of Student Involvement this fall.

The group's name is Rutgers University Services, Education, and Resources for Student Veterans, or RU-SERVS. The mission is to put in place policies and procedures to make the transition to university life as smooth as possible for veterans, to provide social and academic support, advocacy, and outreach for veterans currently attending Rutgers and potential veterans who are contemplating academic careers at Rutgers.

Tana believes she is fortunate that her time in the military has enabled her to attend college through the utilization of the Montgomery G.I. Bill/Post 9/11 G.I. Bill, and one of the goals of RU-SERVS is to encourage other veterans to take full advantage of their educational benefits. Rutgers is making huge progress in recognizing the unique needs of veteran students. Tana is honored to see this progress in action.

While Tana is originally from Texas, she chose Rutgers because of her husband’s encouragement, support and belief in the quality of education that Rutgers offers. Her husband, a New Jersey native, is a 2003 graduate of Rutgers. Tana states that he has been incredibly supportive of her and believes that support from family and friends is key to helping adult/non-traditional students achieve success in an academic environment.

“It is difficult to make that transition to being a student again, but the reward of obtaining a first-rate education more than makes up for the sacrifice. I am so glad the University College is available for students like myself who may need extra support in achieving their educational goals.”