ABOUT US

True to Her Traditions

The Yale Veterans Association's mission is to unite and empower the Yale military community—past, present, and future—through advocacy, connection, and service.


The Yale Veterans Association (YVA) is a group of military veterans and their supporters within the Yale community. On campus, YVA advocates for those who have served and are training to serve, as well as memorializing Yale's rich tradition of military service to our country. Off campus, YVA supports professional development for the Yale Alumni Veteran community and collaborates with other veteran organizations, public institutions, and private sector groups in supporting veteran issues and the importance of military service.


The YVA is 501(c)(3) non-profit and Yale Alumni Association Shared Interest Group.


A statue with a wreath of flowers on it in front of a building.

Our Impact

We invite you to join us in leveraging the strengths, talent, and dedication of our members and friends to uplift and support fellow veterans and cultivating leaders for military and public service.

Yellow Ribbon Advocacy

After documenting Harvard’s and Columbia’s more generous financial assistance for veterans, the YVA demonstrated to the Yale administration that improving supplemental GI Bill assistance would encourage more veterans to matriculate. The YVA secured large Yellow Ribbon funding increases across Yale University. 


Building Community

In keeping with its pledge to connect veterans of different generations, the YVA hosts “beer calls” on-campus to bring together Yale’s veterans for good drinks and conversation. YVA also hosts an annual fall BBQ for students to meet one another and members of the YVA.


Off campus, YVA has several active chapters in Washington, D.C., New York, and San Francisco where members can meet and socialize with one another.

ROTC and Veteran Support

The YVA created and sponsors multiple awards for Yale ROTC's annual President's Review including the True to Her Traditions Award, Corporal Langdon 

Laws Ricketts Award, and the Class of 1965 Sword Award.


YVA also attends events on-campus like the Yale Veterans Day ceremony and the Yale ROTC Joint Commissioning Ceremony, providing YVA pins to all commissioning officers.