KCC earns gold ranking as a 2025 Military Friendly® School
Kankakee Community College is one of 21 small community colleges across the nation with a gold ranking in the 2025 Guide to Military Friendly Schools, published in conjunction with “G.I. Jobs” magazine.
KCC has had 27 veterans enroll during the 2024-25 school year, according to the college’s Office of Financial Aid. Among these veterans, 18 are utilizing Veteran’s Administration Education benefits.
“We are proud to serve veterans, and to be designated as a Military Friendly® School,” said Megan Ponton, assistant director of financial aid at KCC. “The college is dedicated to supporting veterans and active-duty military personnel, alongside their families, in their transition to higher education. We facilitate access to federal and state VA educational benefits and financial aid. We also provide comprehensive assistance tailored to individual academic, professional, and personal aspirations.”
Throughout Illinois, there are only 13 community colleges which achieved a Military Friendly® designation this year. Community colleges were categorized as “small” or “large.” A total of 232 community colleges earned the Military Friendly designation.
KCC is also a Military Spouse Friendly School.
“Military Friendly is committed to transparency and providing consistent data-driven standards in our designation process,” said Kayla Lopez, national director of military partnerships for Military Friendly. “Our standards provide a benchmark that promotes positive outcomes and support services that better the educational landscape and provide opportunity for the Military Community. This creates a competitive atmosphere that encourages Institutions to evolve and invest in their programs consistently. Schools who achieve awards designation show true commitment in their efforts, going over and above that standard.”
According to Military Friendly, methodology, criteria, and weightings were determined by Viqtory with input from the Military Friendly Advisory Council of independent leaders in the higher education and military recruitment community. Final ratings combined the institution’s survey scores with the assessment of the institution’s ability to meet thresholds for student retention, graduation, job placement, loan repayment, degree advancement or transfer, and loan default rates for all students and, specifically, for student veterans.
The 2025-26 Military Friendly® Schools list will be published in the May and October issue of G.I. Jobs magazine and can be found at MilitaryFriendly.com/schools.
More information about KCC’s educational benefits for military veterans, spouses and dependents, is at www.kcc.edu/veterans. Community members and prospective students can request information at veterans.kcc.edu, email finaid@kcc.edu, or phone 815-802-8550.
Military-friendly attributes of Kankakee Community College
- Full-time advisers on staff, including career advising
- Priority registration
- Career Services
- Scholarships for military students and veterans
- Veteran’s Resource Center, which is staffed and offers dedicated resources
- The KCC Veterans Association is an approved chapter of the Student Veterans of America and SALUTE Veterans National Honors Society.
- Military students called to active service return without penalty
- In-district tuition for CH. 33 Post 9/11 and CH. 30 Montgomery GI Bill recipients
- Awards credit for College Level Examination Program (CLEP) and/or DANTES Subject Standardized Tests (DSST) exams
- Accepts the ACE recommendations for awarding credit for CLEP and/or DSST
- Gives college credit for military training and experience
- Annual Veteran Recognition Ceremony
- Honorary Veteran Stole for graduating service members
- Disability Services
- Tutoring Services
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About Military Friendly Schools
The Military Friendly® Schools list is created each year based on extensive research using public data sources from more than 8,800 schools nationwide, input from student veterans, and responses to the proprietary, data -driven Military Friendly® Schools survey from participating institutions. The survey questions, methodology, criteria and weighting were developed with the assistance of an independent research firm and an advisory council of educators and employers. The survey is administered for free and is open to all postsecondary schools that wish to participate. Criteria for consideration can be found at www.militaryfriendly.com.
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Kankakee Community College is an accredited two-year college which awards associate degrees and certificates of completion. KCC prepares students both to transfer to four-year colleges and to enter the workforce. The college also offers continuing education courses and certification training, literacy programs, English as a Second Language and GED preparation. The KCC mission is “Enhancing quality of life through learning.” The college has a Riverfront Campus in Kankakee, South Extension Center in Watseka, North Extension Center in Bradley and Manufacturing and Industrial Technology Center in Kankakee.
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