Miriam Bamberger
Special Projects Reporter

At the end of World War II, hundreds of thousands of American soldiers returned home to the lives they had put on hold to serve overseas. Many of these young soldiers sought a college education and career training to help them reintegrate themselves into the professional world.

To accommodate the financial needs of this new wave of veterans, Congress passed the Servicemenıs Readjustment Act of 1944. The act, commonly known as the G.I. Bill, granted financial aid to cover tuition and living expenses of veterans attending colleges and trade schools. The bill also provided for other benefits, including hospital payments and financial loans to veterans and their families; educational and training assistance was provided until 1956.

Between 1944 and 1949, approximately $4 billion was distributed to about nine million American veterans. Immediately following the passage of the G.I. Bill, 7,000 veterans enrolled in classes at GW during the 1946 academic year, comprising 54 percent of the entire student body. The following summer session reached, enrollment reached an all-time with 6,027 students, about half of which were veterans.

In response to this drastic demographic change on campus, the Office of Veteran Affairs handled the needs of all veteran students. The American Veterans Committee and the Veterans Club also became prominent organizations at the University. The University offered housing for veterans in Draper Hall, located on the corner of 22nd and G streets, which opened on June 1, 1946. The hall was the first dormitory for veterans on a D.C. college campus. The building had been moved from Fort Washington in Maryland by the Federal Public Housing Authority. The residence hall was named after GW Law School graduate Lt. Courtney Draper, who died during the war. The hall housed 126 veterans in 86 rooms.

Benefits under the G.I. Bill were not exclusive to WWII veterans. In the early 1950s Korean War veterans were also provided with financial assistance to seek a college education. However, certain limitations were placed on the beneficiaries. For example, veterans attending GW under the G.I. Bill were allowed to change their course of program just once. As The Hatchet reported in September 1952, ³The purpose of the new G.I. education and training program is to help a veteran reach a definite, identified goal. The goal may be purely educational, such as obtaining a college degree; professional, such as becoming a doctor; or vocational, such as training to be a carpenter.²

Nationally, the G.I. Bill helped millions of veterans receive the education and training necessary to find careers outside of the service. At GW, thousands of students attending under federal financial assistance went on to lead successful careers in many fields, bringing pride and notoriety to the University community.