NYS Division of Veterans' Affairs establishes Counseling Office at Paul Smith's College

ALBANY, NY (12/05/2009)(readMedia)-- The New York State Division of Veterans' Affairs is pleased to announce the establishment of a Veterans Benefits Counseling office at Paul Smith's College. The office will be staffed on the second Tuesday of every month from 8:30 AM to 3:30 PM, with a State Veterans Counselor assigned to provide benefits counseling and advocacy for veterans and their families.

"We are grateful for the generous cooperation extended by Paul Smith's College in providing space and resources for the Division. This partnership demonstrates a shared commitment to helping veterans and their families by offering local access to the professional counseling services available through our agency," said James D. McDonough, Jr., Director of the New York State Division of Veterans' Affairs.

"We're grateful for the service given the nation by our veteran students, and it is the least that we can do to help them receive the benefits they have earned," said John W. Mills, President of Paul Smith's College. "We're thrilled that we can work with the State's Division of Veterans' Affairs to help make their experience here as smooth as possible. As more students enroll at Paul Smith's as part of the Yellow Ribbon Program, we expect even greater demand for this type of assistance."

The new benefits counseling office is staffed by State Veterans Counselor, Tim Pierce, to assist veterans and their families in accessing federal and state veteran's benefits, programs, and services available to them.

The Division's Benefit Counseling office is located in the Phelps Smith Administration Building, Room 009, Paul Smiths, New York 12970-0265. To contact our State Veterans Counselor, please call (518) 327-6214 or visit the Division on the web at www.veterans.ny.gov