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Maryville College hires Dr. Jim Getman as new director of veteran and military services

Nov. 4, 2023

Photo of Jim Getman
Dr. Jim Getman

Dr. Jim Getman knows a little bit about how hard work leads to success: The Buffalo, New York, native joined the U.S. Navy as a 10th-grade dropout, and over the next 24 years climbed the ranks from an enlisted E-1 to a lieutenant commander.

Now retired, Getman has joined Maryville College as the new director of veteran and military services, a role designed to ensure a welcoming environment that supports the success and well-being of veterans from all branches of service, military dependents, active-duty members, reservists, members of the National Guard and others affiliated with the U.S. armed services.

“I recently moved to Tennessee, and the position at Maryville College sounded like a perfect fit for me,” said Getman, who retired from the Navy in September 2006 after duty stations on four submarines, three surface ships, two drydocks and “a couple of shore duty assignments.”

“Not only that, but the location to family and the opportunity to work in an environment that supports veterans in the foothills of the Great Smoky Mountains is ideal,” he added.

After retirement from the Navy, Getman — who earned his bachelor’s in business administration from Southern New Hampshire University in 1993, an MBA from Regis University in 2005 and a Ph.D. from the University of Phoenix in 2016 — started his post-military career in sales but transitioned into higher education roughly 12 years ago, he said. Ten of those, he added, were with the University of Maryland, Global Campus, primarily serving active duty military, veterans and dependents of veterans.

The youngest of four children who all served, Getman said his goal as Maryville College’s director of veteran and military services is to help members of that population navigate the higher education experience and to assist non-veteran students interested in service.

“He brings the valuable experience of a faculty member who has supported this population in the classroom, coupled with personal experience navigating the higher ed landscape as a student,” said Dr. Ja’Wanda Grant, vice president and dean of students at Maryville College. “We look forward to his leadership in the Student Affairs division.”

“I would like to see an exceptional graduation rate from the veteran community, an increase in the enrollment of veterans and active duty members, and a robust participation by non-veteran MC students who are considering a career in the military,” Getman added.

For more information, contact Getman at jim.getman@maryvillecollege.edu. 

Maryville College is a nationally-ranked institution of higher learning and one of America’s oldest colleges. For more than 200 years we’ve educated students to be giving citizens and gifted leaders, to study everything, so that they are prepared for anything — to address any problem, engage with any audience and launch successful careers right away. Located in Maryville, Tennessee, between the Great Smoky Mountains National Park and the city of Knoxville, Maryville College offers nearly 1,200  students from around the world both the beauty of a rural setting and the advantages of an urban center, as well as more than 60 majors, seven pre-professional programs and career preparation from their first day on campus to their last. Today, our 10,000 alumni are living life strong of mind and brave of heart and are prepared, in the words of our Presbyterian founder, to “do good on the largest possible scale.”