Jeff Sweeten, 29-year-old, sophomore and combat veteran is having the time of his life at Connors State College.
Sweeten served in the United States Marines for four years after working for United Parcel Service after graduating from high school.
Sweetens first duty station after joining the Marines was in Okinawa, Japan. A station he described as being paid to live in a tropical paradise.
However, that soon changed for the young Marine.
Sweeten then served two tours of duty in Iraq, where he saw action in several firefights earning a combat action ribbon, which is only earned when you are in firefights.
While in Iraq he sustained a lower back injury and loss of hearing, but said, “I am in one piece thankfully, quickly adding, Right now Im having a great time at Connors.
Its been great. They are a good group of kids here. Im a business administration major and really enjoy going to class and being around all the students.
A native of Seattle, Wash., he moved back to Checotah, Okla., to be near family, and decided to attend Connors State simply because of convenience. Sweeten said he plans to continue his education following graduation at CSC at Northeastern State in Tahlequah.
Sweeten is acting president of Phi Theta Kappa, and vice president of student government at CSC. I didnt have any real aspirations of being president of Phi Theta Kappa, or the student government but being in the military, they thought I could be a leader for the students.
The sophomore said there wasnt one thing over another that he really enjoys about Connors State. Its just a real great atmosphere to attend school and get an education.
The teachers really seem to care about the students. There is a lot of potential in the students at Connors State.
It has really been a blast, said Sweeten.