Dusty Amenta, an Army veteran and accounting major at Columbus State University, recently received a full professional makeover, thanks to JCPenney and CSU’s military enrollment office.

“This is greatly welcomed!” said Amenta. “As a mom and an Army wife, it has taken me eight years to graduate. I haven’t had much time to do things like this.”

Amenta, who will graduate in December, received a free suit, shoes, haircut, and makeup makeover from JCPenney as part of CSU’s Suits for Veterans program. She was shown the royal treatment at JCPenney. Staff escorted her around the store, helping her select the perfect suit and ensuring she made it to her to appointments at the salon and makeup counter. Amenta’s friends even joined in on the effort to make Amenta’s day extra special; they watched Amenta’s daughter so she could enjoy her makeover.

The experience was coordinated by CSU’s office of military enrollment, a department at CSU that is focused on serving the needs of military-affiliated students.

“We strive to do whatever we can to help our military-affiliated students have a smooth college experience,” said Susan Lovell, Director of Military Enrollment at CSU. “One of the frequent issues that we hear is our students do not have suits for graduation or job interviews. We’ve reached out to businesses in the community and have found that they are more than happy to help our military families as they prepare for their next step.”

Chancellors, E&S Suit Warehouse, and JCPenney have all donated suits for the new program. So far, six military-affiliated students have received suits.