SOUTH PORTLAND (WGME) -- It's the first of its kind program among Maine community colleges.

Southern Maine Community College unveiled its new Veterans Resource Center Wednesday, a support hub for students who served in the military.

For all first-year students, navigating a new college campus can be a challenge. But transitioning out of the military, veteran students face another level of stress.

“I got pretty used to getting told what to do, and I was good with that,” Aidan Desenberg, a military veteran and student at SMCC. “And then there was a lot of freedom here and making your own decisions.”

Desenberg served six years in the Navy and said adjusting to life outside the military wasn’t easy. Then enrolling in school, he faced new challenges, like trouble connecting with his younger, non-military classmates.

“Especially in like level 100 classes when it's 18-year-olds, you know, coming from high school,” said Desenberg. “Even down to simple things like lingo, I don't feel that old, but evidently I am.”

Desenberg is one of 200 veteran students enrolled at SMCC.

And one alumnus was determined to get those students more help.

“By having this space, you can talk to other people, and you can kind of kind find out that information,” said Anthony Knight, a military veteran and alumni of SMCC.

Knight became the manager of the Veterans Resource Center, and helped the program open in the center's permanent home. “It can give your that sense of belonging that I lacked when I kind of first arrived.”

“I am deeply passionate about supporting our veterans to come into SMCC, find the resources, have the resources and the space to be successful in that transition,” said SMCC President Kristen Miller. “Because what our veterans bring to our student body, to our community is absolutely amazing.”

The new center serves as a home base for veterans to get help with school, navigate post-military programs, and connect to resources.

And more than that, it gives veterans a community on campus

“It definitely keeps me here. You know when you don't have any connections to a place it's really easy to just leave,” said Desenberg. “[It’s] more like I belong at this campus.”