"It's really admirable that he is willing to do something like that," Butler said.

Butler, himself a sergeant in the Montana Army National Guard, said he is especially inspired to see that someone as busy as the president chooses to serve. He believes other students who, like him, sometimes feel like their plates are too full will be encouraged by Bodnar's decision as well.

"Even some of the busiest people we know can make a commitment to their state and country, and he's an example of it," Butler said.

Shawn Grove, director of UM’s Veterans Education and Transition Office, estimated about 20 percent of the 500 students using a GI Bill to pay for school are connected to the National Guard. He said he would like to look at the historic records of the campus to see if there's any precedent for a president serving. "This might be history in the making," he said.

Grove, himself a member of the National Guard, said the change offers the president the ability to serve the country and remain in Montana at the same time. "You have that stability to stay in the state that you want to stay in yet still serve your country in a meaningful way," Grove said.

Bodnar has a high profile in Montana, and Touchette agreed his stature helps the National Guard.