BLOUNTVILLE — U.S. Army veteran and Northeast State student Joni Hughes was one of 20 women across the nation recently selected by the Military Family Research Institute at Purdue University (MFRI) for its 2019 Focus Forward Fellowship cohort. The fellowship is designed to build skills, leadership and a sense of community among women student veterans. In July, Hughes, a graduate of Cloudland High School in Carter County bound for Tusclum College, participated in a four-day residency at Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis as part of the program.