How Many Coffin Nails Necessary to Declare the 21st Century GI Bill a Disaster?
I have repeatedly posted on the failings of the 21st Century GI Bill and its negative impact on veterans. The VA is insisting on pressing forward with implementation when the evidence keeps piling on that the bill is seriously flawed and unfair. The article below from the April 29, 2009, Inside Higher Ed provides one more point of evidence, one that is incomprehensible.
Tuition Benefit for California Veterans Zeroed Out
California veterans will be eligible for up to… $0 to cover their tuition under the new GI Bill. The figure, recently updated, is a striking reflection of the frustration many have had with the separation of tuition from fees in the process of calculating veterans’ educational benefits. The maximum benefits payable to veterans vary (pretty dramatically) by state, and are based on the highest resident, undergraduate public tuition and fees (respectively) charged in a state. But, as the Department of Veterans Affairs chart points out, California public colleges don’t charge resident undergraduate tuition. In lieu of tuition, they charge fees, and California veterans are in fact eligible to have up to $6,586.54 in fees covered per term under the new GI Bill. All of this is semantics (tuition versus fees) for veterans enrolled in undergraduate programs at public colleges, but for veterans hoping to apply their benefits to private colleges in California, the distinction being made here between tuition and fees matters. It means they’ll be able to apply $0 toward the tuition portion of a private college bill, and up to $6,586.54 toward the fee portion (and of course most private colleges heavily weight their costs on the tuition side of the ledger). It also means that private colleges in California may be less likely to enter into a federal matching program, the Yellow Ribbon Program, to cover the balance between what the standard veterans’ benefit covers and what private colleges charge. “Ultimately the fees in California work like tuition and the veterans administration ought to understand that,” said Jonathan Brown, president of the Association of Independent California Colleges and Universities. “We actively encouraged a lot of our institutions who have skill in this area to apply to the Yellow Ribbon Program and to participate actively but I think what a lot of them are going to do is politely write back to the veterans department and say, ‘Gee we’re sorry but times are very tight financially and you’ve put us in an unreasonable situation. And we’re sorry.’ ” The new GI Bill goes into effect in August.
This is nuts. Does anybody care? Does anybody in Congress, other than Representative Filner care?
Your thoughts? Please feel free to leave a comment.
Mike
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Terri Green Says:
The option is still available for all veterans to keep their current education benefits or switch them to the new Post 911 GIB. I would say that veterans need to closely exam the benefits and the drawbacks for each benefit before making their selection. The California situation is a perfect example of doing your homework. For those who decided not to take the MGIB when they came on active duty, well this is great because they had no benefits because they choose to have none. There is still a very small portion of those veterans that were not afforded the opportunity for an education benefit that are grateful for whatever this benefit affords them. I will also say that something to remember about all of the education programs is they are benefits, not something that was guaranteed when we came on active duty and all military on active duty have the benefit to attend college while on active duty and have it paid for 100% with some limits. All in all this can be a good benefit if you have nothing else to choose from, otherwise you must be a wise consumer and make the choices that are best for your situation. Bottom line is to understand the different benefits and your own situation. Attend as much college while on active duty so you have a base line to help you make these decisions and be grateful that we are afforded educational benefits, many are not. I am very grateful for the educational benefits that the military has afforded me while I have been on active duty (graduated with a Masters from Capella in Oct 2008) and am very grateful that my remaining benefits can be transferred to my son to pay for his first year of college. This is one military person that feels very blessed with the benefits and doesn’t take them for granted as they can change in a moments notice and have.
May 18th, 2009 at 7:34 pm