Veteran Education Benefits
October 7, 2014
OVERVIEW
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Federal Veteran Education Benefits
State Veteran Education Benefits
Other Veteran Education Benefits
Eligibility Determination
Documentation Needed
Other important items to remember
Federal Chapter Benefit Types
• Chapter 30 Montgomery GI Bill Active Duty
• Chapter 31 Disabled Vocational Rehab
Program
• Chapter 32 Post Vietnam GI Bill
• Chapter 35 Survivor and Dependent’s
Education Assistance Program
• Chapter 1606 MGIB Selective Reserve GI Bill
• Chapter 1607 Reserve Educational Assistance
Program (REAP)
• Chapter 33 New Post 9/11 GI Bill
Chapter 30 (Federal)
• Chapter 30 - Montgomery GI Bill (Active-Duty)
– For active duty members who enroll and pay $100
per month for 12 months and re then entitled to
receive a monthly education benefit once they
have completed a minimum service obligation.
Chapter 31 (Federal)
• Chapter 31 – Disabled Veteran’s Vocational
Rehabilitation Program. Students work thru
their county office and get assigned a voc
rehab counselor (Al Hess). Students meet
with rehab counselor once a semester.
– This benefits pays 100% of tuition, has a book and
living stipend.
Chapter 35 (Federal)
• Chapter 35 - Survivors and Dependents'
Educational Assistance (DEA) program offers
educational and training opportunities to
eligible dependents of Veterans who are
disabled due to a service-related condition or
of Veterans who died while on active duty or
as a result of a service-related condition.
Chapter 1606 (Federal)
• Chapter 1606 – Montgomery GI Selected
Reserve (MGIB-SR). Provides education and
training benefits to eligible members of the
Selected Reserve, including the Army Reserve,
Navy Reserve, Air Force Reserve, Marine Corp
Reserve, Coast Guard Reserve, the Army
National Guard and Air National Guard.
Eligibility for this program is determined by the
Selected Reserve components and VA makes
the payments.
Chapter 1607 (Federal)
• Chapter 1607 - Reserve Educational Assistance
Program (REAP). This program provides
educational assistance to members of the
Reserve components called or ordered to
active duty in response to a war or national
emergency declared by the President or
congress.
– May use 1606 initially then gets activated and
switches to 1607
Chapter 33 (Federal)
• Chapter 33 – Post 9/11 GI Bill for service
members who have at least 90 days of
aggregate active duty service after 9/11/01; or
individuals discharged with a serviceconnected disability after 30 days after 9/11.
Must have honorable discharge.
Chapter 33 (Federal)
Components
• Things to think about with this benefit:
– Made up of three components
• Basic Housing Allowance (BAH) goes by school zip
code: $1146.00 for those at 100%. (% is based on how
much active duty the veteran has) Paid to student
– Have to be enrolled in MORE THAN 6 credits and at least one
of those credits has to be a traditional class (not an online,
Adult Degree Saturday, internship or independent study)
– If taking all online classes, student will receive up to the
national BAH rate of $754.50/mo.
• Book Stipend ($41.67 per credit-max $1000/yr) Paid to
student
• Tuition & Fees- paid directly to the school
Chapter 33 – Post 9/11 GI Bill
General Info cont…
For those who served fewer than 36 months, the % of benefit ranges from 40% - 90%:
90% - 30 total months (including service on active duty in entry level and skill training)
80% - 24 total months (including service on active duty in entry level and skill training)
70% - 18 total months (excluding service on active duty in entry level and skill training)
60% - 12 total months (excluding service on active duty in entry level and skill training)
50% - 6 total months (excluding service on active duty in entry level and skill training)
40% - 90 or more days (excluding service on active duty in entry level and skill training).
• Veterans must have an honorable discharge or other qualifying discharge (e.g.
hardship, condition interfering with duty, etc.) to be eligible.
Chapter 33 – Transfer to Dependents
Criteria…
• Has at least six years of service in the armed forces (active duty
and/or Selected Reserve) on the date of approval and agrees to
serve four additional years in the armed forces from the date of
election.
• Has at least 10 years of service in the armed forces (active duty
and/or Selected Reserve) on the date of approval, is precluded by
either standard policy (by Service Branch or DoD) or statute from
committing to four additional years, and agrees to serve for the
maximum amount of time allowed by such policy or statute.
• Is or becomes retirement-eligible and agrees to serve an additional
four years of service on or after Aug. 1, 2012. A Servicemember is
considered to be retirement-eligible if he or she has completed 20
years of active federal service or 20 qualifying years as computed
(pursuant to section 12732 of title 10 U.S.C.).
• Transfer requests are submitted and approved while the member is
in the armed forces.
Federal Veteran Benefits
• Documents Needed:
– Application through Ebenefits.va.gov, VA Form 221990
– DD-214 Member 4 (shows character of Discharge)
– Certificate of Eligibility (COE) from Dept. of VA
– Kicker/ Buy Up contracts (If eligible)
Other Federal Veteran Benefits
• Tuition Assistance
– Reserves & Active Duty
• Eligible reservists may be allotted 16 credits per year at
$250.00 per credit
• Have to put in one “good” year before eligible to use TA
• Army can use Federal Chapter benefit AND TA
– National Guard (combination of federal and state)
• Eligible National Guard members can use the National Guard
Tuition Grant (state) and Tuition Assistance (federal).
– NGTG pays for Tuition (minus segregated fees) State benefit
State of Wisconsin Veteran Benefits
• Wisconsin GI Bill
• National Guard Tuition Grant (NG TG)
• Veteran Education Grant (VET ED)
• WI Veteran Retraining Grant
Wisconsin GI Bill (State)
• Wisconsin GI Bill may provide a full waiver of tuition
and program (segregated) fees for eligible veterans and
their dependents for up to 8 full-time semesters or 128
credits for any credit producing class within any State
of WI school.
• Need to maintain a 2.0 G.P.A.
• New 5 year residency law
• The Federal Post 9/11 GI Bill (chap 33), must be used
before the WI GI Bill. Exceptions to this will be anyone
receiving less that 100% of Chap 33. (60% Chapter 3340% WI GI Bill.)
Veteran Education Grant (State)
• Vet Ed Grant Provides a reimbursement grant for tuition and fees
following successful course completion (2.0 GPA required)
– Can not have a bachelor degree already.
– Eligible WI Vets may use VetEd to pursue educational or
vocational objectives up to a bachelor’s degree at any UW,
Tech College, or approved private institution.
– 100% tuition and fees not covered by other grants,
scholarships or remissions.
– Income limitations – household must be below 50,000 plus
1000 for each dependent in excess of two dependents
– Time Restriction- Can use up to 10 year anniversary of leaving
active duty. After this point may be able to enroll as a part
time student.
National Guard Tuition Grant (State)
• NG TG is a program that can provide
reimbursement to an eligible guard member,
upon satisfactory completion of course(s).
Reimbursement is based on 100% of the tuition
charged (no segregated fees). The grant cannot
pay for any room & board, books, fees or
continuing education credits (CEUs). The grant
program reimburses up to eight semesters at the
undergraduate level only.
Retraining Grant
RTG is for those who became unemployed,
underemployed or received a notice of
termination of employment within the period
beginning one year (365 days) prior to the date
the application is received at WDVA, Madison.
• Employed for 6 consecutive months with the
same employer or similar occupations
• Employed at least one day within the year
prior to the application received at WDVA.
Federal & State Combinations
• If a student is eligible for the WI GI Bill and the Post
9/11 Chap 33, he/she has to use the chap 33 first
before receiving the WI GI Bill.
• Students are required to provide a Certificate of
Eligibility or a rejection notice for Post-9/11 GI Bill
benefits in order to use the WI GI Bill.
WI GI Bill & Chap 33
(Supplemental Payment)
• Supplemental Payment: Students who elect to relinquish
any other chapter to utilize the Post-9/11 GI Bill benefit,
may be eligible for a supplemental payment.
• This payment is intended to make up the difference
between what a student would have received from their
old chapter compared to what the student will receive after
enrolling for Post-9/11 GI Bill benefits.
– Students who have exhausted their 36 months of Chapter 30
benefits, will not receive a supplemental payment.
– Students will need to provide documentation of kickers or buy
up
WI GI Bill & Chap 33 Issues
(Exception)
– If a student has 12 months or less of Chapter 30
benefit, they can stay with their old chapter until
it is exhausted and continue to use the WI GI Bill.
Because…
– If they exhaust their chapter 30 benefit
completely (to the day), they could receive an
additional 12 months under Chapter 33
Chapter 33/WI GI Bill
– Dropping/Withdrawing.
SIGNIFICANT financial consequences may result when adding
or dropping classes under VA Education Benefits.
• may result in students being required to repay the federal VA
for courses that were not completed and may require
students to repay the supplemental payment granted under
the Wisconsin GI Bill.
• carefully consider the financial consequences of any
enrollment changes with federal VA benefits counselors.
State Veteran Benefits
Documents Needed:
– WI GI Bill:
• Certificate of Eligibility (WDVA 2031)
• Application (WDVA 2029)
• Birth or Marriage Cert (Dependent)
– National Guard Tuition Grant (DMA 189-E)
– DD-214 Member 4 (shows character of Discharge)
Principles of Excellence
Educational institutions participating in the Principles of Excellence program
agree to the following guidelines:
• Provide students with a personalized form covering the total cost of an
education program. (Shopping Sheet)
• Provide educational plans for all military and Veteran education
beneficiaries. (Academic Plan)
• End fraudulent and aggressive recruiting techniques and
misrepresentations.
• Accommodate Service Members and Reservists absent due to service
requirements.
• Designate a point of contact to provide academic and financial advice.
• Ensure accreditation of all new programs prior to enrolling students.
• Align institutional refund policies with those under Title IV, which governs
the administration of federal student financial aid programs.
8 Keys to Veterans’ Success
By affirming support for the 8 Keys to Veterans’ Success, institutions are expressing
their commitment to implement the promising practices outlined in the 8 Keys, as
follows:
1. Create a culture of trust and connectedness across the campus community to promote
well-being and success for veterans.
2. Ensure consistent and sustained support from campus leadership.
3. Implement an early alert system to ensure all veterans receive academic, career, and
financial advice before challenges become overwhelming.
4. Coordinate and centralize campus efforts for all veterans, together with the creation of a
designated space for them (even if limited in size).
5. Collaborate with local communities and organizations, including government agencies, to
align and coordinate various services for veterans.
6. Utilize a uniform set of data tools to collect and track information on veterans, including
demographics, retention, and degree completion.
7. Provide comprehensive professional development for faculty and staff on issues and
challenges unique to veterans.
8. Develop systems that ensure sustainability of effective practices for veterans.
Websites
• Federal
– Federal GI Bill: http://www.benefits.va.gov/gibill/
• State
– Wisconsin National Guard applications:
http://dma.wi.gov/dma/dma/education.asp
– Wisconsin Department of Veterans Affairs
http://dva.state.wi.us/Ben_education.asp
• Other
– UW System Veteran Info http://gibill.wisconsin.edu/
– Joint Services Transcripts https://jst.doded.mil/smart/signIn.do
Army/Navy/Marines
– Transcripts-Air Force http://www.au.af.mil/au/barnes/ccaf/transcripts.asp
– Forms http://www.va.gov/forms/
Questions???
Veteran Education Benefits
October 7, 2014