New GI Bill allows returning veterans college education

The bill provides aid for tuition costs and fees.

By Margaux Henquinet

Published Aug. 6, 2009

On Aug. 1, the Post-9/11 GI Bill went into effect, allowing veterans to receive financial aid for tuition and fees, a monthly housing allowance and up to $1,000 per year for textbooks and supplies.

The new bill differs from its predecessor, the Montgomery GI Bill, by varying the amount of available aid for tuition from state to state. According to the Department of Veterans Affairs Web site, the amount is equal to the highest in-state undergraduate public tuition charge per credit hour in the state. Missouri’s maximum charge per credit hour is $269. This means tuition would be paid in full at MU due to the university’s $245.60 per credit hour charge.

The financial aid for tuition would be paid directly to the school, whereas a check is sent to student veterans to pay to the school under the Montgomery GI Bill, according to the Web site.

To be eligible for aid, a veteran must have served at least 90 days on active duty after Sept. 10, 2001, and either still be on active duty or have been honorably discharged. The amount of aid veterans receive also depends on how long they were deployed on active duty.

MU Veterans Center Director Carol Fleisher said the new bill has caused excitement both at the center and among student veterans.

There are about 250 veterans at MU, but Fleisher said she expects the new bill will increase this number.

“There are a lot of people who are coming out of the military and have decided to go back to school,” she said. “This is going to let them go to college without having to take out a lot of loans.”

Mizzou Student Veterans Association President Dan Sewell said the new bill creates a great opportunity for student veterans.

“It’s going to allow a lot of guys to come back to college and get an education,” Sewell said.

Fleisher said considering the amount of tuition and fees covered by the new bill, it would cost veterans about the same to attend MU as it would to attend a smaller community college.

“That’s going to even the playing field and bring a lot more people to the university,” she said.

Under the new bill, veterans can also choose to transfer their benefits to their children or spouse. Other differences between the Post-9/11 GI Bill and the Montgomery GI Bill include the monthly allowance given to student veterans.

The new bill pays less money directly to the veterans in the form of this monthly allowance.

“The old bill put more in your pocket,” said Nick Kundert, internal vice president of the Mizzou Student Veterans Association and assistant in the MU Student Veterans Center.

Student veterans already enrolled will have the option to switch to the new GI Bill or stay with the old one, but Sewell said the new one will bring about an increase in veteran enrollment.

“I hope (the new bill) brings more veterans to campus,” Sewell said. “I hope that it allows a lot more GIs the option to get back to school.”