|
click above for details
Military
Medical Malpractice
Legal
Network
VA Watchdog Stuff...
cups, hats, shirts...
click on item to order
and support the site.
Be sure to get all four
VA Watchdog dot Org
RSS feeds --
Daily VA
News Flashes
House CVA
Veterans' News
Senate CVA
Veterans' News
VA Press
Releases
Download your
free copy of the
2009 VA benefits
handbook here...
|
Printer-Friendly Version
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
-------------------------
Secretary Shinseki Orders
Emergency Checks to Students Awaiting Education Benefits
September 25, 2009
Thousands of Checks to Alleviate Student Financial Burden
 WASHINGTON
– Secretary of Veterans Affairs Eric K. Shinseki announced the Department
of Veterans Affairs (VA) has authorized checks for up to $3,000 to be
given to students who have applied for educational benefits and who have
not yet received their government payment. The checks will be distributed
to eligible students at VA regional benefits offices across the country
starting Oct. 2, 2009.
“Students should be focusing on their studies, not worrying about
financial difficulties,” Secretary Shinseki said. “Education creates
life-expanding opportunities for our Veterans.”
Starting Friday, Oct. 2, 2009, students can go to one of VA’s 57 regional
benefit offices with a photo ID and a course schedule to request advance
payment of their education benefits. Because not all these offices are
located near students, VA expects to send representatives to schools with
large Veteran-student bodies and work with Veteran Service Organizations
to help students with transportation needs.
A list of those VA regional offices is available at
www.vba.va.gov/VBA/benefits/offices.asp.
“I’m asking our people to get out their road maps and determine how we can
reach the largest number of college students who can’t reach us,” VA’s
Under Secretary for Benefits Patrick Dunne said. “Not everyone has a car.
Not everyone can walk to a VA benefits office.”
Although VA does not know how many students will request emergency funds,
it has approximately 25,000 claims pending that may result in payments to
students.
The funds VA will give to students now are advance payments of the earned
benefits for education. This money will be deducted from future education
payments.
VA officials said students should know that after this special payment,
they can expect to receive education payments on the normal schedule --
the beginning of the month following the period for which they are
reimbursed.
“This is an extraordinary action we’re taking,” said Shinseki. “But it’s
necessary because we recognize the hardships some of our Veterans face.”
More than 27,500 students have already received benefits for housing or
books under the new Post-9/11 GI Bill, or their schools received their
tuition payments.
-------------------------
posted by Larry Scott
Founder and Editor
VA Watchdog dot Org
-------------------------
Post your comment on this story using
Intense Debate .....
-------------------------
Don't forget to read all of today's VA
News Flashes (click here)
Click here to make VA Watchdog dot Org your homepage
email Larry
(go back
to VA Watchdog dot Org Home Page) |
VA Watchdog Stuff...
cups, hats, shirts...
click on item to order
and support the site.
|
