American Forces Press Service
Sept. 28, 2009 - Checks for up to $3,000 soon will be available to students who have applied for Veterans Affairs 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, VA Secretary Eric K. Shinseki announced Sept. 25.
"Students should be focusing on their studies, not worrying about financial difficulties," Shinseki said. "Education creates life-expanding opportunities for our veterans."
Starting Oct. 2, students can go to one of VA's 57 regional benefit offices with photo identification, a course schedule and an eligibility certificate to request advance payment of their housing and book allowance. Because some students don't live near one of those offices, officials said, VA expects to send representatives to schools with large veteran-student bodies to work with veteran service groups in helping students with transportation needs.
A list of VA regional offices is available at http://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," said Patrick Dunne, VA's undersecretary for benefits. "Not everyone has a car. Not everyone can walk to a VA benefits office."
Although VA officials said they don't know how many students will request emergency funds, about 25,000 claims are pending that may result in payments to students.
The funds VA will give to students now are advance payments of the earned benefits for housing and books, and 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," Shinseki said. "But it's necessary, because we recognize the hardships some of our veterans face."
More than 27,500 students already have received benefits for housing or books under the new Post-9/11 GI Bill, or their schools have received their tuition payments, officials said.
(From a Department of Veterans Affairs news release.)
Showing posts with label schools. Show all posts
Showing posts with label schools. Show all posts
Monday, September 28, 2009
Friday, April 06, 2007
Rules Change for Free, Reduced-Price School Lunches Overseas
American Forces Press Service
April 4, 2007 – Defense Department Education Activity officials are encouraging families of children attending its overseas schools to reapply for free and reduced price school lunches. Earlier this year, DoDEA requested an increase in the reimbursement rate the U.S. Department of Agriculture provides for school lunches. The USDA approved the request and also authorized the use of the Alaska Income Eligibility Guidelines in qualifying families to participate in the program.
As a result, more families may qualify for free or reduced-price lunches, DoDEA officials said.
This change applies to families of children attending DoDEA schools overseas in Germany, Belgium, the Netherlands, Italy, the United Kingdom, the Azores, Turkey, Korea, Japan, and Okinawa. It does not include families of children attending DoDEA schools in Puerto Rico or Guam, who fall under their state Department of Education programs.
The Army and Air Force Exchange Service, the Navy Exchange Service Command and Marine Corps Community Services are designated school food authorities for the Department of Defense Dependents Schools overseas.
AAFES is the largest school food authority, providing USDA-approved school meals to students on Army and Air Force installations in nine countries throughout Europe and the Pacific.
The school lunch program is designed to meet federal requirements for nutritionally balanced meals and to offer free or reduced price meals to eligible children.
Installation commanders operate and maintain the program by providing instructions on how to apply for the program, determining eligibility of applicants and maintaining and updating a list of students enrolled in the program.
Article sponsored by criminal justice online leadership as well as police officers and military personnel who have authored books.
April 4, 2007 – Defense Department Education Activity officials are encouraging families of children attending its overseas schools to reapply for free and reduced price school lunches. Earlier this year, DoDEA requested an increase in the reimbursement rate the U.S. Department of Agriculture provides for school lunches. The USDA approved the request and also authorized the use of the Alaska Income Eligibility Guidelines in qualifying families to participate in the program.
As a result, more families may qualify for free or reduced-price lunches, DoDEA officials said.
This change applies to families of children attending DoDEA schools overseas in Germany, Belgium, the Netherlands, Italy, the United Kingdom, the Azores, Turkey, Korea, Japan, and Okinawa. It does not include families of children attending DoDEA schools in Puerto Rico or Guam, who fall under their state Department of Education programs.
The Army and Air Force Exchange Service, the Navy Exchange Service Command and Marine Corps Community Services are designated school food authorities for the Department of Defense Dependents Schools overseas.
AAFES is the largest school food authority, providing USDA-approved school meals to students on Army and Air Force installations in nine countries throughout Europe and the Pacific.
The school lunch program is designed to meet federal requirements for nutritionally balanced meals and to offer free or reduced price meals to eligible children.
Installation commanders operate and maintain the program by providing instructions on how to apply for the program, determining eligibility of applicants and maintaining and updating a list of students enrolled in the program.
Article sponsored by criminal justice online leadership as well as police officers and military personnel who have authored books.
Tuesday, March 20, 2007
DoD Urges Education Officials to Work with Local Businesses
By Gerry J. Gilmore
American Forces Press Service
March 19, 2007 – Local education officials should seek partnerships with chambers of commerce and other business organizations to explain the financial needs of schools that serve students from military families, a senior Defense Department official said here today. "All possible partners" should be engaged when addressing the needs of schools that educate students from military families, Leslye A. Arsht, deputy undersecretary of defense for military community and family policy, said in remarks to members of the National Military Impacted Schools Association.
Many school districts in the United States serving students from military families are eligible to receive federal payments, called impact aid, that are used to offset the potential loss of property-tax revenue. Many military families live in military-provided housing that's not subject to local property taxes, which are used to maintain schools. DoD has a separate impact aid program that augments the original federal program that was instituted in 1950.
However, community requirements for building new schools and renovating older facilities will likely become more acute in coming years as 2005 Base Realignment and Closure actions kick in, and thousands of U.S. troops and their families are redeployed from Europe to stateside locations, Arsht said.
In fact, more than 63,000 students from military families are expected to be moving to local school systems in the United States through 2011, according to DoD documents.
It's therefore prudent that local school officials and business leaders collaborate "to share innovative and successful ways to plan for quality education expansion," Arsht explained.
Arsht said "a consensus of cooperation" was reached at the conclusion of a DoD-sponsored conference on education for military-connected communities that was held in Atlanta in November.
"Despite the challenges, we believe these significant (student) relocations offer an exceptional opportunity to strengthen our working relationships with the communities and schools that are the home to our military families," Arsht said.
During visits to military communities around the country, Arsht said, she discovered schools "eager to share innovative and collaborative ways" to provide a quality education.
In addition, the U.S. Department of Education Office of Innovation and Improvement "is a valuable partner," Arsht said, that can identify educational resources in addition to impact aid.
The Department of Defense Education Activity also provides useful information and ideas to school districts that will be affected by 2005 BRAC actions or troop redeployments, Arsht said.
"We are really looking at ways to interact with you as we seek best practices," DoDEA Director Joseph D. Tafoya told he audience. For example, DoDEA is inviting Hawaiian public school teachers to attend a DoDEA-sponsored mathematics training seminar that's slated to be conducted in Honolulu this summer, Tafoya said.
The nationwide Military Impacted Schools Association also partners with DoD's America Supports You program, which is an ongoing, nationwide program connecting America's support for the troops to the men and women of the armed forces and their families.
John Deegan, MISA's chief executive officer and just-named president of the National Association of Federally Impacted Schools, MISA's umbrella organization, attended today's meeting. He said in a recent news release that MISA is proud to be a part of America Supports You.
America Supports You "continues to demonstrate the importance of the role our military families play each day to defend our nation," Deegan stated.
This article is sponsored by criminal justice online leadership as well as police and military personnel who have authored books.
American Forces Press Service
March 19, 2007 – Local education officials should seek partnerships with chambers of commerce and other business organizations to explain the financial needs of schools that serve students from military families, a senior Defense Department official said here today. "All possible partners" should be engaged when addressing the needs of schools that educate students from military families, Leslye A. Arsht, deputy undersecretary of defense for military community and family policy, said in remarks to members of the National Military Impacted Schools Association.
Many school districts in the United States serving students from military families are eligible to receive federal payments, called impact aid, that are used to offset the potential loss of property-tax revenue. Many military families live in military-provided housing that's not subject to local property taxes, which are used to maintain schools. DoD has a separate impact aid program that augments the original federal program that was instituted in 1950.
However, community requirements for building new schools and renovating older facilities will likely become more acute in coming years as 2005 Base Realignment and Closure actions kick in, and thousands of U.S. troops and their families are redeployed from Europe to stateside locations, Arsht said.
In fact, more than 63,000 students from military families are expected to be moving to local school systems in the United States through 2011, according to DoD documents.
It's therefore prudent that local school officials and business leaders collaborate "to share innovative and successful ways to plan for quality education expansion," Arsht explained.
Arsht said "a consensus of cooperation" was reached at the conclusion of a DoD-sponsored conference on education for military-connected communities that was held in Atlanta in November.
"Despite the challenges, we believe these significant (student) relocations offer an exceptional opportunity to strengthen our working relationships with the communities and schools that are the home to our military families," Arsht said.
During visits to military communities around the country, Arsht said, she discovered schools "eager to share innovative and collaborative ways" to provide a quality education.
In addition, the U.S. Department of Education Office of Innovation and Improvement "is a valuable partner," Arsht said, that can identify educational resources in addition to impact aid.
The Department of Defense Education Activity also provides useful information and ideas to school districts that will be affected by 2005 BRAC actions or troop redeployments, Arsht said.
"We are really looking at ways to interact with you as we seek best practices," DoDEA Director Joseph D. Tafoya told he audience. For example, DoDEA is inviting Hawaiian public school teachers to attend a DoDEA-sponsored mathematics training seminar that's slated to be conducted in Honolulu this summer, Tafoya said.
The nationwide Military Impacted Schools Association also partners with DoD's America Supports You program, which is an ongoing, nationwide program connecting America's support for the troops to the men and women of the armed forces and their families.
John Deegan, MISA's chief executive officer and just-named president of the National Association of Federally Impacted Schools, MISA's umbrella organization, attended today's meeting. He said in a recent news release that MISA is proud to be a part of America Supports You.
America Supports You "continues to demonstrate the importance of the role our military families play each day to defend our nation," Deegan stated.
This article is sponsored by criminal justice online leadership as well as police and military personnel who have authored books.
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