Interview with Houstonian

I was recently interviewed by the Houstonian, the school newspaper of Sam Houston State University, for an article about returning vets with PTSD. The article itself is a great read. Check it out.

Post 9/11 GI Bill changes

Last January, some new G.I. Bill rules went into effect and some new ones are slotted for the upcoming fall semester. If you’re taking classes next fall, here’s what you need to know:

1.       You will only receive BAH for months that you are in class and the rate will be prorated. So if your classes end December 10, you’ll only get about a third of your normal BAH payment. Also, you won’t receive BAH during the winter break. I know guys who need that money during that time, but they won’t get it. Plan ahead. You know it’s coming. If you NEED that money, save a bit now so it won’t hurt as bad then, or try to find a temporary holiday season job. If you don’t need it and it’s only extra, at least you know why it’s not showing up in your bank account. For the explanation, click here: "One of the biggest differences—and one Veterans have been most critical of—is the elimination of break pay between the fall and spring semesters.  It was eliminated to help pay for students to use benefits who were otherwise not entitled, like National Guard members activated under Title 32 and non-degree seeking students interested in flight school or correspondence classes."

2.       7 credit hours are no longer enough for BAH. Whatever your school considers full time is now required in order to receive the full BAH. In the case of Sam Houston State, that’s 12 credit hours per semester. The difference is, last year it was all or nothing and now it’s prorated. 7 credit hours got you $1300 and 6 credit hours got you $0. So if you take half of what your school considers full time, you’ll get half of the BAH benefits. If you’re at Sam and you take 6 credit hours, you’ll get $700 (because it’s rounded to the nearest tenth). For me that’s good because that BAH is a bonus. For those who need to work full time and can’t attend class full time but need the full BAH, you’ll need to plan ahead.

3.       Anyone who only attends school online will now get half of the national average BAH if you’ve served 36 months on active duty.

I don’t like change, but I don’t like not being ready for change even more. Like GI Joe used to tell us: “Knowing is half the battle.”

Source: http://www.blogs.va.gov/VAntage/?p=1184

Which school is best for me?

Now that I have you interested in going to school and taking advantage of the G.I. Bill, you need to decide where you want to go and how you will attend.

If you have no college credits at all, it wouldn’t be a bad idea to start off at a community college; especially if you’re unsure if college is for you. Community college is a great place to take care of those freshman level courses that are required for everyone. Lone Star College has multiple campuses throughout the area and their credits transfer to larger colleges in the area if you decide to switch schools later on. Lone Star’s Veteran Resource page states, “We believe a veteran is the most important person entering this center.” Now that’s the kind of service I like!

If you would rather attend class at a four year university, try Sam Houston State University in Huntsville. That’s the school I attend, so I’m a little bias when writing about them, but they have been named as one of the G.I. Jobs 2010 Military Friendly Schools. The Veteran Resource Center on campus is the place to go if you have any questions about the school, enrolling or setting up your G.I. Bill benefits. The Collegiate Veteran’s Association is a student-run organization that regularly conducts activities together and offers support for new veterans on campus. My college experience became 10 times better when I joined that organization. It’s just great being around other vets.

If you can’t attend classes on campus, online classes could be your thing. I took most of my electives and freshman level courses at South University. They have offices and campuses all over, so I can’t say for sure where they’re located, but the Veterans Admissions Office was in Arizona. Their classes last 6 weeks and there are no exams. That’s right, no exams. Going part time (3 classes over a 12 week period), I was able to get almost two years worth of classes done in less than 6 months. I would have never left South University, but they did not offer my major. If you go with South University, ask for LaRenzo Binns. He’s the guy who got me squared away with enrollment, getting my G.I. Bill setup and was there to answer any questions after. He’s a veteran himself and extremely professional. He really took a lot of time to get me enrolled. He always returned my calls, replied to emails and was very patient with me during the whole enrollment process. You can email him at lbinns@southuniversity.edu. Tell him ‘Twig’ sent you. He’ll know.

If for some reason you don’t get accepted, do not give up. When I first applied at Sam, they sent me a letter saying thanks, but no thanks. I was demoralized. I needed to get my GPA up. The classes I took at South University brought my GPA up to where Sam Houston would accept me. So don’t give up if you get a letter like I did. Just work harder and prove them wrong!

Below you’ll find links to the schools I talked about as well as some I didn’t. I only wrote about the ones I’ve had a personal experience with.

Lone Star

Sam Houston State University

South University

Rice University

Galveston College

The Case for College

When I first enlisted in the Army, I thought the training I got would be the thing that put me in a better paying job. I had spent the previous four years in a factory with no air conditioning and no future. I believed that with the training the Army gave me, I would get to be the guy in the polo shirt and khaki pants who sat at a computer waiting for someone to call and say their printer won’t print. Well, I was wrong. My 4+ years of military service and training got me the same job I had before I joined. Shipping and receiving clerk. Don’t get me wrong, I’m not bashing shipping and receiving clerks. They work hard and earn every dollar they get, but I had dreams. I wanted to be a writer and an English teacher, so I needed college. I learned within the first week that the Army had prepared me for a lot of things, but the thing it prepared me for the most was being a college student. 

You know one of the first lessons we learned in basic? Not talking when an authority figure is talking? Yeah, that will put you miles ahead of everyone else. How about a little personal responsibility? Remember how the Drill Sergeant laid out what he expected from us during the 9 weeks he had us? How he only told us once and every time after that we paid for it? Same goes for college. The professors spend the first day explaining what their expectations are and that’s it. No more warnings. I’m always amazed when I see 18 year old freshmen students try to claim ignorance of an assignment when we were told weeks in advance when it would be due.

And don’t forget your G.I. Bill. We paid into that and now we get to use it. Even if you have to work full time to get by (like I do), going to school part time and bringing in that G.I. Bill money is almost like a part time job. A part time job that gives you the tools you need to get a better job in the future. Maybe you already have the job you want. I’d still go to school. Get a backup degree just in case. Look at the economy today. You just don’t know what next year will be like.

I know some of you have kids at home and can’t go to a campus. The G.I. Bill will cover online classes. You just don’t qualify for Post 9/11 G.I. Bill BAH if you take every class online.

What have you got to lose? It’s paid for!