Letter From 22 Organizations to the US Department of Education On Nomination For Affordability and Student Loan Committee
Vanessa Gomez U.S. Department of Education 400 Maryland Ave. SW, Room 2C179 Washington, DC 20202 Docket ID ED-2021-OPE-0077 August 31, 2021 Dear Ms. Gomez, The undersigned veterans and military service organizations write to make the [...]
Student Veteran Submission: Tasha Berkhalter Testimony to the Department of Education
Tasha Berkhalter Testimony U.S. Education Department June 2021 My name is Tasha Berkhalter and I am an Army veteran from Lima, Ohio. I would like to tell you a bit of my story. After [...]
Student Veteran Submission: Jay Hernandez Testimony to the Department of Education
Jay Hernandez Testimony U.S. Education Department June 2021 My name is Jay Hernandez, and I am a Marine veteran from Oregon City, Oregon. I became a U.S Marine because I wanted more out of my [...]
Our Formal Written Submission to the Department of Education on Negotiated Rulemaking Public Hearings
July 1, 2021 Docket ID: ED-2021-OPE-0077 Vanessa Gomez U.S. Department of Education 400 Maryland Ave., SW Room 2C179 Washington, DC 20202 Dear Ms. Gomez, On behalf of Veterans Education Success, I write to submit comments [...]
The Highland County Press: Department of Education Announces Approval of New Categories of Borrower Defense Claims Totaling $500M in Loan Relief to 18,000 Borrowers
"These findings were made possible thanks to evidence provided by partners at the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau and the Iowa Office of the Attorney General, as well as Veterans Education Success. The Department looks forward [...]
Collection of Statements to the Department of Education on Negotiated Rulemaking Public Hearings
Negotiated Rulemaking 2021 Public Hearing Statements and Testimony of Veterans of the Armed Forces
Robert F. Muth Testimony to the Department of Education on Negotiated Rulemaking Public Hearings
Robert F. Muth, University of San Diego School of Law Testimony U.S. Education Department June 2021 Good Afternoon Thank you for the opportunity to provide this public comment on potential issues for future negotiated rulemaking. [...]
Wesley Wilson Testimony to the Department of Education on Negotiated Rulemaking Public Hearings
Wesley Wilson, Higher Ground Veterans Advocacy Testimony U.S. Education Department June 2021 Good morning, thank you for allowing me to provide comment here today. I am Wesley Wilson, and I am a current student veteran [...]
Our Testimony to the Department of Education on Negotiated Rulemaking Public Hearings
William Hubbard, Veterans Education Success Testimony U.S. Education Department June 2021 Good morning, my name is Will Hubbard, and on behalf of Veterans Education Success—a non-profit focused on serving veterans seeking the transformative power of [...]
Student Veteran Submission: Nicole Wilson Testimony to the Department of Education
Nicole Wilson Testimony U.S. Education Department June 2021 Good morning. My name is Nicole Wilson and I’m from Akron, Ohio. I have served off and on from 2002 through 2020, serving on active duty [...]
Student Veteran Submission: Jarrod Thoma Testimony to the Department of Education
Jarrod Thoma Testimony U.S Education Department June 2021 Good morning, my name is Jarrod Thoma, I am a Veteran of the U.S. Army, from Colorado Springs, Colorado. Thank you for the opportunity to offer [...]
Student Veteran Submission: Chris Wolfla Testimony to the Department of Education
Chris Wolfla Testimony U.S. Education Department June 2021 Good morning/afternoon. My name is Chris Wolfla and I’m from North Vernon, Indiana. I spent six years in the Navy as a medic and completed two [...]
Student Veteran Submission: Patricia Chang Testimony to the Department of Education
Patricia Chang Testimony U.S. Education Department June 2021 My name is Patricia Chang and I’m from Coconut Creek, Florida. As a proud veteran of the U.S. Navy, I earned my GI Bill for my [...]
Student Veteran Submission: Antonio Luna Testimony to the Department of Education
Antonio Luna Testimony U.S. Education Department June 2021 Good morning/afternoon. My name is Antonio Luna and I’m from Phoenix, Arizona. After completing my active duty in the Marine Corps in 2014, I enrolled in [...]
Our Press Release: Veterans Education Success Applauds Department of Education’s $500 Million in Loan Relief to 18,000 Borrowers Scammed by ITT Technical Institute
For Immediate Release Contact: Carrie Wofford | President (202) 838-5050 June 16, 2021 Veterans Education Success Applauds Department of Education’s $500 Million in Loan Relief to 18,000 Borrowers Scammed by ITT Technical Institute The Department [...]
Letter from 23 Organizations to Secretary of Education Cardona about the Borrower Defense Program
April 13, 2021 Secretary Miguel Cardona U.S. Department of Education 400 Maryland Ave SW Washington, DC 20202 Dear Secretary Cardona: We, the undersigned organizations that work on higher education accountability, and advocate for students, military [...]
NPR: The Latest Coronavirus Relief Bill Includes A Provision That Will Help Veterans
"We have helped thousands of veterans apply for what's called borrower defense to repayment.' Carrie Wofford is with Veterans Education Success, a nonprofit. 'Which means a student who was defrauded should have his student loans [...]
New York Times: Congress Closes Loophole That Made Veterans a Target of For-Profit Schools
"The change won’t be effective until 2023, a delay that Carrie Wofford, the president of Veterans Education Success, an advocacy group, called 'a bitter pill to swallow.' But the delay was necessary to reach a [...]
Our Letter to President Biden – Ideas for an Executive Order
February 17, 2021 President Joseph R. Biden The White House Washington, DC 20500 Dear President Biden: Thank you for committing to protect veterans, servicemembers, and military families from predatory colleges that deceive them [...]
Great News for Veterans Cheated By Their School! “Borrower Defense” Applicants Get a Win in Court
November 23, 2020 For information: Call (202) 838-5050 Great news for veterans who were cheated or misled by their school! The U.S. Education Department has voluntarily agreed to stop denying "borrower defense" applications from students [...]
Our Comment to the Department of Education about the New Universal Borrower Defense Form
September 28, 2020 U.S. Department of Education 400 Maryland Avenue SW Washington, DC 20202 Via electronic submission Re: Borrower Defense to Loan Repayment Universal Form, Docket Number: ED-2020-SCC-0043 Dear Sir/Ma’am: Thank you for the [...]
Press Release: 32 Military and Veteran Service Organizations Urge President Trump to Support Veterans and Military-Connected Students From Loans Incurred as a Result of Fraud
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Contact: Carrie Wofford | President (202) 838-5050 March 13, 2020 32 Military and Veteran Service Organizations Urge President Trump to Support Veterans and Military-Connected Students From Loans Incurred as a Result of Fraud [...]
Letter to President Donald J. Trump from 34 Military & Veteran Service Organizations Urging Support for H.J. Res 76
March 13, 2020 The Honorable Donald J. Trump The White House Washington, DC 20500 Dear President Trump: In August 2019, you stood with veterans in directing the Education Department to ensure that all totally and [...]
Press Release: Veterans Education Success Praises Bipartisan Passage of H.J. Res. 76 in the Senate to Stand with Veterans on Borrower Defense
For Immediate Release Contact: Carrie Wofford | President (202) 838-5050 Tanya Ang | Vice President (202) 838-5050 March 11, 2020 Veterans Education Success Praises Bipartisan Passage of H.J. Res. 76 in the Senate to [...]
Lima Veteran Goes to Washington
A terrific news story about a brave veteran, Tasha Berkhalter, whom we brought to Washington to tell Congress what they need to do to help veterans with student debt caused by college fraud. Lima Veteran [...]
Press Release: DeVos’s Final Rewrite of the Borrower Defense Rule Is a Slap in the Face for Military-Connected Students
September 3, 2019 For Immediate Release Contact: Walter Ochinko | VES Research Director | (202) 838-5050 DeVos’s Final Rewrite of the Borrower Defense Rule Is a Slap in the Face for Military-Connected Students Washington, D.C. [...]
Stakes are High for Veterans as Congress Debates the Higher Education Act
The post was originally published by The Tennessean on August, 27, 2019. Stakes are High for Veterans as Congress Debates the Higher Education Act By Maj. Chris Davis, USMC What drew me and so many [...]
Testimony of Tom Corbett before the US Education Department’s Negotiated Regulatory Rulemaking Panel
On March 25, 2019, Tom Corbett, a veteran and a former executive at several for-profit colleges, spoke to the U.S. Education Department's Negotiated Regulatory Rulemaking Panel about the need to protect students attending for-profit colleges. [...]
Testimony of Veteran Stephanie Stiefel before the US Education Department’s Negotiated Regulatory Rulemaking Panel
On March 25, 2019, Stephanie Stiefel, a veteran, spoke to the U.S. Education Department's Negotiated Regulatory Rulemaking Panel about her experience attending a for-profit college. Her remarks can be read in full below. A video [...]
Opening a Dangerous Floodgate: A Former For-Profit College Executive Says the Education Department Shouldn’t Weaken College Oversight
Thomas Corbett, a former for-profit college executive, speaks out against plans by the U.S. Department of Education to weaken requirements for oversight of college quality.
Press Release: Veterans Organizations Oppose DeVos’ Proposed Borrower Defense Rule
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: August 31, 2018 CONTACT: Walter Ochinko, (202) 838-5050 VES Research Director and Borrower Defense negotiator representing military and veteran students on both the 2016 and 2018 negotiated rulemaking panels Twenty-Seven Veteran [...]
Proposed Borrower Defense Rule: Worse than 2016 for Military-Connected Students
This chart makes clear the differences between the 2016 rule and the proposed 2018 rule at the US Education Department.
27 veteran and military service organizations oppose the Education Department’s rollback of protections for taxpayers and students in Borrower Defense rule
A letter by veteran organizations in opposition of the Education Department's rollback of veteran protections. Individual veterans also filed their own public comments about their experiences.
Press Release: Ed Department Proposes Rules to Help Predatory Schools Instead of Veterans
DeVos’s Proposed Borrower Defense Rule Rewrites Epitaph For Predatory Schools Like Corinthian and ITT July 26, 2018 FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE CONTACT: Walter Ochinko, Research Director, who served as a Borrower Defense negotiator representing military and [...]
GOP Higher Education Legislation Will Hurt Service Members, Veterans and their Families
Note: This was originally published by The Denver Post on June 25, 2018. GOP Higher Education Legislation Will Hurt Service Members, Veterans and their Families By Jarrod Thoma After serving approximately four years in the [...]
The Borrower Defense Rule and Its Importance to Veterans
The Borrower Defense Rule gives the Education Department the authority to forgive federal student loans for students that prove their debt was incurred because they were defrauded by a school. It has been in place [...]
LinkedIn Blog: Is Transparency Really That Important in Public Policy? I’m Glad You Asked
Today was Day One in a series of sessions in the Department of Education’s Negotiated Rulemaking on Borrower Defense to Repayment (BDR), also known loosely as Borrower Defense, or simply BD. Typically, the first morning [...]
The Century Foundation: College Complaints Unmasked: 99 Percent of Student Fraud Claims Concern For-Profit Colleges
The Century Foundation (TCF) has obtained new data from the U.S. Department of Education about nearly 100,000 “borrower defense claims”—applications for loan relief from students who maintain that they have been defrauded or misled by [...]
Our Research Director was an official negotiator representing veteran and military students on the negotiated rulemaking panel on Borrower Defense
This Web page provides the public with background information regarding the Department’s negotiated rulemaking effort to make changes to the regulations for the programs authorized by Title IV of the Higher Education Act of 1965 [...]
Education Department Hearing: Video of Sean Marvin, Veterans Education Success
VES is a non-profit organization that provides free legal services to veterans who’ve beendefrauded by their school. Since we were created in 2012, thousands of veterans have contacted us. They regularly tell us about the [...]
Education Department Hearing: Testimony of Sean Marvin, Veterans Education Success
VES is a non-profit organization that provides free legal services to veterans who’ve beendefrauded by their school. Since we were created in 2012, thousands of veterans have contacted us. They regularly tell us about the [...]
Education Department Hearing: Video of Tanya Ang, Veterans Education Success
Good morning. I am Tanya Ang, Director of Policy and Outreach at Veterans Education Success. Our mission is to protect and defend the integrity and priority of the GI Bill and other federal education programs [...]
Education Department Hearing: Testimony of Tanya Ang, Veterans Education Success
Good morning. I am Tanya Ang, Director of Policy and Outreach at Veterans Education Success. Our mission is to protect and defend the integrity and priority of the GI Bill and other federal education programs [...]
Our Testimony to the Education Dept. on Student Protections
Testimony of our Legal Director Sean Marvin before the US Department of Education Hearing
Veterans Nominations for Education Department Rulemaking Panels
Veteran and military organizations nominate representatives to the Department of Education panels for Borrower Defense to Repayment and Gainful Employment.
34 Veterans & Military Organizations Urge DeVos not to Rollback Student Protections
A letter urging the Department of Education to not roll back protections for veterans.
Ed. Dept. Hearings | Cancel and Revise Student Protections: Testimony of Navy veteran Kevin Thompson
I am E-6/AWO1 (Ret) Kevin Thompson, I have served in the US Navy for 20 years, have over 3,500 flight hours, multiple tours to the gulf in support of Operation Desert Shield, OEF and OIF [...]
Ed. Dept. Hearings | Cancel and Revise Student Protections: Testimony of Army veteran Ryan Clark
My story begins upon entering the army after deciding that it would be more prudent following my family's footsteps rather than finishing my secondary education out of high school. The opportunities provided by the military [...]
Ed. Dept. Hearings | Cancel and Revise Student Protections: Testimony of Sean Marvin, Legal Director, Veterans Education Success
VES is a non-profit organization that provides free legal services to veterans who’ve beendefrauded by their school. Thousands of veterans have contacted VES since its creation in 2012.Here’s what just a few have said: “They made [...]
33 Veterans and Military Organizations Oppose DeVos’ Propose to Revise Borrower Defense and Gainful Employment Rules
A letter from Military and Veteran organizations urging Education Department to immediately enact the Borrower Defense for defrauded student veterans.
Ed. Dept. Hearings | Cancel and Revise Student Protections: Testimony of Will Hubbard, Student Veterans of America
On behalf of Student Veterans of America, a higher education non-profit representing over 1.1 million veterans in post-secondary education, I stand before you strongly urging this body to stand with students, and fully implement the [...]
Testimony of Walter Ochinko, Veterans Education Success, on Borrower Defense and Gainful Employment Rules
My name is Walter Ochinko. I’m the research and policy director of Veterans Education Success—a small non-profit that advocates for the promise and integrity of the GI Bill. I’d like to use my 5 minutes to [...]
Politico: 18 States Sue DeVos Over Delay of Student Loan Protections
Eighteen states and the District of Columbia filed suit against Education Secretary Betsy DeVos on Thursday over her delay of regulations meant to protect federal student loan borrowers defrauded by their schools. The lawsuit filed in Federal [...]
31 Veterans and Military Organizations Urge Protection for Defrauded Students
A letter to Congress and Betsy DeVos addressing the right of veterans to have education benefits reinstated after being defrauded by private for-profit schools.
State Attorneys General Call on DeVos to Address Borrower Defense Applications
A letter from state Attorneys General to Education Secretary Devos explaining concern over the slow-moving Ed. Department handling of reimbursing students.
Veterans with Pending Borrower Defense Applications at the Education Department
"I have a so-called degree from ITT Tech and found that most employers laugh at it. During my time there I had accrued a fair amount of debt from this fraudulent school and am having [...]
“I have Student Debt, but No Degree” Veterans’ Letters to Ed Dept
Letters to the Education Secretary by students defrauded by schools
Letter to Congress from 53 Veterans, Civil Rights, Consumer Protection, and Student Organizations
"In particular, we oppose all actions to delay, weaken, or repeal the gainful employment, incentive compensation, or recent “borrower defense to repayment” and college accountability regulations. Each of these accountability measures is essential to protecting [...]