“Will Hubbard, vice president for veterans and military policy at Veterans Education Success, an advocacy group that works to protect federal military and veteran education benefits, said his organization recognizes the Army’s “very real” budgetary pressures for the upcoming fiscal year and values ensuring that CA dollars are spent “wisely and efficiently.” But even so, he remains concerned about looming TA cuts.
Any changes could hurt not just students but the Army itself. Introduced in 1999 and expanded following the terrorist attacks of September 11, Tuition Assistance has served as a primary recruitment tool for new soldiers. At a time when the Army is falling well below its recruitment goals, changing the benefit could be especially damaging.
“We appreciate the Service’s interest in ensuring that they’re stewards of taxpayer dollars,” Hubbard said. “But Tuition Assistance dollars serve a long-term purpose of being valuable both to the individual and the Service, and therefore, any cuts to this program, now or in the future, would be met with strong opposition.”
Read the full column at Inside Higher Ed here.