Local Media Advisory for San Antonio, TX, and Raleigh, NC:

TUESDAY, APRIL 14, 2026

MEDIA ADVISORY

Contact: Ana Cobian | ana.cobian@wardcirclestrategies.com | 323.360.1827

VETERAN & MILITARY SPOUSE FLY INTO WASHINGTON EXPOSING GI BILL ABUSE

As Education Department Weighs Rules Intended to Protect Billions in Federal Aid + GI Bill Dollars—Without Public Comment

Unlike past rulemakings, these hearings are proceeding without public comment—shutting out veterans and military families.

TUESDAY, APRIL 14, 2026

Accreditation, Innovation, Modernization (AIM) Committee
(April 13–17, 2026 | 9:00 AM–12:00 PM & 1:00 PM–4:00 PM ET)

Streaming Live: Registration Here

AVAILABLE FOR INTERVIEWS: Veterans harmed by low-quality and deceptive colleges call for accountability and oversight by the federal government.

See photos and video as they become available here

  • Raleigh, NC — Dr. Cynthia Lawrence – Military spouse of an Air Force veteran. Spent 7 years in a doctoral program without receiving her degree, exhausting GI Bill benefits, and paying $53,500 out-of-pocket
  • San Antonio, TX — Valerie Scott– U.S. Army & Army National Guard veteran (10 years) Misled by Argosy University – a defunct school that closed abruptly; now carries over $400,000 in student loan debtand limited career opportunities
  • Washington, DC — Will Hubbard– Vice President for Veterans & Military Policy, Veterans Education Success

Raleigh, NC— As the U.S. Department of Education considers new rules that govern accreditation of higher education institutions—the gatekeeping system that determines which colleges can access federal funding, including veterans’ GI Bill tuition benefits and housing dollars—student veterans are traveling to Washington this week with a warning:

  • Without stronger oversight, billions in taxpayer-funded student aid and GI Bill benefits will continue flowing to low-quality and predatory schools and leave student veterans holding the debt bag with no future.
  • Accreditation is supposed to protect students and taxpayers by ensuring schools meet basic standards before receiving federal funds. But gaps in that system have allowed institutions with poor outcomes—and, in some cases, a history of targeting veterans—to continue accessing student aid and GI Bill dollars year after year.

Their horror stories are not isolated cases—they are part of a pattern.

“These are not isolated stories. They reflect a broader pattern in which predatory “schools” treat GI Bill dollars as a business model, while those who earned these benefits are left with debt, lost time, and limited opportunity,” said Will Hubbard, Vice President for Veterans & Military Policy, Veterans Education Success.

THE SYSTEM IS FAILING VETERANS NOW

  • Veterans are targeted as guaranteed revenue streams
  • Schools prioritize marketing over education quality
  • Accreditors often fail to act despite overwhelming evidence of waste, fraud, and abuse
  • High tuition often exhausts GI Bill benefits, forcing veterans into debt

A PATTERN OF HARM: DIFFERENT PATHS, SAME OUTCOME

CASE 1: DEBT WITHOUT RETURN

Army Veteran Valerie Scott was told her degree would cost ~$80,000. Instead, she was pushed into borrowing $267,000—now over $400,000 with interest.

  • Misrepresented costs and financial aid
  • Steered into high-risk loans
  • Insufficient training and internship placements
  • A degree that limited employment opportunities

“I served my country for ten years and trusted that my education benefits would help me build a future. Instead, I was misled into a program that left me with over $400,000 in debt and limited career opportunities. No veteran should have to fight this hard to recover from a system that was supposed to support them,” says Scott.

CASE 2: TIME WITHOUT A DEGREE

Military spouse Dr. Cynthia Lawrence enrolled in a doctoral program expected to take 3 – 3.5 years; instead, she spent 7 years without a degree.

  • Constantly changing requirements
  • Added coursework and delays
  • Conflicting faculty guidance
  • $53,500 in additional costsafter GI Bill benefits were exhausted

“What was supposed to be a clear path to a doctorate turned into seven years of shifting requirements, mounting costs, and no degree. My family’s GI Bill benefits were drained without delivering the outcome we were promised. Programs like this should not be allowed to keep operating without accountability,” says Dr. Lawrence

THE PROBLEM: DELAYS, COSTS, AND LACK OF ACCOUNTABILITY

Accreditation is the only quality checkpoint for federal funding—but current standards have allowed some institutions with…:

  • Poor graduation and job placement outcomes
  • Heavy spending on marketing over instruction
  • Repeated complaints from veterans and students

…to remain eligible for federal funding, including GI Bill dollars.

THE COMMON THREAD

Despite different experiences, both stories point to the same systemic failures:

  • Misleading promises about cost, time, and outcomes
  • Programs that maximize revenue—not student success
  • Weak accreditation standards that allow poor performers to stay eligible
  • Little accountability when students are harmed

“These stories are different—but the outcome is the same: veterans and military families lose time, money, and opportunity, while the system allows it to continue, said Will Hubbard, Vice President for Veterans & Military Policy, Veterans Education Success.

WHY THIS MATTERS NOW

The Department of Education is reviewing accreditation rules—the gatekeeping system that determines:

  • How accreditors are recognized as federal gatekeepers
  • Which institutions are qualified to receive GI Bill funding
  • How effectively are taxpayer dollars safeguarded
  • Whether students, including veterans, are protected—or left exposed
  • Every year, billions of dollars in grants, loans, and GI Bill benefits are distributed through this system.

Every year, billions in GI Bill benefits flow through this system.

When oversight breaks down, those dollars go to programs that fail to deliver real value.

THE PROCESS—WITHOUT THE PEOPLE

When the Department considers changes to federal student financial aid regulations, it is required to seek public input through a process known as “negotiated rulemaking.” This process is designed to bring together stakeholders representing those most affected—and has traditionally included public hearings where individuals can raise concerns and propose issues for consideration.

Scott previously testified virtually alongside other student veterans in August 2025. (See Testimony Here) And, Cynthia Lawrence testified alongside other student veterans in January 2025 (see testimony here).

However, unlike past rulemakings, these hearings are moving forward without a public comment opportunity—

This comes at a time when thousands of veterans have already been harmed by predatory schools that promised quality education but delivered debt, poor outcomes, and broken career pathways.

At the same time, the U.S. Department of Education is reducing oversight capacity—cutting back the very teams responsible for protecting students and holding bad actors accountable.

Without strong oversight and without veteran voices at the table, the system risks repeating the same failures—leaving future veterans vulnerable to exploitation and with little recourse when things go wrong.

BILLIONS IN TAXPAYER DOLLARS AT RISK

Taxpayers fund GI Bill benefits in grateful recognition of veterans’ military service

Yet each year, millions—if not billions—of dollars earned by veterans flow to programs that fail to deliver meaningful value, raising serious concerns about waste, fraud, and abuse.

Veterans Bear the Consequences

When government oversight of higher ed programs breaks down, the US breaks its promise to veterans, and they are left with debt and without quality educational credentials for good-paying jobs and economic mobility post-military service:

  • Exhausted benefits on low-quality programs
  • Credits that don’t transfer
  • Financial instability
  • Little accountability when schools underperform or shut down

WHAT NEEDS TO CHANGE

Veterans and Veterans Education Success are calling for:

  • Accreditation tied to real outcomes (completion, employment, earnings)
  • Stronger oversight and enforcementto stop bad actors
  • Transparencyin costs, timelines, and results
  • Restoration of GI Bill benefitsfor defrauded students
  • Safeguards to ensure funding supports education—not exploitation

“What needs to change is straightforward: earlier intervention when schools show warning signs, real accountability for misleading programs, and automatic restoration of GI Bill benefits so veterans can move forward without delay,” added Hubbard.

THE BOTTOM LINE

This is not about one school—it’s about a system that allows harm to repeat.

Veterans and military families are in Washington demanding a system that works as intended—
one that protects earned benefits, safeguards taxpayer dollars, and delivers real opportunity.

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ABOUT VETERANS EDUCATION SUCCESS

Veterans Education Success works on a bipartisan basis to advance higher education success for veterans, service members, and military families, and to protect the integrity and promise of the GI Bill® and other federal postsecondary education programs.

  •  Has helped drive 11 federal lawsprotecting veterans’ education benefits
  •  Known for pushing improvements to tools like the VA’s GI Bill Comparison Tool—advocating for clearer data and “risk” indicators for schools
  •  Holds a 4-star (97%) ratingfor accountability and transparency