My name is Blake Stilwell, and I served in the Air Force as a combat photojournalist from 2001 to 2007. While in the Air Force, I enrolled at American InterContinental University Online for graphic design. One reason I chose an online school was for the web design component of its program. But after I paid the substantial tuition, the school told me it had eliminated web design from the program.
It was a classic bait and switch, but I didn’t know any better.
On top of this, I noticed a series of problems with my education. The professors always gave the same grades regardless of the quality of the work. They were unapproachable, and the instructional materials were very poor. The same books were available at Barnes & Noble for cheaper prices. I got nothing out of my classes, and the promise of a career in the design world of the future certainly wasn’t part of it. The quality of the education made me wonder how the school was even accredited.
I left the school with a Bachelor’s of Fine Arts in graphic design but not with any real skills. My diploma was nothing more than a useless piece of paper. When I got out of the military, I didn’t know that the degree would never help me work in graphic design. I had no idea I was woefully unprepared for that career.
I completed a Master’s degree from Syracuse University in my field of expertise from the military and kickstarted my civilian career. It was then that I learned how useless my AIU degree really was. My experience at Syracuse showed me the power of a school that delivers on its promises and reinforced the problems with a low-quality school like AIU.
All of this is to say that I believe dismantling the Department of Education’s gatekeeping puts veterans at risk. The VA depends on its oversight mechanisms, especially accreditation, to facilitate GI Bill school approval. I’m concerned that there won’t be adequate protections to keep veterans from becoming targets of predatory schools. Most military personnel leave the service after one or two enlistments, and many expect to use their GI Bill… but we don’t know what we don’t know and there needs to be oversight to help impressionable young vets entering the civilian world for the first time as adults.
Also, the Department of Education needs to continue to provide loan discharge programs and affordable loan repayment options for students who never see the promised benefits of their degree. I’m speaking out so other veterans don’t end up trapped in debt or misled by schools that take advantage of those who served.
Above all, I believe it is important to realize that employment trouble and financial issues are one of the top drivers of veteran suicide, an epidemic we have only recently begun to turn around. You might have heard the statistic that 22 veterans take their lives every day, but thanks to the hard work by our community and the help of government agencies, that number is down to around 17 per day. We must continue to build on that success. Rejoining civilian life is hard
enough for young troops and even the smallest protections can have an outsized impact on our futures. Thank you for your time and consideration.