Our aim is to help employers, managers and supervisors, human resource professionals, and employee assistance program (EAP) providers relate to and support their employees who are Veterans and members of the Reserve and National Guard. For more information please click here.
Free Tax Return Preparation for Veterans The Internal Revenue Service’s Volunteer Income Tax Assistance Program offers free tax help for Veterans. Learn more »
Google is aiming its search-engine horsepower at homecoming veterans, launching Thursday what may be the largest online hub to help men and women exiting the military as American armed forces draw down.
Called VetNet, the site offers veterans three distinct “tracks” to plot and organize their next life moves – from “basic training” which aids job hunters to “career connections” which links users to corporate mentors and other working veterans to “entrepreneur” which offers a roadmap to starting a business. To read entire article please click here.
Become A Tillman Military Scholar
The Application is: OPEN.
Apply Here to become a Tillman Military Scholar.
Check the status of your Application.
The application will close on FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 15 at 11:59:59 PM PST.
Before applying, learn about the benefits and expectations if selected and meet a few of the Current and Network Scholars (to see what distinguishes our most successful applicants).
Listen to this radio news story to learn more about Pat’s story and hear from Director of Programs Hunter I Riley for insight into the selection process.
Pat Tillman Foundation is announcing the opening of the Tillman Military Scholars application next week on Monday, January 14. The application will remain open until 11:59:59 PM PST on Friday, February 15.
Updated criteria for the program and essay questions can be found on our website here: http://www.
I ask that you spread the word to your respective constituents about this opportunity. Please remind all potential applicants to prepare their essay questions and other documents now and have them ready for the January 14 opening date.
Most Vets to See GI Bill Stipend Go Up
This week the Department of Defense announced the release of the 2013 Basic Allowance for Housing (BAH) rates, which go into effect Jan. 1, 2013. Overall rates will increase an average of 3.8 percent this year.
Veterans and eligible family members using the Post-9/11 GI Bill will also see an average increase in their housing stipend, which is based on the BAH rate for an E-5 with dependents. However, unlike the active duty BAH payment, which will go into effect at the first of the year, the GI Bill housing stipend will not go into effect until the start of the 2013-2014 academic year on August 1, 2013.
Just like the active duty BAH, the GI Bill housing stipend is rate protected. In other words, in areas where rates will decrease, the decrease will only apply to newly enrolled students or those who change their enrollment. However, they will receive the increase if the rate for their geographic area goes up. This assures that veterans and their eligible dependents are not penalized if the area’s housing costs decrease.
Read more: http://militaryadvantage.military.com/2012/12/2013-bah-increase-to-affect-gi-bill-stipends/#ixzz2FiHzsUBu
MilitaryAdvantage.Military.com
WASHINGTON — The Defense Department is developing more in-depth exit physicals for departing troops and lending staff to the Department of Veterans Affairs in an effort to help eliminate the massive backlog of disability claims. VA Secretary Eric Shinseki said those efforts, combined with earlier department initiatives to create express service for simple claims and highly trained processing teams for complex ones, will help ease the problem in 2013 and keep the agency on track to eliminate the backlog by the end of 2015. To read entire article, please click here.
The Department of Defense (DoD) released a revised Tuition Assistance Memorandum of Understanding (TA MOU) today, which includes input from universities and reflects many of the president’s Principles of Excellence.
DoD will implement the policy March 1, 2013, requiring an institution to have a signed DoD MOU in order to be eligible to participate in the TA Program. After March 1, 2013, schools without a signed DoD MOU will not be able to enroll service members under the TA program until they have signed the MOU. Institutions with a currently signed DoD MOU can compare both versions and select to retain the original DoD MOU or sign the revised DoD MOU.
The current version of the MOU provides information, support, and increased protections to services members; strengthens oversight, enforcement and accountability; and provides guidelines for educational institutions receiving military TA funding. The MOU ensures all service members participating in off-duty, postsecondary education programs receive quality education programs uniformly via the classroom or distance learning, on or off military installations.
During fiscal 2011, approximately 549,000 service members participated in voluntary education programs, which included tuition assistance, adult-based education, and counseling. More than 325,000 service members were enrolled in postsecondary courses earning almost 45,000 college degrees and approximately 530 certifications and licenses. DOD’s voluntary education program consists of 245 education sites worldwide, including Afghanistan.
To view the MOU, go tohttp://www.dodmou.com .
What one word sums up your feelings about your father coming home from war?
Chelsea Riley picked up a marker pen to answer the question, but she couldn’t stop at a single word. A small essay poured out, describing how she missed Capt. Ian Riley during the holidays even as she looked forward to his return by Christmas. To read entire article, please click here.
COLUMBIA, S.C. — When a knee injury left him on disability and reliant on pain medication, Army veteran Clarence Johnson hit a wall. Out of his prescription drugs, the New York City native was arrested during a visit to South Carolina last year after buying narcotics on the street.
Johnson was facing up to two years in jail.
But under a new program for veterans facing some nonviolent crimes, Johnson was able to stay out of jail — and get off drugs, he hopes, for good.
Because of his military service — four years each in the Army and National Guard — Johnson, 55, was eligible for something called a veterans treatment court. They are set up like drug courts, which offer people facing nonviolent drug offenses a chance to stay out of jail as long as they comply with court-ordered attendance at rehab and meetings. The veterans courts give people with military service ways to get and stay connected with resources available through the Veterans Administration, like addiction treatment and counseling. To read entire article, please click here.