Changes to tuition waiver program concerning Virginia families, say timing feels intentional

HAMPTON ROADS, Va. (WAVY) — It’s an understatement to say that many Virginia military and Gold Star families are concerned after Gov. Glenn Youngkin signed the budget bill that enacted changes to the tuition waiver program.

The Virginia Military Survivors and Dependents Education Program helps families of disabled veterans, or those killed in action, further their education in the Commonwealth.

Families said they feel like the changes are intentional, especially being so close to Memorial Day weekend.

“I think that this is a promise that was made to people, so it’s a betrayal of that promise, and I think the fact that it’s happening right before Memorial Day is incredibly triggering for a lot of people,” said Friends of VMSDEP co-founder Kayla Owen. “We’re aware of at least three people specifically that have a 100% rating because of PTSD who were off of medication and have gone back to the doctor to get back on medication because they are not able to handle these changes.”

Friends of VMSDEP is a group advocating for the governor to call a special session to revisit the language in the bill because it impacts a lot of families in the state. As of 2019, 730,215 veterans called Virginia home. The group was formed to help bring awareness and advocate for the program.

“Growing up without a father was very different and hard,” said Cox High School senior Lauren Fenty. “There are many things that other children got to experience and have that I didn’t, but one thing that I was guaranteed was this benefit and now that it’s not guaranteed anymore, it’s just another thing that’s been taken away.”

Fenty was only 28 days old when her father, Joseph, was killed in Afghanistan. She’s graduating from high school this year, preparing to head to the University of Virginia this fall, and instead of enjoying prom and graduation festivities, she and her mom, along with other Virginia families, are worried about the future.

“When I first found out that this was happening, I was very concerned,” Lauren Fenty said. “I love to learn. I think that learning is the best thing you can do for yourself and for the world.”

Lauren’s mother, Kristen Fenty, said “it has been a very stressful time as we’re approaching Memorial Day, a time when we should be honoring our dead and licking our wounds and instead, folks are panicking. They’re panicking financially.”

Currently, the children of veterans who are more than 90% permanently disabled, or who were killed in action or taken prisoner, can have their tuition waived for up to eight semesters at a public college or university in Virginia.

However, changes to the program require families of students who were not enrolled in schools by May 15 to apply for financial aid and potentially pay out of pocket before using a tuition waiver.

“The filling out of the FAFSA is not the problem,” Owen said. “The problem is that there is now an expected family contribution, and you’re expected to use Chapter 35 money, which is federal money allocated for people that have 100% totally permanently disabled or Gold Star families, and that money is supposed to be used for room-and-board, so now the state is imputing that money prior to VMSDEP spending a single dollar.”

Owen said their Facebook group went from 300 people to 1,100 in less than a week.

“We are having people come to our Facebook group every single day that are saying, I was never notified. How was I supposed to be grandfathered when I had no information about what was going to happen?” Owen said.

Owen added that “Virginia used to be one of the best states for benefits that are provided to 100% or totally and permanently disabled or Gold Star families, but by the changes that took place in House Bill Senate Bill 6001, Virginia basically went from being the best to the worst.”

(Courtesy of Friends of VMSDEP)

She said this is the greatest rollback of veteran benefits in Virginia’s history.

“This is a significant hit,” Owen said. “I think people are concerned about what other benefits could be on the chopping block without notice, and if they could be legislated through the budget again, just like this was.”

Lauren Fenty might be grandfathered into the program because she was committed to UVA before the deadline, but there’s still a lot of uncertainty based on language in the bill.

The grandfather language was amended, stating “the guidance shall clearly state that the grandfather clause at §4-5.01(b)(7)(d) applies for the duration of the student’s enrollment in his or her program of study, or the student’s four years of program eligibility, whichever comes first.”

And although she might be covered, the Fenty family is advocating for other families that may be impacted by these changes in the future.

“I’ve taught my daughter that if you make a mistake and if you harm somebody, then you make it right,” Kristen Fenty said. “If the governor made a mistake signing the budget bill with this language in there, he can make it right.”

Youngkin issued an executive directive to establish a task force to review the changes, but families believe this should’ve been done prior to any changes being made.

“Without question, this study should have been done prior to changes to the program,” Owen said, “and the concern about the study the way the governor has proposed it is the the scope of the study is very restrictive, and the scope of that study only looks at the unintended harm caused by the budgetary language rather than the program at large. So we’re actually calling for there to be a comprehensive study and for the previous language to be returned until that comprehensive study can be completed.”

Youngkin press secretary Christian Martinez released this statement to 10 On Your Side:

“Governor Youngkin addressed this issue in his budget amendments by removing the General Assembly’s eligibility changes and replacing them with a work group that included military families; the amendments were not accepted. Governor Youngkin is eager to work with all stakeholders, which will include Gold Star families, legislators, members of the military, veterans, and institutions of higher education.”

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