UCLA has recently created a Veterans Resource Office at the Center for Women and Men.
The Office is in response to the largest expansion to the GI Bill ““ another name for education assistance programs administered by the Department of Veterans Affairs, according to the GI Bill’s Web site ““ since World War II.
The office was created so that student veterans have a place to go to for help with receiving their benefits and finding scholarships, housing and jobs.
Though the center will not provide direct professional counseling or other services, it will serve as a hub for veterans to go to find out whom to speak with in other areas of campus.
UCLA currently has around 200 student veterans, but this summer a new GI Bill was passed in order to provide greater education benefits to Iraq and Afghanistan veterans, in particular.
The grand opening of the office tonight from 5 to 7 p.m. will be a reception for veterans to familiarize themselves with the center itself and the members of its resource team which includes representatives from the Arthur Ashe Center, the Registrar, the Financial Aid Office and many other areas of campus that will help veterans with their particular needs.
One of the student coordinators for the office, Josh Webster, is president of the Military Veterans Organization at UCLA. He said he has worked to make sure student veterans can find the assistance they need.
“When I came here last year there wasn’t anything of this scope,” Webster said. “The first stop for veterans when they get here is Murphy, but then after that, as far as negotiating the rest of the obstacles there is nowhere for them to go.”
The Veterans Resource Office will provide help to what should be a large influx in the number of student veterans at UCLA from the GI Bill of 2008, which goes into full effect in August of 2009, according to GIBill2008.org.
The bill covers 100 percent of public school tuition, books and a living stipend for veterans who have served three years or longer in Iraq or Afghanistan. Benefits are also provided to veterans who have served less than three years, but they will only get a percentage of their costs covered, according to the Web site.
Tuition benefits can be used for a private or public university, but can only be as much as the most expensive public university in that state.
Webster said he thinks the bill will greatly increase the number of veterans at UCLA because without this bill, most veterans do not have enough money to attend a UC and would attend a community college or a CSU to save money, if they wanted to transfer. Webster said the bill helps level the playing field for veterans.
Tina Oakland, director for the Center for Women and Men, said she also thought the bill would greatly increase the number of veterans at UCLA, which already has the largest number of veterans of any UC campus.
“The bill will provide not just tuition, but books, tutorial assistance and relocation assistance,” Oakland said. “It allows students to pick the campus they want and pursue the career they want.”
A huge focus for the office will be to assist veterans in making sure they are able to receive all the benefits they are entitled to on time.
Webster said there are a lot of
problems with the bill that could make it difficult for veterans to get their benefits, so he and the other student coordinator will work a lot on helping veterans receive those funds.
“Receiving the GI Bill benefits is not as simple as it sounds,” Webster said. “It potentially could be a nightmare for someone not getting their money on time. They could be dropped from their classes or be unable to pay rent.”
Oakland said she hopes the center is able to ease the transition for veterans, who come from a wide range of backgrounds, some of whom are coming from a community college and others who are coming to UCLA just days after finishing active duty.