Grant Quesnell, a finance sophomore, and Veronica Quesnell, a fisheries and wildlife sophomore, both have served in the U.S. Army and now are attending school with the financial help of the GI Bill. Veronica, who receives money from the Post-9/11 GI Bill, said it is easier than with the old GI Bill; the money is given directly to the university when it is owed, instead of given to her monthly.
Transitioning back into civilian life was a big change for Army veteran Veronica Quesnell after living for six years at Army bases around Germany, Kuwait, Iraq and Afghanistan.
For Quesnell, a fisheries and wildlife sophomore, the GI Bill, which provides veterans funding for a college education, makes it possible to head in a new direction after military service.
“It’s hard for us to find jobs sometimes because our skills are so specialized in the military,” Quesnell said.
But Quesnell is part of a small group of veterans lucky enough to receive funds from the newest GI Bill, which benefits veterans who served after the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks.
As news of the new Post-9/11 GI Bill spread, the program experienced a mass influx of applicants seeking aid. Although funds were supposed to be distributed beginning Aug. 1, the influx has left thousands of veterans without funds as the Department of Veterans Affairs sorts through the paperwork.
Quesnell, who applied for the Post-9/11 GI Bill during the summer, had no issues receiving the new funding. However, others have not been so lucky.
Of more than 290,000 veterans who have applied for the Post-9/11 GI bill nationwide, only 24,000 — or about 12 percent — have received funding, according to department officials. Officials noted that not all students who applied for the benefit need funding this school year.
Because of the backlog, the department made $3,000 emergency checks available to individuals who have not received funding.
Since the funds were released Oct. 2, the department has provided more than $131 million in emergency funding to 44,185 veterans who have not received their GI Bill benefits. The regional Michigan office has made 386 advance payments, officials said.
There are about 275 student veterans at MSU, and 96 of them have registered to receive Post-9/11 benefits, said Scott Owczarek, MSU associate registrar.
The university has received funding for about one-third of them, Owczarek said. He said the university has extended tuition due dates for the two-thirds of veterans who have yet to receive their benefits.
“We have been working very actively with other administrative offices to help assist with the due dates, because we know that the VA is backed up with processing the certification,” Owczarek said.
The new bill pays tuition costs directly to the veteran’s university, and provides a monthly housing allowance as well as an annual book and supplies stipend.
“Everybody kind of understands with a new comprehensive package that there are going to be bumps in the road,” Owczarek said. “We have taken on the responsibility to ease those bumps so they can concentrate on their academics,”
The generosity of the Post-9/11 GI Bill made it appealing to many veterans, causing the rush of applicants, said Randy Marwede, the Director of the Ingham County Veterans Affairs Department.
“This is by far the best GI Bill the VA has ever offered for a veteran student,” Marwede said.
The previous GI Bill — the Montgomery GI Bill — only provided veterans with a monthly stipend for tuition and fees.
Lags in processing requests for funds are nothing new. Quesnell said when she registered for the old GI Bill, it took two semesters for her funding to come through. She switched to the Post-9/11 GI Bill because having payments made directly to MSU was easier.
“Knowing that the VA would go ahead and take care of it — it made things so much easier,” she said.
Marwede said the best resource for students having issues with the funding are university administrators or the MSU Student Veterans of America (SVA).
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The organization recently was founded by Quesnell, her husband, Grant Quesnell, and other student veterans.
Grant Quesnell, a finance sophomore and president of the group, said it seems most SVA members have received funding.
“For every one person who has not received the benefits, there are probably 10 that have,” Grant Quesnell said. “For the most part, I would say that the bill is working well for us.”
SVA Vice President Jeremy Blaney, an international relations and comparative cultures and politics senior who benefits from the old Montgomery GI Bill, said he decided not to switch to the new funding to avoid problems.
“It really is a great opportunity for veterans, but along with any major change, there are going to be a few hiccups,” Blaney said.
A college education is necessary for veterans seeking employment after serving and despite delays, the bill is beneficial, Veronica Quesnell said.
“You served your country, and now they are going to give something back to you,” she said. “That is what this GI Bill is really doing — it’s giving some of us a choice that we really didn’t have before.”
