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  • jai smith

    I hope you are looking at the fact that you are not survivor friendly.. Offering this program to survivors of our fallen who have made the ultimate sacrifice should be a priority in your re-evaluation of your program..

  • Rebecca A Duncan

    In my opinion, you may felt that the it was time for a review, did you ever take in the fact of how many military spouses you were putting in limbo by doing so? So do you realize how many spouses will not be able to put there classes on hold because of the career path they are on?
    The MyCaa is a great program and as afforded many spouses a chance at a career. You keep saying another option is for the spouses to use the GI Bill! Ok, again YOU pulled the MyCaa funding, in return has left a huge amount of spouses to whom were in their 30 day window to get the FA from the MyCaa, now you are asking them to look into using the GI Bill which takes time THEY DON’T HAVE. The military member has to go in and request transfer of benefits to the spouse, this process alone can take up to a week. Then you have to wait to get the apporval cerficiate to send to your school, this can take up to ten buisness days to recieve. (I’m still waiting on mine) So really this isn’t an option for those spouses who’s classes start in the next few weeks.
    The DOD clearly didn’t think this through! There was NO notice given and spouses are only receiving the information when they either 1. Go into their MyCaa account to apply the FA to the classes that are approved in the career path and 2. Open forums on Facebook etc…..This is how they are finding out! NO official letter by the DOD or MyCaa counselors telling the spouses of the “Temp Halt” to the program. You are giving us NO timeline as to when you feel the “review” will be done and funding will be reenstated to spouses.
    This to me personally was a slap in my face, that the DOD didn’t respect us enough to give us a heads up on the “temp halt”, so we spouses could have had a chance to apply other options. A great progam and a great opportunity for our spouses was given an taken away in a matter of a blink of an eye. We deserved more than that, for all that we do at home while our active duty spouses are defending our country.
    In the very least you owe us an apology, a time line as to when and “if” this program will be back, to honor all those career paths that are approved and sitting in limbo!

  • Jaclyn Womack

    Considering the program has only been alive a year and most of the spouses taking advantage in this program are in 2+ year programs, doesn’t it seem to be a little early to take it off line to see if it’s meeting its goals? It’s simple project and program management to allow the proper amount of time before you believe a benefits realization exercise.

    The fact that we were left hanging with no notice and no notification is, quite frankly, unacceptable.

    I am VERY blessed that I can continue going to school without these funds, but think I’m in a minority. I am also blessed not to be in a program where the inability to stay on track with my studies will have me dropped from it completely, as many nursing students will now experience.

    Without proper notice, these people will be unable to secure alternative sources to fund their education and may never get back on track with their studies. Those who do will complete it much later than they were anticipating.

    Some have made other lifestyle adjustments, like leaving a job in order to focus on school. They’ve made sacrifices to follow a dream that was put on hold with NO warning. In this economy, they may not be able to replace the job they left in order to pursue their education.

    Make no mistake, I’m not saying that we are entitled to these programs. However, if you offer it and have people come to plan their entire lives around the opportunity you’re giving them – taking it away, especially with no notice – is worse than never offering it in the first place.

    It is important to realize the impact this decision has made in lives rather than solely in dollar signs.

    If I was unable to continue in my education, my husband (who is currently deployed and quite literally days away from reenlisting) and I would have to sit down and reevaluate our entire five to ten year plan, including this reenlistment. It’s truly a butterfly effect to many families. What seems like no big deal to the DoD, is a huge deal to many.

  • Amy Harper

    I am a military spouse, my husband is a Marine. It’s no secret that military members don’t make the biggest paychecks. Yes, military families do get decent healthcare, but it’s definitely not all free, & we have bills just like anyone else. Before I married him, I had financial aid for college because I had a high enough gpa. Now that I’m married, I don’t qualify for regular financial aid from the state. I also moved across the country to be with my husband. MyCAA is a need, a complete necessity, for spouses. Yes, they just changed the availability on the GI bill, but it’s not very easy at all for spouses to use this bill. MyCAA was so amazing for spouses & we need it so much more than you can understand unless you’re in this situation. Before MyCAA halted, I was in the process of transferring all my previous transcripts & applying at my school of choice. I can’t do that now, my future is on hold once again because now MyCAA is halted. Being a military family, we aren’t in any way, shape, or form rich. We manage our money well, personally, but my husband’s pay isn’t enough to cover school for me. We need MyCAA. & my husband’s puts his life on the line for me & for every single living person in this nation. We deserve this program as military families. We go through so much, & I’m not afraid to say that we deserve this. Especially the actually military members. Especially with the economy in the state it is in. I moved across the country to California from Tennessee, where I had a job previously, but in California the economy is so much worse & there are barely any jobs. I’ve been here 9 months & have tons of applications for jobs in & can’t find a thing. MyCAA would be so helpful & I would be forever thankful. Without it I don’t know how I’ll afford school, & it’s not fair that I have to worry about it. My husband once signed a contract saying, “Up to & possibly my life” (however it’s worded…), I think the MyCAA program is something all military families deserve to have the opportunity to take advantage of. I’m begging you, please don’t take this amazing program away from us. We need it to survive & make a good life for ourselves. We need it, bottom line. Please, consider this. Please do not shut down the MyCAA program.

  • Kelly Phillips

    Not everyone qualifies for the Post 9/11 GI Bill. My husband is prior service and used his Montgomery GI Bill in college before coming back in. Because of that, we have been told that the Post 9/11 GI Bill doesn’t cover us. Without MyCAA I will be forced to take student loans, adding to our debt. I’ll do it because my degree is worth it. But not everyone can.

  • Carie

    If this program was initially set up to help military spouses, the abrupt stop to everything sure isn’t helping us at all. Many of us are left to pick up the tab for classes we have coming up or forgo even taking them at the moment. We are not so much upset at them ‘halting’ it, but that they have done this with absolutely no warning to any of us. Not even an email. As far as using the GI bill, that is hardly working in a smooth fashion, much less to transfer it and get the funds where needed in time. For some the GI bill is not an option or like my husband’s was supposed to be transfered to our kids. And my husband also falls into the retirement category that even though he will have 20 years of service in June of 2012, if he transfers the GI benefits at all he will have to commit to another 3 years! Isn’t 20 years good enough? This is very dissappointing to the military community that the DoD would yank this out from under our feet. What program is the gov’t going to suddenly stop next?

  • Michelle

    It DOES affect those of us who are already approved. There is no money being given out at all, so if your specific class has not been paid for yet or approved, the money will not be available until they take off the hold. They keep saying this will not affect those of us who are already in the program and that is not true. I am in the middle of a Masters program and have classes starting in March that are not paid for yet, and I will not be able to take them.

  • J. Strand

    MY CAA counselors are telling us it doesn’t matter if we have been approved. I have lost the last of my 1620 in funds. The GI Bill can only be passed to us if the service member re-enlists correct? That does not help those who are not at that point..this was not a wise decision to do in the middle of our recession when everyone is feeling the brunt. I am now at the point where I have refunded my excess FASA and I have just 2 courses to finish and no funds to pay. Now, if I have to drop out, am I going to have to pay MY CAA back? I sure hope not!! Shame on the DoD for not giving notice and shame on them for not considering us an important part of the Military!

  • Christine

    “Military spouses who already have been approved for financial assistance won’t be affected”. THAT is not true. I am a Spouse, enrolled in college after 20 years of not being able to afford it, thanks to this program. I am in the middle of my first semester and just discovered that the program has been halted. I can NOT access the previously-approved funds that I have not used. So, unless I can get approved for FAFSA or a Pell grant, my college career is over as quickly as it began. Because it’s so hard for spouses to find work, with constantly moving, this program was meant to help us find portable careers while our husband or wife is still active duty. I’ve been unemployed since our last PCS move, almost 2 years ago, and going back to school had given me so much hope. To call this a devastating blow barely scratches the surface. We would have to wait 3 more years to transfer the GI Bill for my use.

  • amjacobi

    The statement that military spouses currently enrolled won’t be affected is extremely misleading. We ARE affected! I am in a modified master’s program in which my classes run one at a time, so I pay one at a time rather than semesterly or quarterly as in a traditional program. Although my program has been approved in its entirety through MyCAA, I can no longer receive funding for classes I will be taking until the “pause” is lifted. Enrolled spouses can log on and see their saved information, but cannot continue to receive funding. No one was made aware of this sudden change, and many of us are now left floundering, as this program is the only source of financial aid we receive. Given the nature of my particular program, I may now be unable to complete my degree, since it runs based on availability of interested students; program start times aren’t guaranteed. Other students have commented that funding was not given for the current semester, since the program halted so suddenly as spring classes were beginning. The complete mismanagement of this is sickening, and just another example of the way military spouses are continually ignored by the DoD.

  • Michelle White

    I am saddened by this “pause” in benefits. Military spouses serve just as the service member does. We recieve no pay and often have to fight to get benefits that should come easily to us. As for the Post 9/11 GI bill, perhaps “officials” should drop the continued service requirement while reviewing MyCAA. For my husband to transfer the benefits to me he would have to serve an additional 24 months after approval of the transfer. He is currently at 19 years and does not want to stay past 20. So while for some there are many other options, for others there are fewer.

  • elaine.wilson

    I have received several comments regarding the temporary halting of the My Spouse Career Advancement Account program and appreciate all of you for taking the time to voice your concerns. This is a very popular program and even a temporary pause affects many spouses pursuing their education and training goals. I’m working closely with Defense Department officials to gather more information about the review and will share all that I learn with you as soon as possible. They also are very concerned about the impact on our military spouses and are working to minimize any inconvenience. Thank you again for sharing your concerns.
    Elaine

  • RN Poynter

    The lack of notice about the “pause” –just as if employees had shown up for work and there was a news story saying they would not be paid for a few months– no notification, warning of any kind or a period to really make other plans created the BUZZ.

    Could this assessment be concerned with why MS are using MYCAA and not the
    GI bill? There are a multitude of reasons why not, here is mine:

    The MYCAA is the best benefit I have ever gotten as a Military Spouse. I was
    thrilled when I could use it-finally a positive for my career instead of
    more negatives.

    At my house my husband is finishing grad school on the GI
    Bill and I am using the MYCAA to finish my grad school in a transferable
    career category –so for us transferring the GI benefit isn’t an option.

    My state college said this semester—there are no MIL Spouse GI BILL users
    and 26 Military Spouses ( we are no where near a major active duty
    installation) using MYCAA.

    For a program that was announced very quietly, the response in less than a
    year is overwhelming and that’s because it is truly a very useable and realistic one.

  • Emilie

    A temporary pause puts my education at risk because I depend on this grant to help offset the cost of tuition each quarter. I don’t have the option of ‘taking a break’ while the program is being evaluated though. My major is time sensitive and if I take a break, I have to re-apply to the program and wait a full year before starting again- which puts me at another year that I will be apart from my husband because I decided to finish my degree before relocating to be with him. I understand that we made that decision, BUT if I had known that the grant was going to be pulled, I may have considered relocating first because now we have to use the money we allocated towards flying to see each other to pay for my tuition. He is headed home from our first deployment and because we now don’t have the funds to fly me to his duty station due to the grant halt, I won’t be at his homecoming. If I was given prior notification that the grant was going to be halted, I would have found other grants and/or scholarships…instead, I found out through social networks that were posting links to the article in the Army Times. It was an inappropriate way to find out and frankly, it showed lack of respect for military spouses. It’s as if we don’t even deserve the courtesy to be told about something that has such a huge impact on our lives.

  • Ellen Milhiser

    Elaine — Your office said this is the best way to reach you. I am trying to research this issue, and am wondering if you know how the MyCAA is funded — through appropriations or authorizations? Second, what will happen to the funds that have already been appropriated/authorized through the FY10 legislation? I look forward to hearing from you. Thank you for your help.

  • Amy

    This pause in benefits is effecting many of us who decided to go back to school because of this program. I would never have had the push to go back and now that I am working hard and getting good grades, everything comes to a halt. It is unfair that without notice this was taken away from us. We should have been given ample time to make other financial arrangements for our upcoming classes! All the other tuition options available take time, which means many of us may miss out on the next registration period and will prolong our degrees. As is it, Military wives have a bad reputation for being uneducated, now that we have the opportunity to prove that stereotype wrong we get this kink. Please help bring this program back ASAP!

  • Anita

    I am so disappointed that this program has can to an halt. Why now after so long? This program was such a great help to me and my family not to mention other military spouses who need the assistances. Trying to come up with plan B to further my education is not something that I had in mine at this particular time. Trying to transfer my husband benefits will not help me at this time because of the long wait. Unfortunately, classes for me will be on hold for March and maybe longer until the pause is lifted. Still trying to wrap my mind around the why this program came to a halt without a couple months warning. Just don’t understand.

  • Leanne

    I have to admit the way this was handled makes me very upset. No advanced notice, just shut-down. What happened to supporting the military-family? I did write a blog-post about it … “Is this what support feels like? The ‘Pause’ of MyCAA” –
    I hope to be able to write again soon saying it has been reinstated…

  • Dottie

    The only reason I enrolled to finish my Bachelors is the MyCAA funding program. Now I’m looking at working nights and weekends b/c it won’t pay for me to put my youngest in daycare all week and the two oldest in after-school programs. Of course, we could start running up debt . This program was to help military spouses and now it’s just adding to the stress. Now we have commitments to education insititutions and they really don’t care where the money comes from just as long as we pay it.

  • Damon Baldini

    Wow. I can’t believe that I had to learn about the “temporary halt” of the MyCAA program from a friend one week after the shutdown of the program. I would have expected at least an email or some other type of notification to be sent to the participants of the program. Expect a storm of angry spouses to start complaining to every Senator, Congressman and News Anchor they can find. This sort of action flies in the face of the DoD message about supporting military families.