Department of Defense Voluntary Education Program

U N I T E D S TAT E S D E PA R T M E N T O F D E F E N S E
Department of Defense
Voluntary Education Program
DoD’s Voluntary Education Program – WCET 2015
Dawn Bilodeau
November 12, 2015
Who Are We?
DoD Voluntary Education
Ms. Dawn Bilodeau
• Chief, Department of Defense (DoD) Voluntary Education
• Responsible for oversight and administration of
adult, non-traditional, voluntary, continuing, and
post-secondary, higher education programs for
DoD worldwide to include the DoD Tuition
Assistance (TA) program.
In Fiscal Year 2014:
• Over 809,000 Service members participated in DoD Voluntary
Education programs (TA, alternative testing programs, and
counseling) at 270 education sites worldwide.
• Over 341,000 Service members enrolled in more than 843,000
postsecondary courses at a cost of $538M (~$638 per course).
• Service members earned over 48,000 college degrees and
more than 2,000 certificates using TA.
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DoD Tuition Assistance
Provides financial assistance for post-secondary courses toward
degrees/certificates selected by the Service member. Currently:
• Up to $250 per semester hour/$166.67 per quarter hour.
• Up to $4,500 per fiscal year.
Is a readiness, recruiting and retention tool.
Supports promotion although Services’ promotion procedures
differ in timing and level of incentives for completing degrees.
Service members gain knowledge and skills for both their military
careers and their successful transition to civilian life.
How do Service members know about programs?
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Installation briefings at duty station
Education Center access (virtual, in-person, etc.)
Service delivery systems (GoArmyEd, etc.)
Transition – Accessing Higher Education
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DoD TA Student Profile
Are employed full-time; part-time student.
Take an average of 3 courses per year.
Majority complete their education after leaving the military.
Take ~7 years to earn an Associates Degree.
Attend multiple institutions; often not graduating from the
educational institution where they took their first course.
Blend how they attend between traditional classroom and
distance learning (83% take some online courses).
Do not immediately seek employment
upon earning degree.
Have breaks in pursuing their education;
deployments, transfer of duty station, etc.
Reserve Component student profile varies.
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What Do We Care About?
Strategic Drivers
Executive Order 13607, “Principles of Excellence”
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Directs agencies to implement and promote compliance with Principles of Excellence for educational
institutions that interact with Service members, Veterans and military families
Establish guidelines for educational institutions receiving Federal funding
Require institutions to provide information, support, and protections to Federal education beneficiaries
Strengthen oversight, enforcement and accountability activities within educational benefit programs
Expand student data collection efforts to better understand educational outcomes
Require development of a Centralized Complaint System for students
DoD Instruction (DoDI) 1322.25, “Memorandum of Understanding”
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Adjustment to TA eligibility criteria (Accreditation, Title IV, VA Approval, and State Authorization)
Requirement of educational institutions to sign the Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) as a
prerequisite to TA services for Service members and their families was implemented to capture
feedback on the performance and services of educational institutions receiving TA
Implementation of DoD Postsecondary Education Complaint System for Service members, spouses,
and adult family members to register student complaints
Educational institutions receiving TA are required to:
• Provide information to students about the true financial cost.
• Will not use unfair, deceptive, and abusive recruiting practices.
• Provide academic and student support services.
Implementation of rules to strengthen existing procedures for access to DoD installations by
educational institutions.
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TA DECIDE
April 17, 2015 launch of Tuition Assistance (TA) DECIDE
(http://www.dodmou.com/TADECIDE).
An effort designed to:
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Empower Service members and enable counseling workforce.
Provide information to inform educational choices.
Hold educational institutions to the highest standards.
Provide for higher level oversight.
Key features:
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Comprehensive information and comparison tool.
Fueled by more than 10 recognized federal sources.
Search and compare more than 2,650 schools eligible for TA.
Tailored to the unique needs of the part-time, military student.
Individualized search and compare functionality
Facilitates in-depth counseling sessions.
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State Authorization
Military members engaged in off-duty education may be reassigned to states where their educational institution may not
have authorization to provide educational services.
Some institutions may not obtain authorization for the few
military members enrolled, requiring the military student to delay
completion or start again with another authorized school.
National Council for State Authorization Reciprocity Agreements
(NC-SARA) included a provision in their agreements to
accommodate the transient nature of military service.
• States can set the stage for reciprocity by passing legislation
supporting these agreements.
• 29 NC-SARA states with over 500 SARA institutions.
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Troops To Teachers
Authorized in 1993; operational in 1994.
Assist transitioning Service members and
veterans with meeting the requirements
necessary to become a teacher and assist
with finding employment as a teacher when eligible.
All current and former members of the U.S. Armed Forces whose
last period of service is characterized as honorable, may participate
in the program for counseling and referral services.
Those who meet certain other requirements may be eligible for
stipend and/or bonus awards through the program.
As of Fiscal Year 2015, the program placed over 19,000 teachers.
Additional information available at www.proudtoserveagain.com.
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Other Initiatives
Student Outcome Measures:
• Tracking Outcomes Report to Congress (Senate Report 113-85)
• Draft measures at http://nces.ed.gov/statprog/outcomemeasures
(i.e., retention and persistence rates, course and graduation/program
completion rates, number of degrees/certificate completions)
• DoD will make outcome measures data available starting in 2016 via
College Navigator and the DoD MOU website.
Higher Education Preparation (HE PREP)
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Launched October 1, 2015
Specific to part-time, military student
Leverages TA DECIDE to enable informed educational choices
Online accessibility
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Where Are We Going?
DoD VolEd Strategic Plan
(Key Strategic Elements: 2015-2020)
Vision Statement
“Shaping quality voluntary educational experiences to foster better service members,
better citizens”
Mission Statement
“Champion policies, programs, and partnerships that enable access to quality
postsecondary educational opportunities, empower informed service member decisionmaking, shape meaningful personal and professional pathways, and drive military
student success in higher education.”
Focus Area One
Promote Quality
Educational
Opportunities
Focus Area Two
Ensure Military
Student Readiness
and Success
Focus Area Three
Enable a Viable
VolEd Community
Focus Area Four
Cultivate a Culture
of Organizational
Effectiveness
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DoD VolEd Strategic Plan
(Guiding Principles)
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Resources
DoD Voluntary Education
http://www.militaryonesource.mil/voluntary-education
DoD Voluntary Education – FY14 Fact Sheet
http://dantes.doded.mil/_content/fact-sheets/FactSheetFY14.pdf
DoD Voluntary Education Partnership MOU
http://www.dodmou.com
Executive Order 13607
http://www.gpo.gov/fdsys/pkg/FR-2012-05-02/pdf/2012-10715.pdf
DoD Postsecondary Education Complaint System
http://www.militaryonesource.mil/voluntary-education/complaint
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U N I T E D S TAT E S D E PA R T M E N T O F D E F E N S E
Questions?
DoD Policy & MOU Compliance Inquiries:
osd.pentagon.ousd-p-r.mbx.vol-edu-compliance@mail.mil