Governor Glenn Youngkin (R-VA) is under fire, along with members of the Virginia General Assembly, for changes made to a program that covers tuition costs for the children of veterans who’ve either been 90 percent disabled, killed in action, or taken prisoner by hostile forces. The changes, which were enacted just before Memorial Day weekend, would force the families of veterans to first pursue college tuition assistance through FAFSA and Survivors’ and Dependents’ Education Assistance (DEA) — also called Chapter 35 — before applying for tuition relief through Virginia Military Survivors and Dependents Education Program (VMSDEP).
Gov. Youngkin and lawmakers argue that the VMSDEP changes were needed because the program was too broad and too expensive—with the total waivers topping $65 million for the fiscal year 2022-2023. However, the group Friends of VMSDEP contends the changes are a betrayal and will adversely impact the families of the 730,215 veterans who live in Virginia. Additionally, veterans groups point to the timing of the changes, just before the Memorial Day holiday, as especially egregious.
“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,” Kayla Owen, the co-founder of Friends of VMSDEP, said in a recent interview. She added: “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.”
“This feels like an absolute gut punch. An absolute gut punch,” Pamella Newton, a U.S. Air Force veteran, told ABC 8News in Richmond.
