A-to-Z Index

Post 9/11 and Scholarships

Tuition/Fee Specific Aid for Post 9/11 Recipients 

The Veterans Educational Assistance Improvements Act of 2010 (Public Law 111-377) changes the amount of tuition and fee charges that a school certifying official can report to VA.  As of August 1, 2011, the following must be taken into consideration before reporting charges to VA:

"The actual net cost for in-state tuition and fees assessed by the institution for the program of education after the application of any waiver of, or reduction in, tuition and fees; and any scholarship, or other Federal, State, institutional, or employer-based aid or assistance (excluding loans and title IV funds, such as Federal Pell Grants, Federal Stafford Loans, Federal Plus Loans, Perkins Loans, etc) that is provided directly to the institution and specifically designated for the sole purpose of defraying tuition and fees."

What Does This Mean?

Effective August 1, 2011, VA is the Net Payer for tuition and fees. Schools must report the net cost of tuition and fees after deducting:

  • "Tuition/Fee" specific scholarships
  • Tuition waiver (ex - employer tuition waiver, etc)
  • Federal or state programs that pay towards tuition/fees (ex - Federal T/A, State T/A through Reserves/Guard, or MSDEP with the State of Virginia)
  • Any other Federal, State, institutional, or employer based aid that is provided directly to the school towards tuition and fees for the sole purpose of defraying tuition and fees

The "tuition and fee specific" scholarships are deducted from the instate portion of tuition only.  If you are an out-of-state student and have a tuition/fee specific scholarship, it cannot be applied to your out-of-state balance.

Exclusions:

  • Title IV Funds (examples - Pell Grants and Federal Loans like sub and unsubsidized loans)
  • Any "general" scholarship, grant or aid not specifically intended for just tuition/fees

 Example:

2013-2014 Instate Tuition and Fees: $4,588.00

 (-) Scholarship specific to T/F: $2,000.00

 Pell Grant/Unsubsidized Loan: (Not deducted)

 "General" Scholarship (see below): (Not deducted)

 Amt Reportable to VA for payment : $2,588.00

Important - Only aid or assistance, sent directly to JMU, that is designated for the sole purpose of reducing a student's tuition and fee cost will be deducted from the charges reported to VA. Aid is deemed "general" if it can be applied to other charges or expenses (such as room and board, books, computer, supplies, etc) on a student's account.  It will not reduce the tuition and fee charges reported to VA.

What Does Your School Certifying Official Need?

If the money is sent directly to you: Documentation is not needed if the scholarship money or other aid is sent directly to you at home and not reflected on your JMU financial account.

If the money is sent directly to JMU: If you receive any aid/scholarship for a semester that you are requesting Post 9/11 benefits and the money is sent directly to JMU, we will require you to provide written proof from the scholarship host on how the money can be used. We will need to know if the money is tuition/fee specific or if it can be applied to other charges on a student's account, such as room and board, books, computer, and/or supplies in addition to tuition and fees. This proof will guide us as we process T/F charges to VA and meet VA Compliance requirements. We need documentation for either scenario. 

Proof can be obtained from:

  • Scholarship website
  • Scholarship letter originally sent to the student
  • Request a letter or email sent to the VA Benefits team with the required information

Required information for letter:

  • Student's full name
  • Scholarship name
  • The term the scholarship will be used (ex - 2013-2014 academic year, Fall 2013, Spring 2014, etc)
  • State what expenses the scholarship is allowed to cover (ex -tuition and fees only, or tuition and fees, room, board, books, computer, supplies etc)
  • Written and signed by someone from the scholarship

Please provide this information as soon as possible to prevent delays in processing your semester enrollments.  This information must be in writing.  Letters can be emailed to Veteran@jmu.edu, faxed to 540-568-5615, or mailed to:

   Office of the Registrar
   Attention: School Certifying Official
   170 Bluestone Drive, MSC 3528
   Warren 504
   Harrisonburg, VA 22807

Please contact your School Certifying Official (SCO) at JMU with any questions.

 Contact VA if you have any questions about the law.