UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE

1. UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE Department of Defense Voluntary Education Program OUSD Voluntary Education Program Update February 2014

2. Agenda • FY13 Program Overview • FY13 TA Review • TA Program Trends • The Culture • Profile of TA User • Principles of Excellence • Quality Assurance Triad • Current Environment • Questions

3. FY13 Program Overview • (Active Component Only) • Vision: Life-Long Learning for Service Members and Adult Family Members • Educational Programs & Services: High School Completion/Diploma; Military Tuition Assistance (TA) for Postsecondary Degree/Certificate Programs; Independent Study and Distance Learning Programs; College Credit Examination Program; Academic Skills Program; and Certification and Licensure Programs • Authorization: Sections 2005 and 2007 of Title 10, United States Code • Defense Policy: DoD Instruction (DoDI) 1322.25, “Voluntary Education Programs”, December 6, 2012 Voluntary Education Program Funding (TA & Operations): $624.8M Education Sites World Wide (including Afghanistan): 195 In FY13: 525,225 Individuals Participated in VolEd Programs • 277,872 Service members Enrolled in 827,176 Postsecondary Courses • 55,792 Service members Earned Degrees/Certificates • 144,731 Tests Administered (CLEP, DSST, SAT, GRE, GMAT, PRAXIS, GED, etc.)

4. FY13 TA Review • (Active Component Only) • Notable differences from FY12: • FY13 TA Suspension • 5% reduction in funding and 6% reduction in enrollments • 10% increase in degree/certificate completion reporting • 7% reduction in education support personnel

5. FY13 TA Review • (Active Component Only) • Degrees/Certificates Earned in FY13 : 55,792

6. TA Program Trends • (Active Component Only) 10 Year 1 Year -5% 14% 10 Year 1 Year -17% -6%

7. TA Program Trends • (Active Component Only) Avg Cost Per Course FY12: 24% Traditional / 76% DL FY13: 21% Traditional / 79% DL Graduate Undergraduate 10 Year* 10 Year 1 Year 1 Year -1% 1% 5% 22% *SH cap

8. The Culture • Continued emphasis on Voluntary Education as readiness, recruiting and retention tools. • Focus on facilitating a successful transition from military to civilian life. • Instill education-related touch points as a requirement early and throughout the Military Life Cycle. • TA is one, of many financial assistance options available to Service members to pursue education-related goals. • Increased oversight, enforcement and accountability • DoD MOU compliance and enforcement • Complaint system • Targeted risk-based program reviews • Information sharing among federal • Student outcome measures

9. Profile of TA User • (Active Component Only) • Are employed full-time; part-time students • Take an average of 3 courses per year • Less than 1% reach the $4500 ceiling • Majority complete their education after leaving the military • Take ~7 years to earn an Associates Degree • Attend multiple institutions; often not graduating from the school where they took their first course • Blend how they attend school between traditional classroom and online (79% take some online courses) • Do not immediately seek employment upon earning their degree • Have breaks in pursuing their education; deployments, transfer of duty station, etc.

10. Principles of Excellence • EO 13607 established Principles of Excellence as guidelines for educational institutions receiving Federal funding. • Requires institutions to provide information, support, and protections to Federal education beneficiaries. • Strengthens oversight, enforcement and accountability activities within educational benefit programs. • Expands student data collection efforts to better understand educational outcomes. • Requires development of a Centralized Complaint System for students.

11. Quality Assurance Triad Principles of Excellence ACCREDITATION MOU with Institutions Interagency Coordination DoD, VA, ED CFPB, DOJ FTC Outside Third Party Review Feedback System

12. DoDI 1322.25, Change 2 • DoD Instruction (DoDI) 1322.25, “Voluntary Education Programs,” Change 2: • Establishes Voluntary Education policy. • States eligibility criteria for tuition assistance (TA). • Requires signed memorandum of understanding (MOU) with DoD to provide educational programs and receive TA. • Incorporates remaining Principles of Excellence in support of EO 13607, April 27, 2012. • Proposed rule posted to Federal Register August 14, 2013. • Anticipate final rule posted in Spring 2014.

13. DoD MOU #3 • Eligibility criteria to participate in TA: • Accredited by accrediting body recognized by ED • Certified to participate in Title IV • VA approved • Additional requirements to participate in TA: • Comply with state authorization requirements • Provide personalized form covering total cost of educational program, pre-enrollment program costs, student debt estimates, and financial aid options in advance of enrollment/registration. • Accommodate absences due to service requirements. • Receive approval of accrediting agency for new courses/programs before enrolling students. • Return an appropriate proportion of TA based upon when a student stops attending.

14. Participating Institutions

15. Third Party Review • Third Party Education Assessment FY14 Schedule • Installations: • Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton (CA) • Naval Submarine Base Kings Bay (GA) • Seymour Johnson AFB (NC) • Fort Leonard Wood (MO) • Institutions: • University of Phoenix (AZ) • Embry-RiddleAeronautical University (FL) • California Career School (CA) • University of MD University College (MD) • Central Texas College (TX) • University of Arkansas (AK) • Enhance targeted risk-based review capability.

16. Feedback System • EO 13607 directed development of a Centralized Complaint System for students. • Interagency effort among DoD, ED, VA, CFPB, DOJ, and FTC. • January 2014 launch of centralized online reporting system. • The complaint system will: • Empower students and their families. • Provide complaint information to inform educational choices. • Hold educational institutions to the highest standards. • Provide for higher level oversight. • Allow case referral for potential law enforcement efforts. • DoD will work with the educational institution and student to reach resolution satisfying both parties, where possible.

17. Providing Feedback • Military students, primarily Tuition Assistance (TA) or MyCAA recipients, should provide feedback directly to the DoD Postsecondary Education Complaint System at http://www.militaryonesource.mil/voluntary-education/complaint. • GI Bill recipients (Service member, spouse and/or child) should provide feedback directly to http://www.gibill.va.gov/feedback.asp. • Federal financial aid recipients (Service member, spouse and/or child) should provide feedback directly to Compliancecomplaints@ed.gov. • Private student loan recipients can provide feedback at http://www.consumerfinance.gov/complaint. • ALL verified cases are submitted to the FTC’s Consumer Sentinel System for monitoring and potential law enforcement efforts. • Appropriate cases will be referred to the Department of Justice.

18. Current Environment • Constrained Service budgets and spending restrictions. • Suspension of FY15 DoD Worldwide Education Symposium. • Unique and changing Service eligibility TA requirements. • Continued interest from The Administration and The Hill: • Principles of Excellence • 90/10 rule • Institution ratings system • Summits on low-income students • Forum on Military Credentialing and Licensing, Academic Credentialing for Service members • Reauthorization of Higher Education Act of 1965. • Focus on Transition Assistance Program; Accessing Higher Education two-day curriculum. • Way ahead for Military Life Cycle.

19. UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE Questions? Dawn Bilodeau, dawn.a.bilodeau.civ@mail.mil