Whiteman members eligible for Returning Heroes Act

  • Published
  • By Tech. Sgt. Ron Watkins
  • 442nd Fighter Wing Training and Education
WHITEMAN AIR FORCE BASE, Mo. --  With the deployment tempo here, many are eligible for Missouri's Returning Heroes Act. Public institutions of higher education who receive a part of their funding from the state are participants in this program.

The Missouri Returning Heroes Education Act caps tuition charged to combat veterans to $50 per credit hour for any program leading to a certificate or degree. A "combat veteran" is any person who served in armed combat after September 11, 2001, who was a Missouri resident when first entering the military and who was discharged from military service under honorable conditions.

Eligible veterans can receive the benefit as long as they achieve and maintain a 2.5 cumulative grade-point average enrolled in a program leading to a certificate or an associate or baccalaureate degree. Veterans are eligible for 10 years from the date of the last discharge from service. Proof of the above qualification must be provided by submitting your most recent DD Form 214.

Any other financial assistance for which the veteran is eligible must be reported, to include the GI Bill, tuition assistance, Pell grants, etc. Nobody shall receive more than the actual cost of attendance when the limitation is combined with other financial assistance available. Loans are not considered financial assistance.

Actual cost of attendance not only includes tuition, but also covers room and board, and/or books, and a standard allowance for personal expenses. 

For more information on the Missouri Returning Heroes Act, you may download information at www.dhe.mo.gov/files/moretheroesact.pdf or call Tech. Sgt. Ron Watkins at 660-687-3353.