Veteran's Day is an example of the honor that is paid to U.S. military veterans, but there are many other programs and events throughout the year that pay homage to the women and men that serve our country.

In addition to memorials and veterans' hospitals, many veterans benefit from education incentives through the G.I. Bill of Rights.

The Servicemen's Readjustment Act was first enacted in 1944, and the G.I. Bill recently was expanded to include far more veterans. The Post-9/11 G.I. Bill expansion went into effect Aug. 1, providing a college education for many more veterans who had been in active duty since 9/11.

Many veterans have chosen to take advantage of the program in its inaugural semester at the University of Oklahoma.

About 170 veterans or their family members are enrolled at OU under the chapter 33 provision that applies to the new benefits, said Patricia Ingram, OU veterans coordinator.

The Post-9/11 G.I. Bill pays for tuition and fees and provides a monthly housing allowance for veterans. Benefits also can be transferred to family members.

Ingram said she expects even more students to take advantage of the new G.I. Bill benefits next semester. Many didn't know they could take advantage of it this semester, she said. Those who waited might have saved themselves some trouble as well.

The new program already has benefited thousands of veterans across the country, but it hasn't gone off without a hitch.

Thousands of veterans nationwide are still waiting for their benefits check.

They enrolled in class and bought their books expecting their check from the government, but backlogs at Veterans Affairs resulted in many veterans scrambling for funds to use until their benefits arrive.

"Unfortunately, the VA had to put this (program in place) so quickly that they didn't have the IT processes in place," Ingram said. "... They are having to manually process each application." She said VA workers have been working seven days a week on mandatory overtime since January, but it's still not enough.

"These students are still waiting on their money and a lot of the students just want to know, 'Where is my money?'" Ingram said. "They just want more information."

Army National Guard Spc. Christina Van Zante didn't receive her benefits until Oct. 30. The OU accounting sophomore went to her parents for help paying the bills when her funding through the G.I. Bill was delayed.

Veterans Affairs made up to $3,000 of emergency advance payments available to those who needed advance funds. Those emergency funds still are available.

Van Zante said she was considering one of those emergency payments before she received her check. Although Van Zante gets some of her school paid for through the National Guard and her participation in ROTC, she said she was thankful for the G.I. Bill funding as well.

"It helps me not worry about paying the bills and keeps me more independent and not having to rely on loans and my parents," she said.

OU has tried to be accommodating to its veteran students, Ingram said. While the benefits have been delayed this semester, OU has waived the late fees usually placed on unpaid bills, she said.

OU also provided a $500 short-term, no-interest loan for veterans in need. Ingram said a "handful" of students took advantage of the loans.

"Everyone at the university's been very cooperative," she said. "So we're just waiting until the VA catches up and processes their information so that they can have their money."

Jack A. Earl, a mechanical engineering senior, is using the post-9/11 G.I. Bill benefits to finish his degree at OU. The 48-year-old said he has spent about 20 years trying to get his undergraduate degree.

He was an active-duty member of the Air Force 1980-1984, but his program did not qualify him for G.I. benefits. Earl said he enlisted in the Oklahoma Air National Guard in 1999 in order to receive the education benefits.

It didn't work out for him as he had hoped. He was repeatedly called up for duty during the semester, including an eight-month stint in Iraq in 2003.

"I had to drop classes five times while trying to get my engineering degree due (to) military commitments," Earl said.

Because a university degree was so important to him, Earl left the National Guard in order to pursue it full-time. In doing so, he assumed he would no longer be eligible for education benefits. He has taken out about $30,000 in loans for his degree.

Last summer, he began hearing about the post-9/11 G.I. Bill and knew he would try to take advantage of it.

He said he was one of the first to turn in his application for benefits. He didn't receive his first check for benefits, however, until this past week.

But Earl didn't lay the blame on Veteran's Affairs, instead praising the efforts of the VA and Ingram's office.

"It is amazing what they are doing with being so short-staffed," he said.

Earl received another federal scholarship this year that allowed him to pay his expenses until the check came in, but he said he didn't know what he would do if that scholarship hadn't kicked in.

The check from the VA is helping him in his final year of school, and he'll still qualify for benefits until 2018. Earl said he plans to pursue a graduate degree while he works as an engineer.

He said the expanded G.I. Bill benefits are well-deserved by the people who defend our country.

"My heart goes out to the young men and women who are willing to risk their lives for our country," he said.

Earl said he's thankful the U.S. has an all-volunteer force, but in order to do that the government has to give its soldiers incentives to enlist. He said many service members enlist because of those benefits, including the promise of an education.

Many civilians don't ever have to consider the military, Earl said, because their parents can pay for their education.

"Many people that are going into the military don't have that option, so the new Chapter 33 is a good thing," he said.

Julianna Parker Jones 366-3541 jparker@normantranscript.com



Veteran's Day events today:

· 8 a.m. in the Stuart's Landing on the second floor of the Oklahoma Memorial Union on the University of Oklahoma campus

· 11 a.m. at the Cleveland County Veterans Memorial in Reaves Park