| VA: Calls to student vets about the GI Bill are not a scam By Leo Shane
Officials over at the Department of Veterans Affairs are still working to unravel the massive delays in new GI Bill checks.but for now they’re confident of two things: 1 — More than 213,000 veterans have applied for the new benefits. 2 — Many still don’t know how much money they’ll be getting. So, starting this week, the VA will be telephoning veterans enrolled in the Post-9/11 GI Bill to explain how much they should expect to receive, how much they’re owed (in they’re in college this semester) and when they might see that first check. In a statement, VA Secretary Eric Shinseki said the idea is “instead of making people wait to hear from us, we’re reaching out to Veterans, so they can get the money they need to stay in school.” Of course, unsolicited phone calls aren’t always welcome, especially among veterans who were just warned about telephone scams involving their VA benefits. So the VA is reassuring its beneficiaries that this call isn’t a ploy, and is worth a few minutes of their time. VA callers have been instructed not to ask for any personal information from veterans during the conversations, and information such as birthdates, bank account or social security numbers will not be discussed. That might limit how much useful information the VA can provide over the call, but it also gives veterans an easy red flag to look for if they’re wary about who is on the other line. ————- MilitaryConnection.com, a portal of all things military, has become the “go to” site for resources, news and information that is of importance to the military audience. We have thousands of pages and hundreds of databases to keep you current on the information you need to have. With something for everyone, we take pride in providing all of our resources free to users. Additionally, we feature all types of veteran articles like this one to keep you informed. We will post your press releases, special events, newsletters, professional conferences and seminars, reunions, job fairs, and videos to help organizations get out the word. One of the areas of our focus is connecting candidates from the military community with outstanding government and civilian employers. We are well aware that candidates from the military community across the board have a work ethic second to none. They make highly valued employees. MilitaryConnection.com has a multitude of employment resources including a Directory of over 30,000 employers, Job Tips, Columns, Virtual Job Fair and our new and improved Job Board, featuring our Virtual Marketplace where you can post free ads for items you want to buy, sell or rent , and much more. We understand the importance of education. Please check out our new Scholarship Directory featuring thousands of scholarships. When the next tour is back home, it’s on MilitaryConnection.com. |