Readers of Tom Philpott’s Military Update column sound off

Partial MGIB Benefits Possible With Early Separations

How are Montgomery GI Bill education benefits affected when soldiers serve fewer than six months on active duty because of a medical condition that should have discovered during their recruit physical?

I have paid into the MGIB for five months.  Is there anyway to get those funds back or to use a portion of the GI Bill?

DONNA B.
Via e-mail

 

MGIB contributions can’t be refunded because they are pay reductions participants accepted to gain MGIB eligibility.  However, you likely still will be eligible to receive a month of MGIB benefit for every month you served on active duty.

That eligibility for is extended when early separation occurs for: the convenience of the government; service-connected disability; personal hardship; a medical condition recognized before entering service; a physical or mental condition that interfered with performance of duty but didn’t result from member misconduct, or a Reduction in Force.

To request a formal decision on this, the veteran should submit to their regional VA processing office an application for Education Benefits (VA-Form 1990) along with a copy of DD Form 214. – Tom Philpott

 

PATERNITY LEAVE

What is the latest on the paternity leave for military fathers?

My wife will have our child on December 1 and I need to know if the new leave will be in affect then.

GREGORY D. MOUNDINE
Sergeant First Class, USA
Via e-mail

 

A Department of Defense regulation for implementing 10 days of paternity leave across the services is still being coordinated among personnel offices in the Pentagon, said a DoD official.   The new leave entitlement, when it begins, will be retroactive for births on or Oct. 14 this year, the day President Bush signed the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2009.

Once the regulation is in effect, 10 days of paternity leave will be standard across the services.  However, the services will have discretion to time the award of this leave so it doesn’t impact mission effectiveness, unit deployment schedules or command priorities.

The 10 added days of leave for new fathers was a compromise reached with House negotiators after the Senate had voted for 21 days’ paternity leave. – Tom Philpott

 

I served in the Marine Corps from 1974 to 1976 and was honorably discharged.  I receive good medical care at the Carl Vinson VA hospital in Dublin, Ga.  But they don’t provide dental services for non-service related conditions.  I know this is a money thing, but when I walk past the dental section it is like a tomb in there.

There are a lot of veterans with non-service connected dental needs.  I am one of them, and need dental care badly.  If some could be made available, many veterans would appreciate it.

RICKY HEWLETT
Via e-mail

 

I read your column every week and was particularly struck by a portion of a recent column dealing with Department of Defense efforts to close a critical language skill gap.

You mentioned at the end of the column that DoD and the departments of State and Education are teaming with the Director of National Intelligence to establish a set of grants and scholarships for children K-12 and beyond to learn critical languages such as Chinese and Arabic.

I would truly appreciate the titles and particulars of these programs.  I would very much like to have them launched in the Stafford County, Va., school system.

Thank you for your informative and practical articles.  As an Army retiree I always find something of interest in them or something that directly affects me or fellow veterans.  Keep up the good work.

BILL GRAB
Via e-mail

Here is the link to Language Flagship program where you can find more comprehensive information:  www.thelanguageflagship.org/k12.html

The National Security Education Program (NSEP) actually consists of five initiatives that represent broad strategic partnerships between the U.S. education community, Federal departments and agencies with national security interests, and individuals impassioned to learn a less commonly taught language and culture.  Here’s a rundown of those initiatives:

-- The Language Flagship initiative, funded by NSEP, awards grants to institutions to create accelerated language training programs in Arabic, Chinese, Hindi/Urdu, Korean, Persian/Farsi, and Eurasian languages.

-- English for Heritage Language Speakers helps professional-level native speakers of Arabic, Chinese, and other critical languages reach a similar level of proficiency in English, to prepare them for positions in the federal government.

-- National Language Service Corps established an organization comprised of Americans with skills in critical languages who would serve the federal government during times of emergency or national need.

-- Since 1994, NSEP has awarded approximately 2,000 David L. Boren Scholarships to outstanding U.S. undergraduates through a competitive national merit-based process.

-- Since 1994, NSEP has awarded over 1,100 Boren Fellowships to degree-seeking masters and doctoral students through a competitive national merit-based process. – T.P.

Letters may be edited for clarity or length.  Write to Military Forum, P.O. Box 231111, Centreville, VA  20120-1111, send e-mail to militaryforum@aol.com or visit www.militaryupdate.com.