Serious about education

Coast Guard Magazine, Sept-Oct, 2007 by Christopher Evanson

For an enlisted Coast Guardsman, the last day at recruit training in Cape May, N.J., is the start of a life few experience. The idea of driving boats headfirst into white-tipped waves or calling the Caribbean Sea your office is quite unique. Coast Guard life can sometimes resemble the image found on a post card. Yet when a Coast Guardsman's career comes an end, real world expectations can hover above like a dark rain cloud.

In this day and age, a college diploma is no longer an option, but an expectation.

"If I didn't have tuition assistance I would not be attending school," said YN2 Dorina Goetz, enlisted aide to the Atlantic Area commander in Portsmouth, Va. "I simply can't afford $1,000 for a four-credit course. Tuition assistance has allowed me to focus on my studies without the heartache of financial hardship higher education normally brings."

According to a 2004 study by the National Center of Education Statistics, student debt levels have nearly doubled from about $10,000 to about $20,000 in the last decade. By the time a student graduates, nearly two-thirds of students at four-year colleges and universities leave not only with a diploma but a suitcase of IOUs.

Why is this important to Coast Guardsmen? The simple answer is because the opportunity to achieve the title of "college graduate" is practical and comes without the burden of being hit with costly student loans. It also creates a pathway to be eligible for Officer Candidate School.

"I am working on a bachelor's degree in business administration from Touro University International located in California, and they have a great online program specifically geared for military members," said Goetz. "So far, I have taken five courses, and I just enrolled for my sixth. With tuition assistance, I am able to pursue my goal of graduating by the end of my tour here at Atlantic Area."

"I was able to take advantage of the tuition assistance program and get the maximum funding allowed for my courses," said YN1 Waltina Renee Pitts who is stationed at the Coast Guard National Pollution Funds Center in Arlington, Va. Pitts attended George Mason University Law School in Arlington, at night while working during the day, earning a law degree in 2003.

"My command was very accommodating when I made the decision to attend law school," she said. "I never allowed my schoolwork to interfere with my job, and my supervisors were very supportive when I asked to adjust my work schedule to allow me to take a couple of classes that met before the usual evening classes."

Each member in the service is authorized $4,500 per year in tuition assistance education benefits. In addition to tuition assistance, grants and scholarship opportunities are readily accessible to members. These grants defray additional costs, such as textbooks, and allow members to achieve their goals sooner rather than later.

"Although tuition assistance did not pay 100 percent of my course costs, it made a dent in the amount I would have had to otherwise borrow in student loans," said Pitts. "I was also able to take advantage of the Coast Guard Foundation's grant program, which helped defray the costs of books and parking on campus - expenses not covered under tuition assistance."

"A member's decision to take advantage of the Coast Guard's education benefits should depend on the member's personal and professional goals, factoring time constraints, program quality, cost and benefit," said Lt.j.g. Bradley Hanover, education services officer for the Atlantic Area and Fifth District staffs. "Our workforce is too diverse to meet everyone's professional goals, but the goal should be to improve oneself," he said.

A recent study compiled by the Coast Guard Institute in Oklahoma City shows that $4 million in tuition assistance funds are set aside for enlisted personnel. This is an all-time high. In fiscal year 2006, however, only 14 percent of the Coast Guard enlisted workforce took advantage.

Having a degree can literally pay off in the end. A 2005 U.S. Census Bureau study announced that employees around the country 18 and over with a bachelor's degree earn an average of $51,206 a year, and employees with an advanced degree make an average of $74,602 a year. Those with only a high school diploma, however, only earn around $27,915 a year.

"The school work itself is demanding enough, let alone having to worry about how you're going to pay for it," said YN1 Wayne Bateman, a Coast Guardsman assigned to the National Strike Force Coordination Center in Elizabeth City, N.C.

Tuition Assistance

[??] pays 100% tuition

[??] up to $4,500 a year

Not to exceed:

[summation] $250 a Semester Credit Hour

[summation] $166 a Quarter Credit Hour

Story and photos by PA2 Christopher Evanson, 5th Dist.