The Cisco College Veteran Services Office is dedicated to supporting military service members and their families in achieving their educational goals. We provide assistance throughout the entire process, from applying for benefits to the completion of certification. You can count on us to be there for you at every step.
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General Checklist for Cisco College Veterans using VA Benefits
- Apply for admission to Cisco College.
- Submit the required documents for admission. (transcripts, shot records, etc.)
- Apply for Financial Aid at studentaid.gov. (optional)
- Apply for your VA benefit at VA.gov.
- Talk to a college counselor about your degree plan and courses.
- Register for class online through your Campus Connect account. (Link at the top left corner of website)
- All students using VA Benefits must submit the VA Enrollment form every term with the Office of Veteran Services. Certifications will not be processed until the VA Enrollment Sheet has been received.
- New students using VA Benefits must have all required paperwork completed and turned in to the Veteran Services Representative before completing an enrollment request.
- Required paperwork:
- VA Information Sheet
- Certificate of Eligibility, VA will mail this to you or you can login to va.gov and download it.
- Veterans (DD Form 214 member 4 copy) or Notice of Eligibility (NOBE)
- All college transcripts
- Complete Standard of Progress form. - Tuition Deferment Request for Eligible Texas Veterans and Their Families
- Benefit Comparison Chart
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Apply For Education Benefits
You will use the VONAPP if you are a U.S. military veteran, a service member on active duty, a member of the Selected Reserve, a spouse/dependent of a "service connected" disabled or deceased veteran, or a family member that has been approved to receive transferred benefits. If you have previously filed a claim for education benefits, use VONAPP only if you are filing for a different education benefit or if you are changing schools or programs under your current benefit program; for example, if you are eligible for two benefit programs, currently using one, but would like to begin using the other benefit program. If you have a pending application, don't use VONAPP to resubmit your claim. It will slow down processing. If you would like to know the status of a pending claim, contact the Education Division by calling 1-888-GI BILL 1 (1-888-442-4551).
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GI Bill® Chapter Information
- Ch30 Montgomery GI Bill®
- Ch31 Veteran Readiness and Employment (VR&E)
- Ch33 Post 9/11 General Information
- Ch35 Survivors & Dependents Educational Assistance Program
- Ch1606 Montgomery GI Bill® – Selected Reserves
- Ch1607 Reserve Educational Assistance Program (REAP)
- eBenefits
- GI Bill Comparison Tool
- Direct Deposit Information
- Ch30 – Verify your attendance each month! OR Call the Interactive Voice Response (IVR) telephone line at 1-877-823-2378.
Title 38 USC 3679(e) Compliance
The following policies and procedures are of primary concern to veterans, servicepersons, members of guard and selected reserves, and other eligible persons who receive VA educational benefits while enrolled at the University.
Please note: Academic standards of progress and attendance are covered under school standards of progress as specified by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools-Commission on Colleges on Higher Education, License Division, and are required by the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA).
In accordance with Title 38 US Code 3679 subsection (e), this school adopts the following additional provisions for any students using U.S. Department of Veteran Affairs (VA) Post 9/11 G.I. Bill® (Ch. 33) or Vocational Rehabilitation and Employment (Ch. 31) benefits, while payment to the institution is pending from the VA. This school will not:
· Prevent the student’s enrollment;
· Assess a late penalty fee to;
· Require student secure alternative or additional funding;
· Deny their access to any resources (access to classes, libraries, or other institutional facilities} available to other students who have satisfied their tuition and fee bills to the institution.
However, to qualify for this provision, such students may be required to:
· Provide Chapter 33 Certificate of Eligibility (or its equivalent} or for Chapter 31, VA VR&E’s contract with the school on VA Form 28-1905 by the first day of class.
Note: Chapter 33 students can register at the VA Regional Office to use E-Benefits to get the equivalent of a Chapter 33 Certificate of Eligibility. Chapter 31 student cannot get a completed VA Form 28-1905 (or any equivalent} before the VA VR&E case-manager issues it to the school.
· Provide written request to be certified;
· Provide additional information needed to properly certify the enrollment as described in other institutional policies
Disapproval of courses
(a)(1) Except as provided by paragraph (2), any course approved for the purposes of this chapter which fails to meet any of the requirements of this chapter shall be immediately disapproved by the Secretary or the appropriate State approving agency. An educational institution which has its courses disapproved by the Secretary or a State approving agency will be notified of such disapproval by a certified or registered letter of notification and a return receipt secured.
(2) In the case of a course of education that would be subject to disapproval under paragraph (1) solely for the reason that the Secretary of Education withdraws the recognition of the accrediting agency that accredited the course, the Secretary of Veterans Affairs, in consultation with the Secretary of Education, and notwithstanding the withdrawal, may continue to treat the course as an approved course of education under this chapter for a period not to exceed 18 months from the date of the withdrawal of recognition of the accrediting agency, unless the Secretary of Veterans Affairs or the appropriate State approving agency determines that there is evidence to support the disapproval of the course under this chapter. The Secretary shall provide to any veteran enrolled in such a course of education notice of the status of the course of education.
(b) Each State approving agency shall notify the Secretary of each course which it has disapproved under this section. The Secretary shall notify the State approving agency of the Secretary’s disapproval of any educational institution under chapter 31 of this title.
(c)(1) Notwithstanding any other provision of this chapter and subject to paragraphs (3) through (6), the Secretary shall disapprove a course of education provided by a public institution of higher learning if the institution charges tuition and fees for that course for covered individuals who are pursuing the course with educational assistance under chapter 30, 31, or 33 of this title while living in the State in which the institution is located at a rate that is higher than the rate the institution charges for tuition and fees for that course for residents of the State in which the institution is located, regardless of the covered individual’s State of residence.
(2) For purposes of this subsection, a covered individual is any individual as follows:
(A) A veteran who was discharged or released from a period of not fewer than 90 days of service in the active military, naval, or air service less than three years before the date of enrollment in the course concerned.
(B) An individual who is entitled to assistance under
(i) section 3311(b)(9) of this title; or
(ii) section 3319 of this title by virtue of the individual’s relationship to
(I) a veteran described in subparagraph (A); or
(II) a member of the uniformed services described in section 3319(b) of this title who is serving on active duty.
(C) An individual who is entitled to rehabilitation under section 3102(a) of this title.
(3) If after enrollment in a course of education that is subject to disapproval under paragraph (1) by reason of paragraph (2)(A), (2)(8), or (2)(C) a covered individual pursues one or more courses of education at the same public institution of higher learning while remaining continuously enrolled (other than during regularly scheduled breaks between courses, semesters or terms) at that institution of higher learning, any course so pursued by the covered individual at that institution of higher learning while so continuously enrolled shall also be subject to disapproval under paragraph (1).
(4) It shall not be grounds to disapprove a course of education under paragraph (1) if a public institution of higher learning requires a covered individual pursuing a course of education at the institution to demonstrate an intent, by means other than satisfying a physical presence requirement, to establish residency in the State in which the institution is located, or to satisfy other requirements not relating to the establishment of residency, in order to be charged tuition and fees for that course at a rate that is equal to or less than the rate the institution charges for tuition and fees for that course for residents of the State.
(5) The Secretary may waive such requirements of paragraph (1) as the Secretary considers appropriate.
(6) Disapproval under paragraph (1) shall apply only with respect to educational assistance under chapters 30, 31, and 33 of this title.
(d) Notwithstanding any other provision of this chapter, the Secretary or the applicable State approving agency shall disapprove a course of education described in paragraph (14) or (15) of section 3676(c) of this title unless the educational institution providing the course of education-
(1) publicly discloses any conditions or additional requirements, including training, experience, or examinations, required to obtain the license, certification, or approval for which the course of education is designed to provide preparation; and
(2) makes each disclosure required by paragraph (1) in a manner that the Secretary considers prominent (as specified by the Secretary in regulations prescribed for purposes of this subsection).
(e)(1) Notwithstanding any other provision of this chapter, beginning on August 1, 2019, a State approving agency, or the Secretary when acting in the role of the State approving agency, shall disapprove a course of education provided by an educational institution that has in effect a policy that is inconsistent with any of the following:
(A) A policy that permits any covered individual to attend or participate in the course of education during the period beginning on the date on which the individual provides to the educational institution a certificate of eligibility for entitlement to educational assistance under chapter 31 or 33 of this title and ending on the earlier of the following dates:
(i) The date on which the Secretary provides payment for such course of education to such institution.
(ii) The date that is 90 days after the date on which the educational institution certifies for tuition and fees following receipt from the student such certificate of eligibility.
(B) A policy that ensures that the educational institution will not impose any penalty, including the assessment of late fees, the denial of access to classes, libraries, or other institutional facilities, or the requirement that a covered individual borrow additional funds, on any covered individual because of the individual's inability to meet his or her financial obligations to the institution due to the delayed disbursement of a payment to be provided by the Secretary under chapter 31 or 33 of this title.
(2) For purposes of this subsection, a covered individual is any individual who is entitled to educational assistance under chapter 31 or 33 of this title.
(3) The Secretary may waive such requirements of paragraph (1) as the Secretary considers appropriate.
(4) It shall not be inconsistent with a policy described In paragraph (1) for an educational institution to require a covered individual to take the following additional actions:
(A) Submit a certificate of eligibility for entitlement to educational assistance not later than the first day of a course of education for which the individual has indicated the individual wishes to use the individual's entitlement to educational assistance.
(B) Submit a written request to use such entitlement
(C) Provide additional information necessary to the proper certification of enrollment by the educational institution
Rule of Construction
Pub. L. 115-407, title I, §103(c), Dec. 31, 2018, 132 Stat. 5370, provided that: “In a case in which an individual is unable to meet a financial obligation to an educational institution due to the delayed disbursement of a payment to be provided by the Secretary under chapter 31 or 33 of such title [title 38) and the amount of such disbursement is less than anticipated, nothing in section 3679(e) of such title, as added by subsection (a), shall be construed to prohibit an educational institution from requiring additional payment or imposing a fee for the amount that is the difference between the amount of the financial obligation and the amount of the disbursement.”
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Military Personnel Records
In order to request copies of military records visit: archives.gov
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Hazelwood
The Texas Veteran Commission administers a state benefit entitled the Hazlewood Act. Eligibility for Hazlewood is determined by the institution granting the exemption. Students who qualify under the Hazlewood Act are exempted from paying tuition and required fees, provided such students are enrolled in state-funded courses. Examples of courses which do not qualify for the Hazlewood exemption include CNA classes. The exemption is based on the hours you are enrolled in, and not the amount of the tuition itself.
For additional information, contact the Financial Aid Office.
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My Career Advancement Account (MYCAA)
The My Career Advancement Account Scholarship assists military spouses in furthering their education. The scholarship can be used to pursue licenses, certificates, certifications or associate degrees. Eligible spouses can receive up to $4,000 in tuition assistance.
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Degree Plans
According to the Veterans Administration, every student enrolled at Cisco College must follow a Cisco College degree plan to receive their benefits. Every semester we recommend that you visit a counselor who will assist you in selecting the correct degree plan to ensure that the classes you are taking for transfer will be covered.
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Developmental Courses
The VA will pay for developmental courses only if the student has taken the placement test and the resulting scores must indicate a need for developmental education.
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Student Responsibility
Each semester that you register for class, it is your responsibility to tell the Veterans Services office that you are ready to be certified. Failure to let the office know will result in your classes not being certified and you risk being dropped for the semester. Please call 325.794.4465 or email rick.lopez@cisco.edu or stop by my office when you register for class.
Cisco College Veterans Services Office
Ricardo Lopez
School Certifying Official
Phone: (325) 794-4465
Fax: (325) 692-2530
rick.lopez@cisco.edu