Anthony Finochio has provided base security for 5,000 Iraqi dissidents as a military police officer in Hungary. He has traveled to South Korea and has served as a guard at Guantanamo Bay.

Now, after six years in the military, Finochio, a part-time graduate student in the Martin J. Whitman School of Management, attends Syracuse University with the help of the Post-9/11 Veterans Educational Assistance Act of 2008, also known as the new GI Bill.

The new GI Bill, which took effect Aug. 1, provides veterans who have served for a minimum of 90 days after Sept. 11, 2001 with money for tuition, books and housing. The bill will pay for up to 36 months of school at the cost of the highest public college tuition in the state the veteran chooses to attend school. It will also pay up to $1,000 a year for books. The Department of Defense determines the monthly housing allowance by region in the country.

‘It’s really one of the most important pieces of legislation for this generation of veterans,’ said Sgt. David Mancuso, a graduate student in the School of Education who served in Iraq in 2004. ‘It allows more veterans to go to school who probably wouldn’t have been able to go otherwise.’

The number of veterans attending the university has almost tripled since last year, said Peg Stearns, the veteran certifying officer for SU. The veterans still go through the normal admissions procedure, but they must be approved by the Veteran’s Association before they can claim their benefits.

‘Syracuse University as a whole is very appreciative of the time veterans have spent in the service,’ Finochio said.

Of the 60-75 veterans already accepted into the program at SU, about 30 are here on the new GI Bill. The rest are either dependents or are here on the old GI Bill, Stearns said.

The amount of money the veterans receive is determined by the length of time they serve. Veterans who have served at least 36 months receive 100 percent of the benefits and are also eligible for the Yellow Ribbon Program, a new addition to the GI Bill. To compensate the difference, the program allows more expensive private universities to create an agreement with the VA. All of SU’s eligible veterans participate in the program.

SU and the VA split the difference in tuition. SU pays for its portion with the university’s operating funds, which is comprised of students’ tuition, donations and financial aid from the state and federal governments.

Veterans who are injured after 30 consecutive days of service and are honorably discharged also receive 100 percent of the benefits. However, veterans who serve for 90 days to six months receive only 40 percent of the benefits, the lowest available percentage.

Stearns said veterans may also transfer their benefits to as many of their dependents as they want and may divide the amount as they choose. The dependent would then claim the benefits from the appropriate amount of service.

‘It’s a good thing for the veterans. It’s a good thing for Syracuse University. And it’s a good thing that the nation has done,’ Stearns said.

Although the VA is behind in certifying veterans, Stearns said she doesn’t plan to turn them away. She will admit any veteran accepted to SU who qualifies for the GI Bill benefits.

The university now houses a veterans’ lounge, put in place by Mancuso, which opens in mid-September so veterans will have a place to talk with each other.

Stearns said these factors probably contributed to SU’s recent ranking in G.I. Jobs magazine as a top 15 percent school nationwide for military-friendliness.

‘After World War II, Syracuse University threw open its doors to veterans coming home and it tripled in size,’ Stearns said. ‘The idea is to keep the historical connection and do the right thing. We have a very proud history of serving the veterans.’

krkoerti@syr.edu

Published on August 31, 2009 at 12:00 pm