July 10, 2012
  
Contacts:
Heather Greenaway, 571-215-6151

APSCU Endorses House Veterans' Affairs Committee Bill

Washington, D.C. – Former Congressman Steve Gunderson, the president and chief executive officer of the Association of Private Sector Colleges and Universities (APSCU) today issued the following statement endorsing the Improving Transparency of Education Opportunities for Veterans Act of 2012 (H.R. 4057), which will be marked up tomorrow by the U.S. House of Representatives Committee on Veterans’ Affairs:

"Today, APSCU is proud to announce its support for the Improving Transparence of Education Opportunities for Veterans Act of 2012 (H.R. 4057), sponsored by Congressman Gus Bilirakis.  We encourage the House Veterans' Affairs Committee to report the bill favorably to the full House of Representatives for support.  In January 2012, APSCU sent a letter to House and Senate leaders, and the Obama Administration, advocating for appropriate educational counseling for veterans before enrolling in higher education programs, and a formal process within the Department of Veterans Affairs to handle complaints.  Additionally, I strongly advocated in favor of that basic framework, which is reflected within this legislation, while testifying before Congress.  We are pleased the bill is advancing and strongly encourage its passage. 

"While the bill has many strong points reflecting our commitment to veteran's education, we do believe the language needs further work in the section discussing disclosure of credit transfers.  The language as written is a burden for all colleges and universities that far exceeds the current requirements of the Higher Education Act.  Despite this, we still favor the overall bill and look forward to working with the committee to correct this language.
 
"Since the enactment of the Post-9/11 GI Bill, 152,000 veterans, spouses and dependents have chosen to attend career colleges and universities.  We are proud of the education these veterans receive at our schools and look forward to continuing to provide them with training and instruction resulting in success in civilian life and in the 21st Century workforce. APSCU is prepared to do the hard work that lies ahead and welcomes anyone, at anytime, to join us in continuing the evolution of this conversation out of the realm of political rhetoric and into thoughtful policy discussions with the end goal of arming our veterans with the resources they need to make the best academic decisions."