Evening star., 1946-02-11
GWU Gives Veterans
More Time 10 Act on
Education Rights

oCOi &c washing VUll OlllVGTSltyI
plans to give its student veterans
and the Washington regional office
of the Veterans Administration at
least until April / to get their GI
education rights Strengthened out,
it was learned today.
Continued schooling of more than
1000 GWU students has been
threatened by the worst logjam of
applications and claims for veterans
education ever faced by the WASH
ington regional Office.
To keep the veterans from los
ing a semester of schooling, ex-
planned DR.. Mitchell Dreese, director
Of GWU veterans education, the
university allowed student veterans
to enter school without certificates
of eligibility from the Veterans
Administration.
Permits to Be Renewed.
The veterans were given an initial
permit of one month, which will be
renewed for a second month, DR..
Dreese said. II any student vet
Grams still lack a certificate of eligi-
bility then, DR.. Dreese added, the
university will make additional
plans. DR.. Dreese reported that
only 900 of the 2,100 veterans now
attending the university have their
certificates.
mo boy will be thrown out of
school," he said, 'if we have any
evidence that a certificate of eligi-
bility is forthcoming. We were wor-
ried about this situation a month
ago but we now have every reason
to believe that most certificates of
eligibility will be issued within the
next three weeks"
Last semester, when nine veterans
still lacked certificates of eligibility
after two months, the university
gave them the option of dropping
out or paying their own tuition,
with the assurance of a full refund
if the certificate was forthcoming.
Must Wait for Checks.
Even when they get the certifi-
Gates, which assure the university
of tuition payment, the veterans
still will have to wait at least
another month for their first sub
sistence check, it was pointed out
The present jam was blamed on
two factors: The lack of personnel
in the regional office to handle the
job and the fact that many of the
would-be students delayed until a
week or so before registration to
apply for CT education benefits.
A Veterans Administration Of
fetal said the number of applica-
tions for certificates of eligibility
reaching the regional Office in jan
uary about equaled all the GER
tificates ever issued by the Office.
5000 Students Expected.
This official estimated that 5000
student veterans would be attending
Washington schools this semester as
compared with 400 last semester.
BY working overtime and Sum-
days, the regional Office reported,
the backlog of applications for GER
tificates has been cut from 1922 to
about 800 and the applications now
are being processed at the rate of
200 day, if the records are COM
plete.
With a current backlog of sos
veterans waiting for their subsist-
ence checks, the regional Office ex-
poets that backlog will grow as GER
tificates of eligibility now being is
sued are returned with requests
for payment.
The regional Office said it will be
able to process 100 payments day
OR about the number of certificates
of eligibility.
+ A third serious tie-up is in voca-
tional advisement, which disabled
veterans must take before they car
start school. Approximately 100(
veterans are now awaiting this guild.
ance and applications are streaming
in at the rate of 80 to so day. Ir
January, 378 veterans were coilnsele6
as compared with 606 applications
The regional Office estimated II
would take 80 to 40 days to break
this logjam.