Highlights

•Tuition and fees, not to exceed the most expensive in-state undergraduate public institution for up to 36 months.



•Monthly housing allowance.



•$1,000 a year for books and supplies.



•Anyone who serves 36 months of active duty service is eligible. Others who serve less can get a percentage of the benefits.



More information on new GI bill



Less than two years ago, Sgt. Victor Chavez was stationed in a village on the Euphrates River, southwest of Baghdad in the area known as the "Triangle of Death."



After six years in the Army and 34 months of deployment, Chavez this summer has taken on a challenge of a different type -- two statistics class at Le Moyne College that will help him complete a degree in psychology.



Chavez is one of thousands of veterans who served after the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001 who will benefit from upgrades to the GI Bill that went into effect on Aug. 1.

Local colleges expect more than 1,300 veterans to enroll in the next year to 18 months, college officials said. They're preparing for the influx with special programs, mentoring and tutoring opportunities and even study lounges to help ease the transition to civilian and student life.

At Le Moyne College, an institution founded in 1946 partly in response to the original GI Bill of Rights, Daniel Bartlett is fielding four to five calls a day and emailing with soon-to-be veterans still stationed in Iraq. The assistant director of continuing education said this semester 10 to 15 students took advantage of the new GI provisions.



Onondaga Community College, which averages about 220 veterans a semester, has received 100 more inquiries from veterans.



And Syracuse University already has about 30 students in the pipeline to take advantage of the new benefits. University College's Peg Stearns said a bigger increase is expected in the coming years, as more troops return from Iraq and Afghanistan.





The activity is new for some private colleges, whose tuition was cost prohibitive under the benefits offered under versions GI Bill. The new benefits include tuition assistance, a housing allowance, a stipend for books and supplies, and the option to transfer benefits to family members.



Many of SU's new students are in their 20s, but others have decades of service under their belts, Stearns said. She's also working with two students who are using benefits transferred from a family member -- one of the new provisions of the Post-9/11 GI Bill.



"It's nice to see it happening," she said. "The nation is really stepping up."



Chavez, a Colorado native, was stationed at Fort Drum after joining the Army at age 22.



He rose in the ranks, achieving the status of sergeant in three years. But after his third deployment in as many years, Chavez decided to leave the military for civilian life, which now includes a home in Liverpool with wife, Rebecca, and their 1-year-old son, Victor Michael.



"It totals up to a lot of time being away," he said. "I didn't want to be gone every other year, to have to leave my family."



He is working toward a career in primary and special education.



Chavez said sitting in a classroom is "pretty easy" compared to his life in the military. He said his first deployment, a seven-month tour of Afghanistan in 2003, was relatively "low-key." After a year stateside, he was deployed to Iraq in June 2005, where he was shot at for the first time. He described his third tour, in which he was stationed in a village and his return was delayed, as "horrible."



"These are students that are extremely responsible, with character and integrity who see things through to completion," said Le Moyne's Bartlett. "That's the quality they bring to the classroom."



To make higher education even more affordable, Syracuse University and Le Moyne College have joined the government's Yellow Ribbon Education Enhancement Program, which helps cover any gaps between the education benefits under the new GI Bill.



The schools entered into agreements to split the difference with the Veterans Administration so that students who have served at least 36 months on or after Sept. 11, 2001 will have no out-of-pocket expenses.



When the program was announced, Syracuse University officials estimated that they hoped to assist as many as 132 qualifying veterans or their dependents during the initial year of the program.



"It's a simple statement to the veterans: 'Welcome home,' " Bartlett said.



With government agencies predicting weeks of backlog processing paperwork, some local schools are stepping in to make sure veterans can start their classes on time.



At Le Moyne College, the bursar's office is setting up payment plans to help veterans defer any out-of-pocket expenses until their benefits are approved.



"We want them here," Bartlett said. "We are trying to take down as many roadblocks to help them come here."



Syracuse University officials are also hoping to be more veteran-friendly by reviewing and updating payment policies that allow veterans to defer tuition payment while awaiting payment from the VA.



SU recently launched a new Website for SALUTE, the Syracuse University Veterans' Resource Center.



Syracuse University officials are creating a designated lounge that will be staffed with veterans receiving work study payments and stocked with couches, a microwave, television and coffee.



"They get each other in a way that civilians really can't," Stearns said. "They can communicate with one another in a way I can't."



Officials at Onondaga Community College have a similar plan for study and lounge areas that are visible and accessible to veterans and their families.



"That sense of community is very important," said Stephanie Reynolds, who oversees veteran services at OCC. The college is planning to have an open house in November so veterans and their families can learn more about local offerings.



State University College at Oswego this year will beef up counseling, medical and other services it provides to student veterans.



The college probably won't see any significant increase in veteran enrollment until the 2010 fall semester, said Mark Humbert, the college's director of financial aid and veteran services.



"This is one heck of a deal for these guys," Humbert said.



The new GI Bill will likely result in more veterans taking courses at Cayuga Community College in Auburn, said Pam Freeman, college spokeswoman.



"Anticipating more of an influx of veterans, we'll be looking at ways we can tailor our programs and services to fit their needs," Freeman said. "Some of those might include online courses and online-classroom hybrids to accommodate work and family schedules, staffing up courses and programs of interest, and academic support through tutoring and study sessions."



Officials at Onondaga County Community College are currently conducting surveys of existing veterans, families and faculty members to see what services are needed.



"We will be working with this population for years, as we continue to find our presence needed in Afghanistan and Iraq," Reynolds said. "This bill will help them reengage with civilian life."



--Alaina Potrikus can be reached at 470-3252 or apotrikus@syracuse.com. Staff writer John Doherty contributed to this report.



