Imagine discovering, after returning home from active duty, tuition may no longer be fully covered under the Post-9/11 GI Bill, as only expenses up to the rates of in-state tuition are being provided for.

Now add a marriage to that and children, along with a house in Wisconsin. Having enrolled in the service in California and serving elsewhere, in-state tuition is not a reality.

Neither is moving or paying out-of-pocket for school expenses.

What options are there, if any?

This situation is not all that uncommon for current veterans attending the University of Wisconsin, according to Assistant Dean of Students John Bechtol, in light of Congress’s change to the Post-9/11 GI Bill.

The bill, which now only covers public in-state tuition and fees for veterans having served on active duty for 90 days or more since Sept. 10, 2011, according to a UW news release, does not provide protections for veterans previously enrolled in out-of-state colleges.

Before, tuition caps were based on the most expensive undergraduate programs in each respective state, according to Bechtol.

From this, an amount per credit hour was calculated. For Wisconsin, veterans would have received $673 per credit hour, fully covering an out-of-state resident’s tuition.

The current bill does not, Bechtol emphasized.

“Now, student veterans back from duty who previously would have their tuition covered after being here two years may not have their tuition fully covered as they will only receive the amount of in-state tuition,” he said.

Enter the Yellow Ribbon Program.

A sub-component of the Post-9/11 GI Bill, the Yellow Ribbon Program, aims to help veterans caught in this predicament.

Through the program, the amount of tuition not covered by the bill is split between the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs and the school being attended, according to a UW news release.

UW has $360,000 to help current veterans with out-of-state tuition, set aside for next year’s participation in the program, the UW news release said.

“The university recognizes that Congress changed the rules for these particular students, putting them at a huge disadvantage, with their only other option being to drop out of school for a year to gain residency status,” Bechtol said. “We’re trying to counter that.”

The $360,000 set aside will help 57 student veterans, 43 undergraduates and 14 graduates, according to the release.

Incoming veteran students will not be protected under the program, according to Bechtol.

“We’re going to take care of the students already here, and then we will reapply every year to see how much the university can afford to determine the right number to maintain for non-residency students,” Bechtol said.

UW’s student body includes more than 600 students with military experience, according to the release, as the university is one of the few in the nation to accommodate all three Reserve Office Training Corps branches.

For veteran students forced to choose between the lives they have created and education at the UW, participation in the Yellow Ribbon Program can only prove beneficial.

“Administration is working hard to ensure we reach a fair balance, as we can’t put an unlimited amount of remitted tuition out there,” Bechtol said. “As for myself, I am very happy we are protecting our students.”