The School Certifying Official (SCO) in the Financial Aid Office at Central Alabama is responsible for certifying the enrollment of veterans and their dependents electronically via the Department of Veteran Affairs certification program, Enrollment Manager. Upon the first semester of registration at CACC, in order to notify the College SCO of the veteran’s or dependent’s enrollment and to request certification of enrollment, students requesting to use VA (federal or state) benefits should electronically submit the VA Benefits Certification Request Form located on the CACC Financial Aid website under Financial Aid Forms as soon as possible. Students who do not enroll in consecutive semesters will be required to submit a new VA Benefits Certification Form with all applicable documents to be certified. Prior to certification, veterans and/or dependents of veterans must complete all admission requirements for Central Alabama, complete the appropriate application for benefits, request certification for enrollment for the first semester registration, and should upload the following required documents, applicable, to the Office of Financial Aid:
- DD-214 Separation Papers – Certified or original copy of Member 4 for Chapter 30, OR
- Form 2384 Notice of Basic Eligibility (NOBE) for Chapter 1606, National Guard and Reserves, OR
- File number for veteran’s dependents for Chapter 35 (typically the veteran’s social security number), OR
- Certificate of Eligibility (COE) letter for Chapter 33 benefits.
- Authorization letter from the VA for Chapter 31 benefits.
- Documents to verify any state veteran benefits.
As of December 17, 2021, Enrollment Verification is a new requirement for all Post-9/11 GI Bill® (Chapter 33) students to verify that they have remained enrolled in the same courses or training every month during the semester of enrollment. Students who receive MHA/kicker payments and fail to verify enrollment for two consecutive months will have their payments withheld. In order to have payments released, the veteran will need to call the ECC at 1-888-GIBILL-1 to verify enrollment. To streamline the process, VA is providing the option to verify enrollment easily and securely via text message (call ECC to enroll) or e-mail.
The following criteria will be used for certifying veterans or eligible persons:
- Certification will be granted for only those courses that are applicable to the declared program of study. Any deviation must be approved by the VA College SCO located in the Financial Aid Office.
- Certification will not be granted for audited courses or courses in which a veteran has previously received a grade of “D” or higher.
- The veteran or eligible person who has received credit at other institutions will be certified only for those courses necessary to complete the declared program of study at the College. All veterans and eligible persons must submit official transcripts from any previously attended college. All active-duty service members and veterans must also submit an official Joint Services Transcript, which can be requested at jst.doded.mil
Please note: Eligible hour certification to the VA will not be submitted until after the drop/add/registration.
Stipend payments will be made to the student from the Department of Veterans Affairs based on the following payment schedule:
- Full-time payment (12 credit hours or more)
- Three-fourths payment (9-11 credit hours)
- One-half payment (6-8 credit hours)
- Less-than-half-time (5 or fewer credit hours) will not receive a monthly stipend; however, reimbursement will be made for tuition and fees only
Required Verification of Enrollment by Student
Students receiving MGIB-Active Duty (Chapter 30), REAP (Chapter 1607), or MGIB-Selected Reserve (Chapter 1606), must verify* their enrollment each month to receive payment for that month. Enrollment can be verified starting on the last calendar day of the month by using the Department of Veteran Affairs website. Students receiving benefits under DEA (Chapter 35) do NOT need to verify their attendance in this manner unless enrolled in a non-degree program. Enrollment may be certified by text message, e-mail, or online (preferred) at https://benefits.va.gov/gibill/isaksonroe/verification_of_enrollment.asp
*Please note that “verifying” and “certifying” your enrollment are two different procedures. “Certification” is done by a school or training official and lets VA know how many hours or credits the student will be enrolled in so the VA can determine the student’s payment rate. “Verification” is done by the student at the end of each month to let VA know that his/her enrollment information has not changed.
Change in Enrollment Status
Students should promptly notify the Financial Aid Office of any change in enrollment status as this could result in overpayment of VA benefits to the College and/or VA. If a student’s change in enrollment status is due to extenuating/mitigating circumstances as defined by the Department of Veteran Affairs, the student should provide the VA with a statement regarding the extenuating / mitigating circumstances.