Story and photo by
KYLE MCDANIEL
If you’re in the military and are looking to continue your education after your service, there’s the Veterans Upward Bound Program.
It’s a program that helps you continue your education after and sometimes during your service.
This is the second year of the five-year grant, and the program recently was awarded an $11,217 increase to continue offering educational resources to veterans. This goes along with the $250,000 to $300,000 that’s already received each year.
This program needs more exposure, especially for those who are looking for help.
“I think a program such as this may help some people but I don’t know much about it,” said Justin Terpstra, an Iraq/Afghanistan war veteran. “Everyone has different passions and dreams, and some of those involve school and some don’t. For those that don’t have friends and family to help them, then this is probably a great option.
“Much of this comes down to the support you have once returning home. Unfortunately, some come home to nothing, and they can certainly use all the help they can get. Personally, I had a tremendous amount of support which was invaluable to me becoming as successful as I am today.”
Not all veterans are as lucky as Terpstra, and that’s where this program will come in.
The program is funded by the Department of Education, with the goal of removing as many barriers as possible. They want to make it as simple and effortless as possible for you.
“We give out success kits with notebook paper, pencils, USB drives, bus passes and much more,” said Jorge A. Luquin, the project manager.
Even though those are little things, they go a long way to help get veterans’ educational path started again. The program helps veterans submit all of the paperwork, so they can start as soon as they’re ready. Removing any obstacles that might prevent your educational journey from starting is their biggest goal.
“If we can remove those barriers, you can’t say, ‘I can’t do this because …’ Yes, you can, it’s all taken care of,” Luquin said.
The program generally can pay for certificates if they are needed for college entry. For example, they might be able to pay for veterans’ First Aid CPR certification, if they want to be an EMT.
This gives veterans the feel of how college will be, because some of these veterans may be five or more years removed from school and need to get back into the groove.
There are two versions of this. One is an electronic version, where participants can submit assignments and take quizzes. The other version is where participants go to a classroom and answer to a teacher, giving them an even greater understanding of what college will be like.
Of course, the veterans must want to continue their education.
“We’ll spin our wheels for them, but they have to provide the traction,” Luquin said.
The goal is also to save money for participants. By spending a week or two with the program, veterans can cut two to four semesters, a savings of up to $1,000.
The program also will provide veterans with assistance figuring out everything related to the GI Bill, so they can use that money to focus on courses they specifically need for graduation.
It’s all with the idea of putting the veterans in the best possible place to succeed during and after schooling.
Veterans who want to be a part of this need a DD214 form. People who have been dishonorably discharged will not be accepted into the program.
Luquin said there is a need for 125 veterans to help make this a success.
“Our goal is ambitious and huge, but we would like to be able to help as many veterans in the Tucson community we can,” Luquin said.
