Robert M. Worley II Director, Education Service VETERANS BENEFITS ADMINISTRATION Department of Veterans Affairs 2013 CCME Annual Symposium February 26, 2013

Robert M. Worley II Director, Education Service VETERANS BENEFITS ADMINISTRATION Executive Order Establishing Principles of Excellence for Educational Institutions Serving Service Members, Veterans, Spouses, and Other Family Members Signed by President Obama on April 27, 2012 Designed to provide information, support, and protections to Federal education beneficiaries Strengthens oversight, enforcement, and accountability activities within educational benefit programs Establishes Principles of Excellence as guidelines for educational institutions receiving Federal funding Expands student data collection efforts to better understand educational outcomes Requires development of a Centralized Complaint System for students 1

Robert M. Worley II Director, Education Service VETERANS BENEFITS ADMINISTRATION Principles of Excellence The Principles encourage schools to: Prior to enrollment, provide students a personalized form covering the total cost of an educational program –Program costs, student debt estimates, and Federal financial aid options upfront Provide educational plans for all military and veteran education beneficiaries End fraudulent and aggressive recruiting techniques and misrepresentation Provide accommodations for service members and reservists absent due to service requirements Designate a point of contact for academic and financial advising Ensure accreditation of all new programs prior to enrolling students Align institutional refund policies with those under Title IV 2

Robert M. Worley II Director, Education Service VETERANS BENEFITS ADMINISTRATION Working Groups Three working groups to implement the Executive Order 13607: Information Reports Enforcement Comprised of representatives from: VA DOD Department of Education Department of Justice Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) Federal Trade Commission (FTC) 3

Robert M. Worley II Director, Education Service VETERANS BENEFITS ADMINISTRATION Completed Actions MonthAction May 2012Letter to encourage participation sent to Institutions As of January 30 th, 6213 schools (3,514 main campuses) committed to the PoE. June 2012Conducted informational webinars for schools and professional organization July 2012Dept. of ED released Financial Aid Shopping Sheet September Day Status Report for Implementation and Enforcement & Compliance submitted to White House October 2012GI Bill Trademark Approved – Terms of Use drafted and under review October 2012Outreach efforts to education key stakeholders (i.e. School Certifying Officials, Veteran Service Organizations, and State Approving Agencies) October 2012Developed standardized intake form for Complaint System January 2013Developed draft outcome measures January 2013Completed initial data crosswalk from agencies’ data sources February 2013Dept. of ED released College Scorecard February 2013Complaint System of Record Notice (SORN) and Paperwork Reduction Act (PRA) submitted for notice in Federal Register for public comment 4

Robert M. Worley II Director, Education Service VETERANS BENEFITS ADMINISTRATION Executive Order Implementation Complaint System VA developing both interim and long-term approach to meet requirements. Projected to begin accepting complaints May/June Outcome Measures To ascertain success among veterans in utilizing the GI Bill program. To identify what the Veterans/Servicemembers need to know when choosing a school. To identify what the Federal government should know to ensure an education program is appropriate. Comparison Tool Currently eBenefits links to College Navigator. Long-term approach: Web-Based System to inform Veterans/Servicemembers the value of their education benefits and cost of attendance at a particular school. Projected initial comparison tool targeted for August 2013 Risk-Based Program Reviews Increase enforcement activities as needed to combat fraud, misleading practices, etc. Leverage existing compliance survey program to accomplish utilizing Red Flag indicators. Participating educational institutions have Academic Year to come into compliance with the Principles of Excellence. Risk-based program reviews will begin in Academic Year

Robert M. Worley II Director, Education Service VETERANS BENEFITS ADMINISTRATION Public Law Improving Transparency of Education Opportunities for Veterans Act 2012 Reinforces the Principles of Excellence. Comprehensive policy on providing education information to Veterans –Effective and efficient methods to inform individuals of their education and vocational counseling. –Centralized tracking and publishing of feedback from students and State Approving Agencies. –Web-based tool to compare programs and estimate GI Bill benefits. –Transition Assistance Program information accessible for future students and schools. –Not approve programs and/or schools that use enrollment incentives. Implementation –Develops regulations, procedures, and policies necessary to execute the law. –Conduct market survey for online tools to do the following Assess whether an individual is academically ready to engage in postsecondary education and training or would need remedial preparation before beginning. Providing a list of providers of postsecondary education and training based on selected criteria. Established Integrated Project Teams (IPT) to implement PL –Reporting and Management IPT. –Policy Development and Implementation IPT. –Market Survey and Technical IPT. –Kickoff meeting held February 8, –90-Day Report due to Congress on April 10, 2013.

Robert M. Worley II Director, Education Service VETERANS BENEFITS ADMINISTRATION QUESTIONS? 7

Robert M. Worley II Director, Education Service VETERANS BENEFITS ADMINISTRATION VA Contact Information GIBILL-1 ( ) 8