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Federal Government Shutdown

Hopefully, the October 1 Government shutdown will not be long, but should it be for an extended time, here is what we know about how the shutdown is affecting VA Educational benefits

The Good:  If you had already filed for your VA benefit AND have received a Fall payment (tuition or BAH), you should be OK for Fall.  For students who have received Fall payments before the shutdown, we would not normally expect any interruption as the process is automated after the first initial semester payment and we would expect payments to continue through to the end of the semester.

The not so good:  If you had filed for your benefits before the shutdown and it had not completed the VA's processing queue or you have not yet otherwise received any Fall payments (especially the Chapter 35 students who have been experiencing delayed payments), all new processing of benefits are stopped during the shutdown.  If you have not yet received any payments, we would recommend calling the VA once the government reopens at 888.442.4551 to confirm that your request has completed processing on the VA side and that payment is pending.

The really not good:  If you have not yet filed for Fall, you are unable to call the VA and will have to wait for the Government to reopen before we can certify your benefits... which will delay your benefit payments

State VMSDEP benefits or other State T/A benefit payments should not be affected by a Federal Government shutdown

We will notify students of any new information on the impact of the Federal Government shutdown.

 

Dominion Energy and the Virginia Association of Veterans Education & Transition Support (VA-VETS) are proud to formally invite you to REGISTER for the Virginia Student Veteran Summit on Wednesday, October 22, 2025 at the Virginia War Memorial. Come be a part of this event working to create an impact for Virginia student veterans in higher education. Lunch will be provided.

This summit will be focused on creating a conversation and an environment of collaboration in the Commonwealth of Virginia that is focused on student veteran success. By combining students, staff, industry, and policymakers, you’ll engage with others to support this vibrant community. Register today.

WHAT: Virginia Student Veteran Summit

WHERE: Virginia War Memorial
621 S. Belvidere Street, Richmond VA

WHEN: Wednesday, October 22^nd, 2025
10:00 am – 3:00 pm
 

RSVP LINK: https://forms.office.com/r/HFpNkz4Mqb (RSVP Deadline 10/15/25)

Do you want to share your education journey with VCU educators?

We are recruiting active duty and veteran students to brief our VCU educators during our upcoming Green Zone Training on October 23rd. This is a great opportunity to discuss the specific needs of military and veteran students with our educators. The more they know, the better they can support us. 

If you are interested in being a member of our speaking panel, please reach out to Très Morley

 

Benefits Updates

For our students using VA benefits...  Now that the drop/add period has passed, our office is working actively on updating enrollment for students who made changes to their schedules and uploading tuition and fees for our Post 9/11 and Chapter 31 students.  

For our Post 9/11 and Chapter 31 students, it can be up to 30 days into the semester before you see your tuition and fees post to your bill... this is the normal timeline and in most cases, no additional action is needed on your part.  If you do not see your Post 9/11 or CH31 payments post after the end of September, let us know so we can investigate.

We have heard of some delays in the Chapter 35 payment, especially if you waited until August to file.  If you are Chapter 35 and have not yet received a payment, please log into your RFC at go.vcu.edu/militarystudents to confirm that your RFC is complete and sent to the VA.  If it is complete and you have not received your payment, you can call the VA at 888.442.4551 to get an estimate on your payment.

Chapter 35 students will also be required to verify their enrollment monthly with the VA in order to keep their CH35 payments coming.  Students who filed before August are currently exempted from this requirement, but all students using CH 35 will have to verify their enrollment in the Spring.  The VA will text you to confirm if you are still enrolled or if you have changed your enrollment.  If you do not respond or if you indicate that the enrollment has changed, the VA will stop making payments.  Information on how to confirm your enrollment can be found  here:  

Scholarship Links

• Fisher House Scholarships
• ThanksUSA Scholarships
• VA-ACME Scholarships
• Visit VCU’s National Scholarship Office for more.
• VFW Scholarship Opportunities and Assistance 

The MSS Website has several Scholarship Opportunities listed

Mark Your Calendars: 

MSS Pizza Day: Join the MSS Staff and the SVA starting at 12:00 on Wednesday, October 29th, in the MSS office at 3122 Harris Hall. Free Pizza and Comaraderie!!  Register Here

Student Veterans of America Bi-Weekly Meeting: Join us on Monday, October 20th, for our bi-weekly SVA meeting of the 25/26 academic year. Come meet the SVA leadership team and learn about the organization and all the work they do for our military community. We are now offering a virtual option for those who can not attend in person. This organization is open to Veterans as well as all military-affiliated students.  Register Here

SVA and MSS Hosted Morale Dinner: Join us at Riverside Tavern on October 16th from 6:00-8:00. Meet and mingle with other student veterans and family members. This dinner is open to all current SVA members. If you are interested in joining the SVA, please join our group here.
Register for the event here

Green Zone Training: If you are an educator and want to learn more about our veteran and military students and their specific needs, please join us at our Green Zone Training session on October 23rd. Please RSVP here.

• Department of Defense Identification Card
• Veteran Health Identification Card (VHIC)
• Veteran ID Card
• Veterans designation on a state-issued U.S. driver’s license or identification card

 

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