Air Force joins Army, Marines in cutting tuition assistance

[jsr]

Source: Stars and Stripes

YOKOTA AIR BASE, Japan — The Air Force has joined the Marines and the Army in dropping tuition assistance due to sweeping federal budget cuts.

Word of the decision began trickling down to the Pacific on Tuesday morning. During a commander’s call at Yokota Air Base, 374th Airlift Wing commander Col. Mark August told airmen that applications for tuition assistance submitted after March 12 likely would be rejected by the Air Force.

The Air Force has been providing $250 per semester credit hour and up to $4,500 a year to airmen pursuing associate’s, bachelor’s and master’s degrees. The Air Force does not charge for professional education courses.

The cuts do not affect the G.I. Bill.

Read more: http://www.stripes.com/news/air-force-joins-army-marines-in-cutting-tuition-assistance-1.211417

[KamaAina]

1. Such unlikely institutions as Wayland Baptist University have branch campuses on O'ahu.

Why do you suppose that is? Could it be because Schofield Barracks, Hickam AFB, and Kaneohe Bay Marine Base are all there?

Boy, are they screwn.

[actslikeacarrot]

2. This was a long time coming.

Shit needs to be cut somewhere, so might as well start here. Maybe if they cut enough extra, the less personnel they have to cut out of the military.

[immoderate]

3. Wait until the inner city kids who sign up for ed benefits hear...

What will they do?

--imm

[actslikeacarrot]

4. the g.i. bill is unaffected...

...t.a. was an added perk. Everyone can still take classes, they just have to pay for it. Its better to cut this than kick good service members out because of downsizing.

[Hassin Bin Sober]

12. Maybe not sign up.

And get a job in the wonderful economy... oh yeah right. Funny how that works.

[Smilo]

5. Take a look at all the for-profit colleges

trying to get the veterans to go with them. They see a huge "profit" in educating our vets = which tells you something is screwed up.

[littlemissmartypants]

6. When do you think the golf courses will get cut?

http://www.militarygolfcourseguide.com/bystate.htm

http://www.militarygolfcourseguide.com/

Marine Corps Golf Courses

MCAGCC/MAGTFTC 29 Palms, California

MCLB Barstow, California

MCAS Miramar, California

MCB Camp Pendleton, California

MCB Kaneohe Bay, Hawaii

MCAS Iwakuni, Japan

MCB Camp Lejeune, North Carolina

MCAS Cherry Point, North Carolina

MCB Camp S. D. Butler, Okinawa

MRCD Parris Island, South Carolina

MCB Quantico, Virginia

Army Golf Courses

Fort Rucker, Alabama

Redstone Arsenal, Alabama

Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson, Alaska

Fort Wainwright, Alaska

Fort Huachuca, Arizona

Pine Bluff Arsenal, Arkanas

Fort Carson, Colorado

Fort Benning, Georgia

Fort Gordon, Georgia

Fort Stewart, Georgia

Hunter Air Field, Georgia

Bamberg, Germany

Edelweiss Resort, Germany

Heidelberg, Germany

Stuttgart, Germany

Wiesbaden, Germany

Fort Shafter/Schofield Barracks, Hawaii

Camp Zama, Japan 011-81-46-407-4966

Fort Leavenworth, Kanas

Fort Riley, Kanas

Fort Campbell, Kentucky

Fort Knox, Kentucky

Fort Polk, Louisiana

Aberdeen Proving Ground, Maryland

Fort Meade, Maryland

Selfridge Air National Guard Base, Michigan

Fort Leonard Wood, Missouri

Joint Base McGuire-Ft Dix-Lakehurst, New Jersey

Picatinny Arsenal, New Jersey

White Sands Missile Range, New Mexico

USMA West Point, New York

Fort Bragg, North Carolina

DSC Columbus, Ohio

Fort Sill, Oklahoma

Carlisle Barracks, Pennsylvania

Fort Buchanan, Puerto Rico

Fort Jackson, South Carolina

Army Camps, South Korea

Fort Bliss, Texas

Fort Hood, Texas

Fort Sam Houston, Texas

Dugway Proving Ground, Utah

Fort Belvoir, Virginia

Fort Eustis, Virginia

Fort Lee, Virginia

Joint Base Lewis-McChord, Washington

Navy Golf Courses

NB/NS/NAS San Diego, California

WPNSTA Seal Beach, Cypress, California

NAWS China Lake, Ridgecrest, California

CBC Port Hueneme, California

NPGS Monterey, California

SUBASE New London, Groton, Connecticut

NAS Pensacola, Florida

NAS Whiting Field, Milton, Florida

NAS Jacksonville, Florida
NS Mayport, Florida

SUBASE Kings Bay, Georgia

Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam, Hawaii

NS Great Lakes, Illinois

NSWC Crane, Indiana (812.854.0100)

NSA Naples, Italy

NAF Atsugi, Japan

USNA Annapolis, Maryland

NAS Patuxent River, Maryland

NSF Indian Head, Maryland (301.744.4662)

USCG AirSta Cape Cod, Mass

NAS Meridian, Mississippi

Joint Base McGuire-Ft Dix-Lakehurst, New Jersey

Joint Base Charleston - WepSta, South Carolina

Rota, Spain

NSA Midsouth, Millington, Tennessee (901.874.5168)

NAS Corpus Christi, Texas

NAS Oceana, Virginia Beach, Virginia

Joint Expeditionary Base Little Creek - Fort Story

NS Norfolk, Virginia

NWS Cheatham Annex, Williamsburg, Virginia

NAS Whidbey Island, Oak Harbor, Washington

Air Force Golf Courses

Maxwell-Gunter AFB, Alabama

Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson, Alaska

Davis-Monthan AFB, Tuscon, Arizona

Luke AFB, Arizona

Little Rock AFB, Arkanas

Beale AFB, California

Edwards AFB, California

NASA Moffett Air Field, California (650.603.8026)

Travis AFB, California

Vandenberg AFB, California

USAFA Colorado Springs, Colorado

Peterson AFB, Colorado

Andrews AFB, Washington, District of Columbia

Dover AFB, Delaware

RAF Lakenheath, England

Elgin AFB, Niceville, Florida

Hurlburt Field, Florida

MacDill AFB, Florida

Patrick AFB, Florida

Tyndall AFB, Florida

Moody AFB, Georgia

Robins AFB, Georgia

Ramstein AB, Germany

Spangdahlem AB, Germany

Andersen AFB, Guam

Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam, Hawaii

Mountain Home AFB, Idaho

Scott AFB, Illinois

Aviano AFB, Italy

Misawa AB, Japan

Yokota AB, Japan

Osan AB, Korea

Barksdale AFB, Louisiana

Hanscom AFB, Mass.

Columbus AFB, Mississippi

Keesler AFB, Mississippi

Whiteman AFB, Missouri

Offutt AFB, Nebraska

Nellis AFB, Nevada

Joint Base McGuire-Ft Dix-Lakehurst, New Jersey

Cannon AFB, New Mexico

Kirtland AFB, New Mexico

Holloman AFB, New Mexico

Seymour Johnson AFB, North Carolina

Grand Forks AFB, North Dakota

Minot AFB, North Dakota

Wright-Patterson AFB, Ohio

Kadena AFB, Okinawa

Altus AFB, Oklahoma

Tinker AFB, Oklahoma

Joint Base Charleston - Air Base, South Carolina

Shaw AFB, South Carolina

Ellsworth AFB, South Dakota

Kunsan AB, South Korea (011.82.654.470.5435)

Arnold AFB, Tennessee

Dyess AFB, Texas

Lackland AFB, Texas

Laughlin AFB, Texas

Randolph AFB, Texas

Sheppard AFB, Texas

Incirlik AFB, Turkey

Hill AFB, Utah

Joint Base Langley-Eustis, Virginia

Joint Base Lewis-McChord, Washington

F.E. Warren AFB, Wyoming

Love, Peace and Shelter. lmsp

[SQUEE]

8. .HAHAHAHA

Predominately Officers use Golf courses, mostly higher O grades.. So yeah. aint gonna happen.

[MADem]

17. That's not true--hasn't been for some time.

Middle grade enlisted and senior enlisted hit the links a lot. Junior enlisted, less so--but that's because they haven't found the place yet and they have less disposable income.

Golf has gotten less farty in the last thirty or forty years. Guys like Tiger Woods and Anthony Kim have made the sport more accessible to younger people, to say nothing of "Hell, I can do this" types like Michael Jordan. And then, there's movies like Happy Gilmore and Caddyshack that have completely changed the attitude about the "good walk spoiled."

It's not all farty old dudes and green jackets in racist country clubs anymore.

If golf courses were relying on officer dollars to sustain themselves, they'd have been screwed eons ago. The courses rely on officers, enlisted, civilian members and of course, for those tee times in the middle of the day when everyone who has a job is gainfully employed, retirees of all paygrades.

[Joey Liberal]

11. Golf is more important than education to the military

The senior officers will always have high pay, nice on-base homes and golf courses. The tax payers have been getting screwed by our pampered flag and field grade officers for a very long time. They would cut personnel, training and maintenance before closing a golf course.

[24601]

13. BXs, PXs, Golf Courses, and MWR activities are paid for with non-appropriated funds. In other words,

they are not maintained by tax revenues but by user fees. Commisaries (grocery stores) are at risk because they are funded with appropriations.

[MADem]

14. MWR instrumentalities have been "self-sustaining" since the eighties.

That whole "we pay for golf course upkeep and greenskeepers with our tax dollars" is horseshit.

With the rare exception of hardship MWR/MWA efforts in places like, say, Kandahar, all activities--from bowling alleys to military clubs to movie theaters to, yes, those golf courses--must make do and survive via user fees. The USAF does it by charging military personnel monthly dues. Other branches make it optional or throw easy money makers like sports parties or club buffets that are cheap to throw together but they make good cash off the bar. There are few exceptions--tracks and gymnasiums (and in USN installations pools where the swim test is an approved substitute on the PT test) can be subsidized, either fully or partially. So too can baseball fields and picnic grounds that are used as recreation respites for deployed personnel. But golf courses? Nope--they have to make their own way, through memberships and greens fees and pro shop sales, or be closed.

One way that MWR/MWA breaks even is through slot machines in overseas clubs. Those make a fortune. This cash is divided between the host installation and the military service MWR/A activity HQ for distribution to other places that are having a lean year.

This is why places like McDill have those "trusted civilian" programs where Petraeus et.al. got burned and caught up--the trusted civilians supplement the MWR coffers with their monthly dues and those dues go to things like greens maintenance. The civilians are urged to pay top dollar for stupid golf gear w/military logos on it, so they can be "cool kids" and "members of the club."

But it's not "your tax dollars at work" keeping those courses running. Not at all and not for many decades now.

[littlemissmartypants]

15. Still it just looks bad. eom

[MADem]

16. They look pretty good to people coming off deployment, though.

People embrace these tired old false paradigms and it's just not how things are done anymore. If it can't earn its own way, they shut it down.

Military recreation is run as a business these days. The old days of comshaw and fraud/waste/abuse are long, long gone. If all branches of the government were audited the way that MWR/MWA instrumentalities are audited, to say nothing of military post offices and the exchange/commissary system, we'd probably find a trillion dollars in savings in two shakes of a lamb's tail!

[Myrina]

7. ... and nutbags on teh Facebooks are blaming POTUS

... because of course them there illeguls from MEXICO still get tuition assistance. Hell, according to them, colleges are practically chasing immergrants and throwing money at them because POTUS likes to give stuff away for votes, which is why they're all coming here dontcha' know?


Don't get me started of the many, many moments of ridiculousness in that paraphrase.

[roxy1234]

10. What do you think the repubs gain

by structuring the cuts in a way that is very visible and causes the most hurt to many Americans? Do you think they did this so next time the American people wouldn't tolerate budget cuts?

I find it hard to believe the republicans are that stupid

[erpowers]

9. Sad

This is very sad. Someone should have made sure this (the suspension of tuition assistance) did not happen. Tuition assistance should have been exempted from sequester cuts.

Another thing that should be done is whenever Congress and the President cannot come to a budget agreement and that lack of agreement leads to budget cuts the pay of Congress and the President should be cut by 90%.