One of the first causalities of the the federal Sequester is the Tuition Assistance (TA) program provided by the Army and Marine Corps. Following the Marines Corps lead, the Army announced on Friday, March 8th that soldiers will not be allowed to enroll in TA-funded courses after the day of the annoucement. The Marines announced on Thursday, March 7th. Both programs would not go forward after March 8th. Soldiers who are currently in courses may complete their classes, but may not pay for additional courses with TA.
Military TA programs provide up to $4,500 per year for active-duty troops who are attending high school completion courses and certificate programs, or are working toward college degrees. According to the Army, 201,000 soldiers took advantage of the Army’s TA program in fiscal year 2012. The TA program provided $373 million, helping 2,831 soldiers earn associate degrees, 4,495 earn bachelor degrees and 1,946 receive graduate degrees.
The Navy and the Air Force are considering similar cuts, but as yet, have not publicly decided to follow suit.
UW estimates this will keep 100 soldiers from using TA in the Spring Quarter across all three campuses.