Lisa Bernheim / Picture Editor / lb320306@ohiou.edu

Connie Theobald rappels down Lindley Hall on Wednesday, Sept. 17, as part of an Ohio University Army ROTC training program. Nine of the OU program’s 95 cadets are women.

Before she joined the military, Stephanie Carr could not afford to be a full-time student at Ohio University.

The senior pre-med student juggled a waitressing job with coursework, taking a quarter off here and there to save moneyfor tuition.

“I was off and on to school because I couldn’t afford it,” Carr said.

After she joined the National Guard and Army ROTC, however, the military shouldered Carr’s tuition as well as expenses, such as books and housing. In addition to a National Guard scholarship and her monthly ROTC stipend, Carr receives about $500 a month for her living expenses through the Montgomery G.I. Bill.

“(People who qualify for educational military benefits) receive more than enough,” Carr said. “I get a lot of money. I don’t have a problem paying the bills or anything.”

Although scholarships through the National Guard or ROTC programs also help service members finance their education, the G.I. Bill is one of the longest-running forms of assistance, though it has been adjusted throughout the years.

In June, President George W. Bush signed the bill’s latest version, which takes effect in August 2009 and will expand educational benefits for veterans who have served at least 90 days of active duty since Sept. 11.  

At OU, 323 currently enrolled students have applied for educational benefits from the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs as of September, and 93 of the applicants are female, said Patrick Beatty, associate university registrar. Out of 95 Army ROTC cadets at OU, nine are women.

The U.S. military first enlisted women during World War II, which qualified servicewomen for the educational benefits included in the 1944 Service men’s Readjustment Act or G.I. Bill of Rights, said Marvin Fletcher, assistant chairman for the OU History Department. 

After the war, more than 19.5 percent of the 332,178 eligible female veterans used the bill to attend college compared to 15 percent of 15 million eligible male veterans, according to the Women in Military Service for America Memorial Foundation’s Web site.

The G.I. Bill is a resource for women striving to establish careers, and after WWII it allowed many veterans to attend college who otherwise would not have had the opportunity, said Brigadier General Wilma Vaught, president of the foundation. 

“I think we need to see what’s going to happen as a result of the recent legislation that … considerably enhanced the benefits of the G.I. Bill,” Vaught said. “I think the move upward in monetary benefits is the main thing.” It would be difficult for a veteran or service member to cover all of their education expenses under the current bill, but the updated version will increase the living stipend and tuition allowances, she said.

At OU, educational benefits are the biggest recruiting tool for the ROTC program, said Sgt. 1st Class Mark Campbell, recruiting officer for the Ohio Army National Guard.

Recruiters are responsible for informing service members about the G.I. Bill when they enlist, Carr said, adding that she is researching the new bill to figure out how it applies to her future education plans.

“If you get a really good recruiter, they’ll let you know about everything that’s out there,” she said.