Fry Scholarship

Surviving Dependents

• Dependents of service members who die in the line of duty after September 10, 2001
• Effective August 1, 2009
• Entitlement is generally 36 months (about 3 years) at the 100% level of the Chapter 33: Post 9/11 GI Bill® level
• May be eligible as of their 18th birthday (unless they have already graduated from high school)
• May use benefits until his/her 33rd birthday (Child can be married)

Surviving Spouse

• Spouse of service members who die in the line of duty after September 10, 2001
• Effective January 1, 2015
• Entitlement is generally 36 months (about 3 years) at the 100% level of the Chapter 33: Post 9/11 GI Bill® level
• Have 15 years to use benefit beginning on the date of the service member's death
• No longer eligible if remarry

Other factors to consider for Surviving Dependents and Surviving Spouse

If you are eligible for both FRY Scholarship and DEA, you will be required to make irrevocable election between the two programs when you apply. Dependents are not eligible to receive both DEA and the FRY Scholarship based on the same event unless he/she is a child whose parent died prior to August 1, 2011. A child of a parent who died prior to August 1, 2011, may still be eligible for both benefits, but he/she may only use one program at a time and combined benefits are capped at a total of 81 months (about 7 years) of full-time training. In this situation, the two benefit programs cannot be used concurrently.

More information about eligibility can be found at the following site: Fry Scholarships | Veterans Affairs (va.gov)

Step 1: Complete and submit the electronic VA Form 22-5490

• If you are transferring the same benefits from another school or changing your major, please complete and submit the VA Form 22-5495: Change of Place/Program form instead

Step 2: Student Submits Required Documents to the Office of Financial Aid/VA

• Veterans Basic Data Sheet
• Certificate of Eligibility or Eligibility Statement
• Primary School Letter, if student is a transient student

Step 3: Student Completes and Submits a VA Request for Enrollment Certification (Every Semester)

• During Registration Each semester, after you have completed your schedule and do not expect to make any changes, please complete the VA Enrollment Certification Request Survey.  This survey link will be sent to your Clayton State email each week after registration, until you complete the survey or until the semester ends; whichever occurs first.  When the new link is sent, the old link expires.
• If you do not submit a request, your enrollment certification will not be submitted.
• If you choose not to receive VA Educational Benefits for the current term, please complete the Request to Submit Enrollment Certification Survey and select that you do not want to submit your enrollment certification to VA.

Step 4: VA Certifying Official Submits Enrollment Certification for Required Courses

• Veterans Affairs Educational Benefits are not applicable for non-required courses nor requirements that have already been successfully satisfied, according to the program standards. 
• A Veterans Affairs Certifying Official will review the courses and compare it to the requirements of the degree program and submit the enrollment certification to VA for processing.

Changes to your Enrollment, Attendance, Charges, Financial Aid Awards (HOPE), Tuition Assistance, Majors/Minors, and such like can affect VA Educational Benefits and may result in Overpayment/Underpayment.

Benefit payments are the same as Chapter 33: Post 9/11 GI Bill®.
To calculate your benefits, please feel free to use the GI Bill® Comparison Tool.

• Tuition & Mandatory Fees: In-State tuition and mandatory fee charges are paid directly to the school and prorated according to the student’s eligibility percentage. 
• Deduct the amount of any tuition and fee waiver, scholarship, aid or assistance provided specifically for defraying tuition and mandatory fees (this includes HOPE scholarship)
• The following are not calculated in the tuition and mandatory fee charges because VA will not cover these charges: Courses that are not required for the completion of the degree program, late fees, housing, meal plans and such like
• In compliance with The Veterans Benefits and Transition Act of 2018, Clayton State University does not impose penalty to Chapter 33: Post 9/11 GI Bill® recipients due to the delayed disbursement of funds from the Department of Veterans Affairs (DVA).  Clayton State University allows eligible students to attend scheduled courses and receive on-campus services, provided that the student has submitted a copy of the approval for entitlement to education assistance under Chapter 33 (Certificate of Eligibility/Statement of Benefits).  The Certificate of Eligibility should be submitted to Clayton State University's Office of Financial Aid/Veterans Affairs.
• Book Allowance: Lump sum payment each term, paid directly to the student, up to eligibility. 
• Sometimes students may not receive their book allowance prior to the start of class; please be prepared to use other sources to initially cover the expenses of your books until VA reimburses you up to your eligibility.  (This amount cannot exceed $1000/year)
• Monthly Housing Allowance (MHA): The MHA is paid directly to the student at the beginning of the month, for the previous month’s enrollment.  MHA can only be paid while the student/spouse is not on active duty. 
• Since the Department of Veterans Affairs no longer pays for break pay, benefits for courses out applies when courses are in session.  Consider this when taking courses with different beginning and ending dates.
• Because the Monthly Housing Allowance is given directly to the student, the on-campus housing costs are the student's responsibility.  Payment/Payment arrangements must be made prior to moving in.

Benefits are based on:

• Eligibility percentage
• Rate of Pursuit
• Exclusive Distance vs. At least one on-campus course

In compliance with The Veterans Benefits and Transition Act of 2018, Clayton State University does not impose penalty to Chapter 33: Post 9/11 GI Bill® recipients nor Chapter 31: Veterans Readiness & Employment (VR&E) recipients due to the delayed disbursement of funds from the Department of Veterans Affairs (DVA).  Clayton State University allows eligible students to attend scheduled courses and receive on-campus services, provided that the student has submitted a copy of the approval for entitlement to education assistance under Chapter 33 (Certificate of Eligibility/Statement of Benefits) and/or the VR&E Counselor has provided an approval for Chapter 31 recipients (to include the current term).  The approvals should be submitted to Clayton State University's Office of Financial Aid/Veterans Affairs. 

Please be mindful of the following:

• In order to get the full Monthly Housing Allowance, up to your eligibility, student must be full time and have at least one on-campus course. 
• If student is not full time, but more than half time, then the Monthly Housing Allowance can be prorated accordingly. 
• Student does not receive a Monthly Housing Allowance if the Rate of Pursuit is not more than 50%. 
• If benefits are exhausted during the term, the amount VA pays may be affected.
• In the event that VA does not pay benefits or the expected amount, it is the student's responsibility to pay any outstanding balances.  Prior to registration, negative balances for previous terms should be paid in full. 
• Effective January 5, 2021: In adherence to Section 1019 of regulation changes, If you have a change, which resulted in an overpayment for tuition and fees, then VA will collect the debt from the school.  Please understand that the school will require that you pay any outstanding balances.  VA will copy you onto the correspondence that is sent to the school (via mail).  
  • Please understand that sometimes these notices of overpayments may not be sent until a substantial amount of time later.  It is the student’s responsibility to pay all outstanding balances.  Unfortunately, payment arrangements for previous tuition and fee debt may not be applicable.     
  • It is our standard procedure to protect Chapter 33: Post 9/11 GI Bill recipients with a Certificate of Eligibility on file from being dropped through the fee payment deadline.  Please understand that students with negative balances from previous semesters risk being dropped from courses.    
• Effective Fall 2021: Two Certification Requirement for the Chapter 33: Post 9/11 GI Bill benefits, initial enrollment certifications can be submitted prior to the No Show deadline with $0 Tuition and Fee charges.  Then, within 30-days after the school's drop/add period, we will amend the enrollment certification to include Tuition and Fee charges.  This will typically occur after the No Show reinstatements are completed.
  • Please understand how this change may affect Chapter 31: Post 9/11 GI Bill® recipients:
    • Tuition and Fees are sent to the school later; therefore, the outstanding balance may be on the student's account longer.  Please understand that this may delay when the student receives the financial aid refund, if applicable.
  • Amendment schedule to add tuition and fee charges are as follows for Fall 2023:
    • For Fall 2023 Full Sessions and First Short Sessions, submission of amendments to include Tuition and Fee charges begin on Monday 08/28/2023
    •  For Fall 2023 second short session courses, the No Shows are reported October 19, 2023; therefore, tuition and fees for section short sessions will be reported after October 23, 2023
• New Process Beginning Spring 2022
  • Students using Post-9/11 GI Bill® benefits are required to verify enrollment each month. Failure to verify for two consecutive months will impact their Monthly Housing Allowance (MHA) and/or kicker payments.    
  • The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) are encouraging students to sign up for text message verification. This will provide students a simple and convenient verification option and ensure they receive MHA and/or kicker payments uninterrupted.  After December 17, 2021, all impacted students with a US mobile phone number on file will receive an opt-in text as their next enrollment period approaches. Note: Students who do not have a US mobile phone number on file with VA will not be able to use text verification. They will be automatically enrolled into email verification.