VA Assistant Secretary Tammy Duckworth Gets to work

Tammy Duckworth Gets to Work


VA Assistant Secretary Tammy Duckworth speaks Tuesday at George Washington University. (Photo courtesy of VA)

It's Day 101 for President Obama, but it's only day four for Tammy Duckworth, one of the administration's most visible faces on veterans issues. The
former Illinois director of veterans' affairs and Democratic
congressional candidate won Senate confirmation last Friday to serve as
assistant secretary of public and intergovernmental affairs at the
Department of Veterans Affairs.

Today she joins President Obama and Veterans Affairs Secretary Eric Shinseki at the "White House to Light House" event with wounded service members.

Her first big project launches tomorrow, when the VA starts
accepting applications for the Post 9/11 G.I. Bill, the next-generation
educational assistance program for military veterans that will provide
payments for tuition, fees, housing, books and supplies. Interested
veterans can apply on the Post-9/11 G.I. Bill Web site, a process that should take roughly 15 minutes.

The VA will provide financial benefits to veterans based on
the highest tuition at a public university in each state, meaning the
benefits may not cover full costs at private universities.

The department's Yellow Ribbon Program
allows private institutions to commit up to 50 percent of the
difference between the maximum allotted amounts and VA will match the
difference. Duckworth's alma matter, George Washington University,
announced its participation in the program on Tuesday, committing funds
to assist 176 veterans per year.

The VA starts distributing the funds on August 1 and
Duckworth will spend the next few weeks on the road raising awareness
about the program.
"It's not just reaching the veterans. We need to reach their
families, we need to reach their spouses," she said during an interview
earlier this week.
The new job makes her the administration's public liaison to the
veteran community, but also to state and local agencies working on
veterans issues.
"I don't see the VA as having a monopoly on serving vets," she said.
"As someone who was a state director in Illinois, I was frustrated that
I had resources and was on the front lines, yet I often had a difficult
time accessing partnerships with the VA." She hopes to eliminate those
difficulties during her tenure.

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Posted by washingtonpost.com