Most of us are familiar with advertisements created by the United States armed forces. A major selling point in a lot of these ads is the military’s promise to help servicemen and women pay for their college education.

To me, this idea seems pretty fair. Our country owes a lot to the men and women who defend the United States through military service at home and abroad. Offering our veterans a quality education when they return home is probably the least we can do to repay them.

Since the end of World War II – and the first version of the G.I. Bill – veterans’ circumstances have changed. Due to inflation, today’s Iraq and Afghanistan veterans’ benefits just don’t go as far as they used to.

This coming August, the new G.I. Bill will take effect. This version of the bill offers benefits to those who have served at least 90 continuous days of active military duty since September 11, 2001, or those who served at least 30 days and were discharged with a service-connected disability.

What does this mean for veterans and civilians?

Most likely, it means more veterans around college and university campuses. The new bill has been updated to accommodate rising education costs, so more veterans can pursue a higher-quality education.

The college experience can be daunting for some veterans who have grown used to a military-style daily routine. Civilian students should be welcoming and respectful to veterans they meet. Some veterans don’t mind answering questions about military life, but some would prefer more privacy.

If you want to get involved, many colleges have student veteran organizations. These groups can help veterans join a community, and can allow civilian students to reach out to veterans who have sacrificed so much for the rest of us.

 Sounds like a good thing to me!