February 17, 2010
The Pentagon program that picks up some of the tab for military spouse career education has come to a halt, officials say.
Department of Defense spokeswoman Maj. April Cunningham said the Pentagon is “taking a comprehensive top-to-bottom program review” to ensure it is fulfilling the mandate to help spouses land jobs in “portable careers” such as construction, education, financial services, health services, information technology and real estate.
The Military Spouse Career Advancement Accounts, called MyCAA, program halt went into effect Feb. 16 when an announcement was posted on the Web site of MilitaryOneSource, which handles the program for the Defense Department.
“It’s catching us by surprise, too. We didn’t know it was coming,” a MilitaryOneSource official told Military.com today. “The spouses are calling obviously they’re very upset about this,” she said. The official who talked to Military.com asked not to be identified because she was not authorized to speak for MilitaryOneSource.
She said MilitaryOneSource is offering career counseling and helping spouses find other sources of financial aid.
In a statement released today to Military.com, Under Secretary of Defense for Military Community and Family Policy Tommy T. Thomas said the Pentagon recognizes that the military lifestyle “calls for portable careers and that military spouses need access to education and training for careers that are portable and high-growth nationally. This short-term break will allow us to better assess the program to ensure we are achieving that goal.”
To find more family resources and news visit the Military Spouse Network.
During the break, Cunningham said in an email to Military.com, no new MyCAA accounts may be created and no new financial assistance applications will be accepted during the pause. But spouses who already have a MyCAA account may continue to use program counseling support at their local installation and through MilitaryOneSource.
Cunningham said DoD has not set a date to reinstitute the program, but that officials hope to resume accepting financial assistance applications “in a few months.”
The MyCAA program provides up to $6,000 of financial assistance for military spouses in education programs leading to licenses, certificates, credentials or degree programs leading to employment in the so-called portable career fields.
Those eligible for financial assistance under MyCAA are spouses of active duty servicemembers and activated members of the National Guard and Reserve components on Title 10 orders.
Since the MyCAA program began, said Cunningham, nearly 133,000 military spouses have applied for the MyCAA program, with 98,000 currently enrolled in courses or approved for tuition assistance.
