Issue 73 | 7/4/25

Happy Independence Day!

Hello, I’m Robert Wolff, Associate Director of UIC’s Office of Student Veteran Affairs.

Student Veterans Affairs provides our military-connected community with a welcoming and supportive environment via the Císar Student Veterans Center. We provide resources, assistance, and programming to ease the transition to academic life and promote academic success.  Stars and Stripes will help you stay up to date

with Federal policies, UIC Student Veterans Affairs news, events, and announcements. We thank you for being part of our community and hope you enjoy reading our newsletter. Archived newsletter editions are available on our website.

Enrollment Manager Outages
The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) is preparing for system upgrades as part of its Digital G.I. Bill (DGIB) initiative. As a result, there will be scheduled outages in July and possibly August 2025.

To avoid delays, the VA strongly encourages you to submit your Fall 2025 enrollment certifications and amendments as early as possible. Early submission will help ensure timely processing and payment—either before the updates begin or as soon as systems are back online.

Undeclared Majors
Undeclared
Students pursuing a bachelor’s degree may not have to declare a major before their junior year at some schools. The student cannot be certified beyond his or her sophomore year unless a major is declared. Only “General Education” courses can be certified prior to the declaration of a major. 

Non-matriculated Students (38 CFR 21.4252 (L) (2) and (3))
VA defines matriculation as being formally admitted to a college or university as a degree-seeking student. VA educational benefits cannot be paid to non-matriculated college or university students unless they are pending admission to your school. In that case, they can be certified for two quarters or semesters. The student can be certified beyond this two-term limit only if the student is admitted to your school as a degree-seeking student, irrespective of the number of credits taken.

Chapter 33 Dual Certification Requirement
The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs mandated a policy effective August 2021 that impacts Chapter 33 enrollment certification processing. The procedure requires what is called a dual enrollment certification. The 2nd certification must occur within 30 days after the add/drop deadline and will include tuition and fees.

Veterans Affairs Pending Payments

Effective August 1, 2019, and despite any policy to the contrary, UIC will not take any of the following actions toward any student using the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) Post 9/11 G.I. Bill® (Chapter 33) or Vocational Rehabilitation and Employment (Chapter 31) benefits, while their payment from the United States Department of Veterans Affairs is pending to the educational institution.

• Prevent their enrollment
• Assess a late penalty fee
• Require they secure alternative or additional funding
• Deny their access to any resources (access to classes, libraries, or other institutional facilities) available to other students who have satisfied their tuition and fee bills to the institution.

To qualify for this provision, students may be required to produce the VA's Certificate of Eligibility by the first day of class, provide a written request to be certified, and any additional information needed to properly certify the enrollment as described in other institutional policies.

Enrollment Certification – SVA is certifying for Fall 2025!

If you haven’t submitted your certification documents for the Summer 2025 semester, do so right away! UIC Student Veteran Affairs is currently processing dual certifications for Summer and Fall, with Fall 2025 enrollment certification underway.

Certifications are processed on a first-come, first-served basis. Submit your forms today to avoid delays.

Drop Deadlines

Familiarize yourself with the drop deadlines for the summer session. If schedule adjustments are made after an enrollment certification was submitted, notify the Student Veterans Affairs by submitting a benefit appeal form. We will make an amendment in VA-Once. Dropping a course does not require a new advisor form. However, student veterans are still required to report enrollment changes. Students with mitigating circumstances may use the benefits appeal form to provide supporting documentation.

In School and Received Orders?
If you are a Reservist or in the National Guard, inform your instructors immediately when you will be deployed or need to report for training. Fill out a benefit appeal form to update our office.

Kekulalani Keaulii, Kevin Martinez, & Cole Phillips

Kekulalani joined the Student Veterans Affairs Work Study team in March of 2022, Kevin was hired in October of 2023 and Cole became a team member in April of 2024. Student Veterans Affairs is grateful for the important contributions each has made over the years toward supporting our

Veteran and Military Affiliated community. We wish them well as they pursue their next adventure. Thank you and congratulations!

Upcoming Events
Join the Student Veterans Affairs Group to stay up to date on all our events and programs. We look forward to seeing you!

Explore Careers at the VA

Looking for meaningful work that serves those who served? VA Careers offers opportunities across the country in health care, administration, support services, and more. Whether you're a medical professional, IT specialist, or skilled tradesperson, there's a role for you at the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs.

Why work at VA?

• Competitive pay and federal benefits
• Job stability and work-life balance
• Opportunities for career growth
• A mission-driven environment supporting Veterans
  

Progressive Keys to Progress® Vehicle Giveaway

With more than a decade of giveaways, Progressive has supported over 1,100 Veteran recipients from 5 branches of the military. The Keys to Progress program helps real veterans with real struggles get the vehicles they deserve.

The Keys to Progress veteran vehicle giveaway program distributes vehicles once a year, typically in November. Submissions for the Keys to Progress vehicle giveaway program will be accepted through Friday, August 1.

Legal Aid Chicago – Veterans Legal Clinic

Legal Aid Chicago provides free civil legal representation to residents of Chicago and Suburban Cook County (statewide for migrant and human trafficking) who have limited income or special legal needs. They offer legal assistance on public benefits, including VA benefits, discharge upgrades and character of discharge reviews, and VA debt. For other civil legal aid issues, advice and referrals can be available during an appointment to receive extended representation by staff.

Eligibility requirements

• Annual income less than 80% Chicago AMI (approx. $49,000 for household of 1, $57,000 for household of 2)
• Previous or current service members with any discharge status OR spouses/children/survivors of veterans with VA-related issues

Make an appointment
To schedule an appointment, call 312-347-8340 or email. Leave your name, phone number, legal issue, and mention Jesse Brown Clinic.

Explore Legal Aid Chicago clinics.

Cook County Military and Veterans Discount Card

The Cook County Clerk’s Office now offers the Cook County Military and Veterans Discount Card. This card can be used for discounts at participating businesses. All active-duty military, national guard/reservists, and veterans with an honorable or general discharge are eligible.

Free Chicago White Sox Tickets for Veterans

The Cook County Clerk’s Office is teaming up with the Chicago White Sox to offer Cook County Veterans and active-duty military personnel who sign up for the Clerk’s Veterans Discount Card program a free ticket to a regular-season White Sox game for the 2025 season.

The offer is good for home games played Monday – Thursday. The offer excludes tickets for the game on August 27.

Apply for the program online, by mail, or at the Clerk’s Veterans Affairs Office. Visit Cook County Clerk’s Office to learn more.

Free CTA Rides

Active U.S. military personnel in uniform and qualified disabled veterans with a Military Service Pass can ride free on CTA buses and trains. To apply, submit the Military Pass Program Application and required documents by mail or visit the Ventra Customer Service Center at 567 W. Lake St., 2nd Floor, Chicago.

The Císar Student Veterans Center (CSVC) is located on the second floor of Student Center East (SCE) room 248. Go through the Inner Circle food court, turn right (west) at the entrance to the Wellness Center, go past the Wellness Center front desk down the hall through the Commuter Student Resource Center, and you will see the CSVC entrance on the back wall.

Check out this step-by-step guide to the center: VIDEO

Císar Center Summer Hours:
Monday through Friday (by appointment only), 10:00 AM - 3:00 PM
Call 312-413-5112 to schedule an appointment


Contributing Editor: Nicolle Velasquez

828 S Wolcott Ave | Chicago, IL 60612 US

This email was sent to mia123@uic.edu.
To continue receiving our emails, add us to your address book.

View this email online.