Congratulations to Dr. Chris Andrew Cate, VP for Research for Student Veterans of America and GGSE alumnus, and all his colleagues at SVA and their collaborators, whose research and years of effort enabled HR 3218, the “Forever G.I. Bill,” to become law.
The “Forever G.I. Bill” was named to honor drafter of the original G.I. Bill—the Harry W. Colmery Veterans Educational Assistance Act of 2017. Thanks to the lobbying efforts of Dr. Cate and his colleagues, the Bill includes special provisions regarding veterans pursuing STEM education among the ways it improves educational opportunities for veterans. The bill passed with unusual bipartisan support, passing both the House and Senate with unanimous votes. President Trump signed the bill into law on August 16.
Since the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) started paying benefits in 2009, the Post-9/11 GI Bill has served over one million veterans, with more than half of degree-earners graduating from business, STEM or health-related programs – academic outcomes featured by SVA in peer-reviewed research released in February, 2017.
The original G.I. Bill, the rewrite during the post 9/11 era, and now with its educational benefits made permanent in HR 3218 are arguably the most consequential federal educational opportunity policies in U.S. history.
Dr. Cate served as Associate Director for the Center of Advanced Studies of Individual Differences (CASID) at UC Santa Barbara, where he continued to work with student veterans and school administrators to improve services and develop programs to benefit student veterans. He graduated from the Department of Education at the Gevirtz School with a Master’s of Arts in Research Methodology and a Doctorate ('12) in Special Education, Disability, and Risk Studies, working with his advisor Dr. Michael Gerber. His dissertation – "Student Veteran College Experiences: Demographic Comparisons, Differences in Academic Experiences, and On-Campus Service Utilization" – examined student veterans' college experiences and academic performance.