BEDFORD – Lawrence County Veterans Affairs Officer Brad Bough shared information about scholarship opportunities for the children of disabled veterans, Purple Heart recipients, or prisoners of war during the Lawrence County Commissioners’ meeting Tuesday morning.
“The scholarships will allow a student to attend 124 hours at a state-supported college for free,” added Bough. “It will allow $5,000 to attend a non-state supported college.”
Bough also noted that any High School juniors wanting to attend a military academy need to apply now.
The five service academies include:
- United States Military Academy in West Point, N.Y.
- United States Naval Academy in Annapolis, Md.
- United States Coast Guard Academy in New London, Conn.
- United States Merchant Marine Academy in Kings Point, N.Y.
- United States Air Force Academy in Colorado Springs, Colo.
“They don’t want to wait,” Bough added. “My office can help them apply.”
The Indiana Department of Veterans Affairs administers three state aid programs for tuition and fee exemption through ScholarTrack. Students must be eligible for the resident tuition rate to use these programs.
Bough and his staff will help any Lawrence County high school student needing assistance applying.
“I will help in any way I can,” Bough says. “These scholarships make a difference in a child attending college or not having that opportunity.”
Teens or their parents can call his office at 812-275-6411 to ask questions or schedule an appointment.
Tuition and Fee Exemption for the child(ren) of a disabled veteran or POW/MIA or Purple Heart recipients – These are the documents needed to determine eligibility:
- Proof of relationship to the veteran.
- DD214 shows a veteran’s wartime service or award of service, campaign, or expeditionary medal if all active duty was during peacetime and equally hazardous duty was performed. If the student is applying as the child of a Purple Heart recipient or child of a POW and the veteran is not service-connected disabled, proof of award of the Purple Heart or POW status
- VA Award Letter of service-connected disability rating.
Tuition and Fee Exemption for Indiana Purple Heart Recipients – These are the documents needed to determine eligibility:
- Proof of award of the Purple Heart Medal if not annotated on the DD214 or DD215
- DD214 showing an Indiana Home of Record address at the time of entry
Tuition and Fee Exemption for Former Students of the Morton Memorial High School/Soldier’s and Sailor’s Home.
- IDVA will verify the student’s attendance at the Morton Memorial High School from the cumulative list IDVA has on file. No documents need to be uploaded when applying for this program.
All students must file a free Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) application before applying for this benefit in ScholarTrack. The FAFSA information is fed into ScholarTrack, making the application process easy.
How to Apply online through ScholarTrack
All students should create an account in ScholarTrack. Once the account is verified, the student can access their account and apply for the appropriate state aid program. Parents cannot apply for the student it must be completed under the student’s account.
Before the student applies, proof of relationship to the veteran parent must be uploaded, or the application cannot be processed. A birth certificate, Consulate Report of Birth Abroad, or appropriate adoption paperwork are all acceptable.
All documents must list the veteran parent. If available, upload proof of Indiana residency if needed.
