The Fry Scholarship Program, overseen by the United States Department of Veterans Affairs (VA)
The program is designed to offer educational benefits to eligible individuals.
It extends educational assistance to the surviving spouses and children of service members who lost their lives in the line of duty after September 10, 2001.
Fry Scholarship Eligibility
You may qualify for Fry Scholarship benefits if you are the child or surviving spouse of:
- A member of the Armed Forces who died in the line of duty while serving on active duty on or after September 11, 2001.
- A member of the Armed Forces who died in the line of duty while not on active duty on or after September 11, 2001.
- A member of the Selected Reserve who died from a service-connected disability on or after September 11, 2001.
A child of a service member, you can receive the Fry Scholarship whether you are married or unmarried.
If you turned 18 or graduated from high school before January 1, 2013, you can receive the Fry Scholarship until you reach 33 years old.
If you turn 18 or graduate from high school after January 1, 2013, you can receive the Fry Scholarship at any age over 18 or after you graduate, whichever comes first.
A parent was a member of the Selected Reserve and died from a service-connected disability while not on active duty, you can receive the Fry Scholarship regardless of your age.
If your parent died in the line of duty before August 1, 2011, you may qualify for both the Fry Scholarship and the Survivors’ and Dependents’ Educational Assistance program.
However, you can only use one program at a time, and the combined benefits are limited to 81 months of full-time training.
If you receive Dependency and Indemnity Compensation, you must give up those payments when you start using the Fry Scholarship.
If you are the spouse of a service member and you remarry, you will no longer be eligible for the Fry Scholarship.
While using the Fry Scholarship, you can still receive Dependency and Indemnity Compensation payments.
Application For Fry Scholarship
Determine eligibility:
Make sure you meet the criteria for the Fry Scholarship by reviewing the specific guidelines on the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs website.
Generally, you must be the surviving spouse or child of a service member who died in the line of duty after September 10, 2001.
Gather necessary documentation:
Collect the required documents to support your application.
These may include the service member’s death certificate, VA’s determination of the cause of death, marriage certificates, birth certificates, and other relevant papers.
Complete the application:
Obtain the Fry Scholarship application form from the VA website or contact your nearest VA regional office.
Fill out the form accurately and provide all the requested information.
Include any required supporting documents.
Submit the application:
Once you have filled out the application form and gathered all the necessary documents, submit your application to the VA.
You can do this online through the VA’s website, by mail, or in person at a VA regional office.
Follow the instructions provided with the application form to ensure proper submission.
Await notification and processing:
The VA will review and process your application.
They may request additional information or documents if needed.
The processing time can vary, so be patient while waiting for a response.
Receive benefits:
If your application is approved, you will begin receiving the Fry Scholarship benefits.
These benefits can include financial support for tuition, housing allowances, and book stipends to assist you in pursuing your education.
Post Application
After submitting all the required paperwork to the Center for America’s Veterans, students’ names are forwarded to the Sponsored Students Office.
This enables the VA to make payments on behalf of the students.
A credit memo is created on the students’ account, excluding tuition from the remaining balance.
CAV reports number of hours and base tuition to initiate book and monthly housing allowance payments from the VA.
Any additional fees associated with classes and adjustments in hours, are reported to the VA after the last day to add a class.
Payments are distributed as follows:
Tuition is paid directly to the school.
Book allowance is deposited into the bank account provided during the application process approximately two weeks before the semester starts
Monthly housing allowances are also directly deposited into the bank account provided during the application process.
They are paid at the end of every month during the school semester, with deposits occurring on the last day of the month or the first day of the following month.
This payment process applies to both CH 33 and CH 35.
Monthly housing allowances are prorated for the first and last month of each semester.
Priority registration is offered to all students using benefits.
The CAV places an administrative hold on student accounts as a reminder to submit the Military Benefits Form.
This hold prevents students from registering for classes.
When pre-registration for the upcoming semester approaches, students using benefits receive an email from the office.
This email includes the military benefits form, along with the early registration date and time.