By Patrick H. Donges, The Troy Record
Published: Monday, March 8, 2010

A program enacted last year that provided the spouses of soldiers with financial assistance for secondary education was suddenly suspended late last month by the U.S. Department of Defense.

The Military Spouse Career Advancement Accounts (MyCAA) program, part of the 2009 National Defense Authorization Act, provided up to $6,000 in assistance to the spouses of active duty and activated Guard and Reserve service personnel seeking training for specific careers through licensing, certification or degree programs.

On Feb. 16, the department posted notice on the program’s Web site that they would be temporarily halting its operation following a comprehensive review of program practices and efficiencies.

After a week of public outcry, the department posted an additional statement on Feb. 26.

“Although an operational assessment of the program had been planned after the first year, the assessment was intended to be transparent to MyCAA users,” it says. “The pause announced last week resulted from an unforeseen, unprecedented spike in enrollments.”

Officials said that program enrollment had grown six-fold in January, and was trending towards another exponential increase in February.

The increase pushed the program’s budget close to the maximum funds allocated for its operation.

“The way this was handled so far has been outrageous,” Congressman Scott Murphy, D-Glens Falls, said Saturday. Murphy became aware of the service suspension after several constituents planning on taking classes funded by the program.

He decried the department’s lackluster notification.

“We want them to be open with people and hopefully get it up and running,” he said.

Murphy plans to speak with House Armed Services Committee Chairman Rep. Ike Skelton (D-Mo.) about the issue.

On March 2, the Congressional Military Family Caucus sent a letter to Secretary of Defense Robert Gates asking for a specific timeframe for the hiatus.

“With 133,000 military spouses participating in this program, we are concerned with the practical impact of this ‘pause’,” the letter reads.

Andrew Teig planned to use program funds to take an Emergency Medical Technician certification course offered by Hudson Valley Community College. He was notified of the program break last week in an e-mail from his wife, a logistics officer stationed in Afghanistan.

Teig essentially quit his job in emergency services when his wife was deployed. He still works on a bi-weekly basis while taking care of their 2-1/2-year-old daughter.

“It baffles me where DoD decides to cut their funding,” Teig said, citing recent contracts and financial incentives provided to private defense personnel. “It doesn’t appear that they’re taking care of their own.”

There is still no official statement on when the program will be restored. Public inquiries can be made to the Department of Defense by calling 703 571-3343.