I, along with other VSO/MSO representatives, recently attended a meeting with the Honorable Anthony Tata, the Underecretary of War for Personnel and Readiness. Many topics were addressed, but I wanted to pass along some information and links to some new programs the Department is pushing out.
The first program came from findings in the latest Quadrennial Review of Military Compensation. It is designed to educate service members and their families on exactly what their total compensation includes. It includes information on items such as special and incentive pay, educational assistance programs and benefits, along with regular compensation. This new educational campaign is called the Military Compensation Educational Campaign (MCEC) and will run for 12 months. The following link will take you to the site if you are interested in learning more: MCEC Website
The second program is called the Project Patriot Pipeline, or P3. Its purpose is to consolidate fragmented career pathways, workforce development programs and training opportunities for service members and their spouses. Its goal is to serve as a centralized location for connecting service members and/or their spouses directly to mission-critical job, education and career-development opportunities by ensuring their job skills align with Department and Defense Industry needs. Here are some links you can use to explore this opportunity:
The final program of the three is SpouseWorks. This brings together career and education resources for military spouses under one umbrella to make support easier to find and use. While this site is still evolving, its goal remains to allow military spouses to enhance skills, get career advice and find jobs of interest – this program is run entirely by military spouses!
There are several programs that have been pulled together under this new framework and renamed, but there are no changes to the service, eligibility, partnerships or support that is available. Its purpose is to simply streamline and better connect spouses and the organizations that support them. Here is a link to SpouseWorks: Military Spouse Education & Career Opportunities | SpouseWorks
There were several other hot topic items that were discussed, including Dual Status Technician Elimination and The Richard Starr Act, to name a few. EANGUS is still pushing members of Congress on those items – and more. However, I wanted to provide you with the opportunity to take a look a the new programs the Department was launching and give you a chance to see if they can help you or your family out.
John Gipe
CSM, USA Retired
EANGUS Executive Director