New NC law expands higher education access for veterans, active military members and their families

RALEIGH, N.C. (WTVD) -- A new law aimed at expanding access to higher education for the military community in North Carolina took effect at the beginning of October.

Bradley Wrenn, who manages the Military and Veteran Student Success program for the University of North Carolina (UNC) System, said the law is unique.

"To my knowledge, there's not anything else like it that's happening in America," Wrenn told ABC11, specifically referring to how comprehensive this new legislation is.

The Military and Veterans Support Act provides several key benefits for service members and their families. One major provision allows military members or their spouses to have deferred admission to UNC System Schools.

That means if they have to leave North Carolina for service, their admission will still be honored upon their return.

The law also enables veterans to qualify for in-state tuition at any of the state's 16 public universities if they meet one of three criteria: having been awarded a Purple Heart, graduating high school after January 1st of 2004, or serving at least 90 days at a military installation in the state.

"Almost everybody between Fort Bragg, Camp Lejeune, Cherry Point, Seymour Johnson, almost everybody in the military has done at least 90 days at a military installation. We are a very military-heavy state," Wrenn said.

Wrenn said that in-state tuition is significant because the Post-9/11 GI Bill fully covers in-state fees and tuition, meaning many veterans could attend UNC System schools essentially for free even if they were living in a different state.

Wrenn, a former member of North Carolina's Air National Guard, is passionate about supporting military students and helping implement the new law. He also notes that the topics military members are interested in studying align closely with North Carolina's workforce needs.

"If you look at the top majors that they're interested in, they track almost identically with the critical workforce needs of North Carolina. So we're talking about health care, STEM, supply chain, logistics, business," Wrenn said.

Wrenn said the law could have a positive long-term impact on the state's economy by encouraging veterans from across the country to live and work in North Carolina after graduation.

If you want to learn more about this program or support that's being offered to military members in the UNC System, click here.