Within their proposed fiscal 2022 budget submitted to Congress last week, the United States Navy laid out funding plans for education and mental health support.
Due to criticism around the Navy’s Education for Seapower strategy—an effort to increase education across the Marine Corps and Navy—the request for postsecondary program funding decreased from $615 million in FY21 to $498 million. The Tuition Assistance (TA) program, which covers 100% of tuition and fees up to $250 per semester hour, was reduced by $6 million.
“TA was reduced as Navy leadership seeks to address the balance between future force structure, current readiness requirements and war-fighter development,” Navy officials said.
Institutions impacted include the Naval Postgraduate School, the United States Naval Academy and Naval War College.
However, not all higher education programs will encounter budget cuts. The Navy requested a $4 million increase in funding for the Naval Community College, which launched its pilot program in January to over 500 students. During FY22, the number is expected to reach 5,000 students from the Marine Corps, Coast Guard and Navy.
Funding for the Reserve Officers Training Corps is expected to also grow from $164 million to $167 million in FY22, the budget reported.
To “create a culture of excellence,” the Navy proposed a 56% increase in funding for sexual assault prevention and response training. In 2019, there were 7,825 reports of sexual assaults consisting of service members as victims or subjects, according to a United States Department of Defense study.
