November 16, 2007 – Some returning veterans are finding that their education benefits aren’t enough to cover the high cost of college.
To help bridge the gap, financier Jerome Kohlberg, a World War II navy veteran, has established a scholarship for veterans of Iraq and Afghanistan.
The honorary board of advisers for the new Fund for Veterans’ Education includes actors Lauren Bacall, Harry Belafonte and Paul Newman; journalist Bill Moyers; author Gore Vidal; former senators Bob Dole and Warren Rudman; and former Rep. Pete McCloskey.
Kohlberg said in a statement that he has committed $4 million. The goal is to provide scholarships to at least one veteran from every state for the 2008 spring and fall semesters.
Kohlberg, a resident of Mount Kisco, is a senior founding partner of Kohlberg, Kravis, Roberts & Co., a private equity firm.
He says his own college tuition was paid in full by the GI Bill of 1944.
