Please welcome Brenna Berger, a new columnist for Blue Star Families.  Brenna is a freelance writer and the Home Front columnist for the Fayetteville Observer newspaper. A military spouse for over 12 years, she needs two hands to count the number of times her husband has deployed. She is the mother of two amazing kids.

Department of Defense officials recently announced the return - sort of - of the My Career Advancement Account program for military spouses. The program, which was abruptly shut down in February, came back on line March 13 for current participants. However, the program is not accepting new applications at this time. MyCAA offers grants of up to $6,000 for military spouses to obtain the training and education necessary to secure a portable career.

To say that the program was popular is an understatement. Defense officials claim that an "unforeseen spike" in applications - almost 95,000 in six weeks - prompted the shutdown. That the DoD failed to realize just how many spouses would jump at the opportunity to better themselves and their families remains a mystery to me.

DoD officials say they are still in the process of working out long-term options for the program. Here are a few things I hope they consider as they move forward with MyCAA 2.0:

Don't restrict eligibility by rank. A previous incarnation of MyCAA was originally only available to junior enlisted and junior officer spouses. Spouses of all ranks are affected by frequent military moves. According to the Washington State Employment Security Department, military spouses have triple the unemployment rate of their civilian peers. In the civilian world, no one cares if your husband is a specialist or a major. Employers see military spouses as transient employees. Factor in the current economic climate, and finding a good job is even more challenging.

Don't limit military spouses to certain career fields. Don't put us in a box and tell us that only certain careers are compatible with military life. I have the utmost respect for educators and health care professionals. But I have no business teaching your fourth-grader long division or taking care of your elderly mother. My talents and interests lie elsewhere. Trust each military spouse to know what career will work for her and her family.

Keep fly-by-night "schools" away from the funding. These days, it seems like anyone with a laptop and Web site can offer training for military spouses. Respect us enough to only partner with established universities, colleges and trade schools. Make sure that everyone using MyCAA funds knows the difference between a regionally accredited school and one with national accreditation. Don't set a spouse up for failure. Not all employers will accept a degree from a nonregionally accredited school.

Don't set an arbitrary "appropriate" level of education. Spouses should be able to use MyCAA funds to obtain post-baccalaureate degrees. Think it's good enough to have a bachelor's degree? Try finding a job after a decade as a stay-at-home mom with a liberal arts degree. People actually look at you with pity. A career that worked for a spouse before being married to the military may no longer be a viable option. A spouse with a college degree may need to obtain new skills in order to find adequate employment.

Lastly, work to eliminate the "If the military wanted you to have a family, they would have issued you one" mentality. One of the most disturbing aspects of the MyCAA shutdown was the vitriol aimed at military spouses in the comment sections on news Web sites. "Entitled." "Welfare program." "Stop your whining and buck up." "No sympathy here." And my personal favorite: "(Women) don't need another reason to sink their clutches into local sailors." Top military brass are always saying how important military families are to the mission. If so, stand up for the husbands and wives who stand behind their service members. Denounce the anger. After almost a decade of war, military spouses shouldn't have to prove their worth. Nor should they be vilified for taking advantage of an opportunity.

This article was originally published in the Fayetteville Observer.