Ron Avi Astor - The Military Familys Parent Guide for Supporting Your Child in School

Ron Avi Astor, Linda Jacobson, Rami Benbenishty
Julie A. Cederbaum, Hazel R. Atuel, Tamika Gilreath, Marleen Wong, Kris M. Tunac De Pedro, Monica Christina Esqueda, and Joey Nuez Estrada Jr.

As we were writing this book, the war in Iraq officially ended, and a date has been set for withdrawing troops from Afghanistan.

Public support for successful reunions between U.S. service members and their families should be strong, so that our men and women in uniform can make smooth transitions to life back at home. Some parents returning from deployments will be looking for new careers in the face of downsizing, while others will be training for future assignments overseas. These can be stressful times for military families.

Public schools can potentially provide a setting in which children can feel a sense of security. A bedrock. A consistent, safe place. Those are the words one principal we talked to used to describe what school should be for children in military families, no matter what is going on at home, no matter where you are in the deployment cycle.

We have worked with many military-connected school districts in developing this guide. On a regular basis, we heard stories of how resilient military children areable to quickly adjust to new schools, new friends, and shifting academic demands. And weve witnessed the love and professionalism in these supportive public schools.

But resiliency isnt necessarily an inborn trait. These fantastic schools are fostering strength, courage, and a sense of pride in these students. They honor and celebrate the many layers of sacrifices made by these families. They are making sure a friendly face is there to greet students when they enroll. They are giving them opportunities to talk about the places they have lived. And they are hiring professionals trained to respond during tough times, so childrenmany of whom have had to take on adult responsibilities in their homes while a parent is awaycan focus on being students.

In searching across the country for good ideas, evidence-supported practices, and grassroots efforts, weve learned that school communities can help to relieve some of the stress on military families. Great schools can help military students and families thrive, provide an extra sense of connectedness, and lend a helping hand when needed.

Schools have generated creative ideas to welcome military children. For example, one school created a friendship garden so military children could literally, and figuratively, put down some roots in their new school and feel more connected.

When another school asked military children to serve as tour guides and buddies to incoming students, the transition period went much more smoothly and parents felt less anxious about their childrens first days in a new place. And others hosted morning coffee chats for military parents so they could get better acquainted and share ideas for supporting each other.

These are simple practicesbut they are practices that can be implemented by any school, and that can create positive experiences for children who move an average of nine times before they graduate from high school.

This book was created by a diverse team of professionals at the University of Southern California. Our research included hours of interviews with military families, model school principals, excellent teachers, and military school liaison officers, as well as observations of programs that are working well. We also carefully integrated research, reviewed the literature, searched the Internet, and explored the work of national organizations in selecting the most beneficial practices, programs, and resources to present.

Our deepest hope is that this book provides you with practical and eye-opening ideas for supporting your children through the transitions they will face and for helping your school community better understand your familys challenges and contributions. We hope civilians will recognize that military culture is an important diversity group to include in curriculum and school climate reform. Ultimately, caring, supportive, culturally appropriate, and thoughtful school environments could radically change the lives of all students, but even more so for those who have endured so much.

All of the royalties from the sale of this book are being donated to nonprofit, education-oriented organizations benefitting military children.

This guide seeks to make public schools more supportive of military families. We first want to thank the military families who have sacrificed so much for our country. We thank you for your contributions to our society and to our world. Military families and children are strong, proud, and resilient. We saw and heard this every place we went. Many of the ideas generated in this guide originated from educators who themselves had a military family member or who have served. We thank them for their continued commitment.

The authors wish to sincerely thank the many citizens and professionals in school districts, government, the military, and in nonprofit organizations who have shared their best practices so we could include them in this guide. We especially want to thank the school liaison officers from all branches of the military who work tirelessly to improve school experiences for military children.